The Botanist Birmingham Chicken and Chorizo Pie Review

Laura and the pies!

It’s now just over a year since The Botanist opened their doors in Birmingham, immediately becoming one of the better pie producers in the heart of Birmingham with a range of pies available on their menu. So when I was invited recently to go back and rate one of their other pies – the chicken and chorizo pie, which I’d had my eye on in the past – I certainly wasn’t going to say no!

I’d been told the pies had been improved since my visits to rate the Steak and Lamb Hotpot pies last year, so I eagerly awaited my visit! On top of that I’d arranged to meet up with award winning Birmingham blogger Laura from Full to the Brum (yep, she loves food puns as much as we do!) as it was British Pie Week and because, well, pie not?! Fans of her blog will know Laura enjoys a good pie too, and has put us to shame by doing her review on what she thought of the pie (having had the same one as me) a few weeks ago! There were some very positive comments in her review, even if she did chicken out a bit by not giving a pie rating! (This in spite of me taking a full “Pierateer in Training” pack with me!!!) No such worries here though – this is what we thought of The Botanist’s Chicken and Chorizo pie:

Hope Laura @FulltotheBrum forgives me for being a few minutes late when she sees her #PierateerInTraining pack! pic.twitter.com/umDuhmHNgv

— Pierate (@pierateers) March 8, 2016

As previously mentioned I had already tried the Lamb Hotpot pie back when The Botanist had only recently opened, which sadly fell down on our criteria as it was a mash-topped “pie” with pastry sides and base. However I had a much more enjoyable and filling ex-pie-rience in the form of a fully encased Steak and Stout pie the last time I went, which scored 4.5/7. There was however some room for improvement still and I’m delighted to say that The Botanist has delivered on a number of our recommendations.



Botanist Chicken Chorizo Pie Review

The clearest improvement was that of the packed capacity and content, which was far better filled and more enjoyable in this Chicken and Chorizo pie. There could have been a little more chicken, but overall this scored a lot better in this new pie. In fact, the scores had improved in nearly every one of our 7 Cs of pie rating, even if it must be remembered this is a different flavour pie filling.

Botanist Chicken Chorizo Pie cross-section

The colour was improved too, a lot more golden on the top and sides even if a little too crisp in places, and while the filling was a slightly shocking bright orange, this was understandable due to the flavours involved! The oozy orange sauce complemented the big chunks of chicken and chorizo (in fact, it was unusual to get such big pieces of chorizo in a pie, as normally they are tiny or even undetectable in pies I’ve rated before!), even if this did mean the larger pieces of chorizo were a bit chewy! However this is expected of the meat, so I can’t really fault it for this!

The condition was pretty good, again well-presented and golden, crisp and well made. The flavours were good – chicken and chorizo is a classic combo! And for £10.95 this meal is quite reasonable for a city centre meal, even if there are a few slightly cheaper options out there. I’d happily recommend it and look forward to trying the other pies on their menu too!

The Botanist Birmingham Chicken and Chorizo Pie
Score: 5.5/7
[Colour 6, Capacity 6, Consistency 5, Condition 5.5, Chewiness 5, Cheapness 5, Content 6]

RAS

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The Botanist Birmingham Steak and Stout and Lamb Hotpot Pie Reviews

Living in the UK’s second city, I sometimes take for granted how many great pies I have on my doorstep in Birmingham. Sure, it’s never going to match London for the number of pie shops – especially with a lack of Traditional London Pie and Mash shops! - but there are certainly more than a fair share of pie pubs in Birmingham! And one new pie provider on the market in Birmingham is The Botanist.

The Botanist Steak and Stout Pie Review

Opened in March 2015, The Botanist has already become a top spot for the trendy young professionals of Britain’s Second City. Following a £1.2million refit of Cheltenham House on Temple Street in the City Centre, the Botanist boasts a wide range of “home comforts” – which of course makes it no surprise that they have a range of pies on the menu. Four, in fact, when I visited this weekend just gone.

Having already tried the Lamb Hotpot pie a few months back when The Botanist had only recently opened, a mash-topped pie review I will get to shortly, I returned again on Sunday and had a much more enjoyable ex-pie-rience in the form of a fully encased Steak and Stout pie.

It is worth noting that The Botanist is one of the most beautifully decorated restaurant venues I have ever eaten in, especially in Birmingham. It’s really clear how much thought and time has been put into the small details here, all keeping brilliantly to the flowery theme. Drinks served in watering cans and flower pots, plus starters served in trowels, give an indication of the quirky attention to detail put into the décor and the live music is another of the many things going right for the place. They've clearly planted a great idea and it’s now blooming.

The Botanist Kitchen - Where the magic happens!

The Botanist Steak and Stout Pie Review

I must however confess therefore that while I did enjoy the Steak and Stout pie at The Botanist, it did struggle to live up to the high standard set by the décor and friendly staff. The pie came out on a flowery plate and was well presented, but it was rather pale and the pastry crumbled quite easily upon cutting. Opening the pie up, the capacity was quite limited – approximately half filled – and by the end of the meal there was definitely a poor filling:pastry ratio, with a reasonable amount of left over pastry.

It was a shame really, because the filling itself was quite nice. The meat was lovely and flavoursome – even if I have preferred some other steak and ale pies to this stout filling – and I was therefore longing for a more meatilicious content to the pie! It was quite consistent throughout, with very little padding out. I would therefore happily eat this pie again, but would want a meatier filling for piefection. At £10.95 for the pie meal of pie, chips, mushy peas and gravy this was quite a reasonable price for the meal in lovely city centre locale but I have had better value restaurant pies for the price.

The Botanist Birmingham Steak and Stout Pie
Score: 4.5/7
[Colour 4.5, Capacity 4, Consistency 5, Condition 5, Chewiness 5, Cheapness 4, Content 4, Total: 4.5/7]

The Botanist Lamb Hotpot Pie Review

The Lamb Hotpot Pie was eaten a few months ago with pie friends Caroline and Justin. However there was an unfortunate mix up with the waiter, because even though I had checked with him all the pies were fully encased (having had a hunch this lamb hotpot pie might have a more potato bias) I was assured they were and yet was still presented with a mash-topped Lamb Hotpot pie! Lesson learnt: Always trust your pie instinct!!!

It cannot however take away from the fact it was a very nice meal, even if I again thought the pie was a bit lacking in meaty content. The lamb however was very nice and the flavours of the pie worked well together. It cannot however compare in capacity and condition to a fully encased pie offering, meaning although this was a nice meal, it was not really a proper pie. There was also too much potato in this meal, with the very nice chips adding to the potato topping the pie to be a bit of a carb overload. There was also a lack of gravy in the pie, so while it was moist it could have been a little more gravy focused. Once again I would eat this meal a second time, but would not call it a pie!

The Botanist Birmingham Lamb Hotpot Pie
Score: 3.71/7
[Colour 4.5, Capacity 3, Consistency 4, Condition 3, Chewiness 5, Cheapness 3, Content 3.5, Total: 3.71/7]


All in all, I have to say that The Botanist is a lovely place to visit and eat in – somewhere I hope to visit many more times in the future. It does sell some decent pies, though they perhaps aren’t the pie-light of the menu and staff perhaps need to do a bit more digging around if they are going to plant an award-winning pie we would highly recommend! Just goes to show how hard it can be trying to reach piefection!

RAS

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