I was lucky enough to be treated to a meal at Drum and Monkey, Harrogate when my family were visiting earlier in the month. I absolutely adored Drum and Monkey last time I visited and I was excited to visit the place again. Drum and Monkey is a popular seafood restaurant in the Montpellier Quarter of Harrogate. The interior and exterior of the place remind me very much of traditional restaurants like you’d see in films and I really hope it doesn’t change under new ownership (part of the enjoyment I get from eating in lovely restaurants is taking in my surroundings).

When we visited it was at the start of the heatwave and I had spent the day at the Yorkshire Show in the heat so I wanted to keep my meal light. I basically just photographed my own meal as I didn’t want everybody’s food to get cold!

To start with I had queen scallops with garlic butter and Gruyère. This was absolutely fabulous. The scallops were perfectly tender and the cheese and garlic butter flavours complimented the scallops perfectly. I could have eaten a small mountain of this!

To follow I had a cold seafood platter which included tuna, langoustines, razor clams, smoked salmon, crab claws and lots and lots of different types of prawns. This was amazingly fresh and light. My dad had the same thing as me and he remarked that it was the first time he’d had a razor clam that wasn’t chewy. I agree that everything was perfectly cooked. I also was pleasantly surprised at how much crab meat you can get from one claw! This was such a perfect summer dish, so light and refreshing.

If you’re visiting Harrogate and want a seafood restaurant to visit, or you live in Harrogate and want to go somewhere special for a meal, you can’t go wrong with Drum and Monkey.

The Drum and Monkey website is currently under construction but you can also visit their Facebook page.