Valentine's Day at Turtle Bay- AD (Gifted)

It’s that time of year where we declare our undying love to our partners, boyfriends and girlfriends. Whether you buy a gift or go out for a swanky meal, it’s a great excuse to celebrate! 

When Queensgate Shopping Centre got in touch and asked me to review Turtle Bay for Valentine’s Day I was thrilled and couldn’t wait to try a classic Valentine’s meal with a Caribbean twist. 

If you have read some of my previous posts on Turtle Bay, you will know just how much I love the explosive Caribbean spices and flavours in every dish and this meal was no exception. But first- cocktails! 

Turtle Bay does a fantastic array of cocktails to suit everyone’s palette and with Happy Hour too, you can get 2 4 1 on cocktails! I let Chris choose my cocktail as there were so many amazing flavour combinations, I just couldn’t decide. He picked the Vanilla and Passion Fruit Mojito with Cockspur rum which tasted like a little dessert and was rather delicious! Being designated driver, Chris went for a Sky Juice- an alcohol free cocktail but was equally scrumptious and contained a frozen blend of pomegranate, pineapple, orange and lemon juices. 

As a Valentine’s setting, Turtle Bay is pretty perfect. The chilled Caribbean music playing under the twinkling fairy lights, teamed with delicious cocktails is difficult not to be romantic and to keep with the romantic theme, we opted for a sharing platter to start. We went in with all the spice- choosing the Just Jerk Platter and it sure did not disappoint! 

We were greeted by marinated jerk wings, glazed pork ribs, beef patty, jerk chicken flatbreads, sweet corn fritters and a super green salad. The flavour combinations were SO GOOD and the green salad was perfect for adding some freshness to the dish. Once again I found I was really rather taken with the sweetcorn fritters which were spicy and beautifully crispy whilst the jerk chicken wings were juicy, flavoursome and so tender they fell off the bone! 

With our main meals we both chose something we’ve never had from the menu. I went for the Jerk Salmon (which you can also order plain if you’re not a fan of spice) and Chris chose the One Pot Curry Goat. I must admit I was a little jealous of Chris’ choice as for a cold winters night it looked, smelt and tasted (I had to try it!) incredible and made for the perfect winter warmer! The rich and spicy goat dish comes with coconut rice ‘n’ peas, sweet plantain and to top it off, dumplings- perfect for dipping in the gorgeous curried sauces. 

My Jerk Salmon did not disappoint either. All the meats and fish at Turtle Bay are marinated for 24 hours in the signature jerk mix they use so you can rest assure your meat will taste amazing! I also upgraded my salad to the beach salad which included watermelon, pomegranate and mango. It was so refreshing and made a change from the traditional green salad for sure. 

Once again we felt suitably stuffed from eating two courses and as much as my second stomach wanted to order dessert, I resisted. For our cocktails, a sharing platter and two mains, the bill came in at the £50 mark which just goes to show you don’t have to blow the bank to celebrate Valentines plus you will get a really tasty and serious filling meal too! 

Whatever your budget or tastes, there is something for every couple on the menu and over the Valentine’s period there are 4 courses for £25.00 per person. Whether its a Caribbean sharing platter, a hot curry or your favourite West Indian pudding, Turtle Bay have got it all covered. They also have hand-selected cocktail and drinks pairings to complement each course and this is all available from 6th-17th February. Check out the Valentine’s Day Menu here.

All in all, both Chris and I are feeling the love for Turtle Bay. We had such a lovely date night and a brilliant time celebrating Valentine’s.

Have you booked your table yet? 

Our meal at Turtle Bay was paid for with vouchers gifted to me by Queensgate Shopping Centre in exchange for a blog post and review. My views are honest and my own.

A date night with some Jerk at Turtle Bay*

Yet again I find myself drawn to some Jerk and by that I don't mean Chris is a crappy husband. I'm of course talking about jerk seasoning; in particular at Turtle Bay.

Back in June I had a real privilege of attending the preview meal for the opening of Turtle Bay in Peterborough (which you can read about here).

Since then I've been itching to go back with Chris and experience the restaurant when it's in full swing and try out some more of their delicious cuisine and of course the cocktails.

2'4'1 cocktails run until 7pm which make them kind of perfect for pre-dinner drinks as well as pleasing your inner rum pirate and I took no time to decide on a Marley Mojito to start before moving onto Carribbean Pimms and Bahama Mamas which all have fantastic flavours to give you Caribbean vibes.

When I went before we had taster platters to try several things on the menu at once but this time I had the joy of enjoying each course in its entirety. To start, Chris chose the duck rolls: Slow roasted shredded duck, with sweet onion, soy sauce & chilli, stuffed in toasted rolled flatbread, served with sour orange chutney and I opted for the garlic and chilli pit prawns.

I have to say I hands down had the best starter and Chris was uber jealous. His duck rolls were delicious- there's no doubt about that but the prawns were just incredible. The whole shell king prawns are grilled over Turtle Bay's jerk pit, and tossed in a herb & chilli garlic butter with roti flatbread.

The flavours just explode in your mouth with the perfect balance of spice and garlic. The prawns were large and meaty and the flatbread was wonderfully soft and warm.

Oh god why I decided to write about this amazing food on the first day of my diet I don't know because right now I am craving a Turtle Bay takeaway. That's a thing by the way!

So the starters were a huge success and we were excited for our next course. Chris went for a classic Caribbean slow cooked one pot and went for the Curry Shrimp, King Prawn and Mango which also includes sweet potato, sweet onion chutney, steamed rice and a roti flat bread. And because Chris has a big appetite, he had a side of cheesy jerk fries which of course I had to sample- just to check for poison obviously....ahem...

I decided to go for a dish from the jerk pit bbq  section of the menu; that I wouldn't normally chose and something I felt would be a challenge to be Caribbean- jerk sirloin steak. I mean it couldn't have that much of a Carribbean twist on it...right? It's steak and chips! Well I ate my words and my steak as I was very very wrong!

The jerk pit grilled prime sirloin steak came served with spiced fries, a dressed salad & sweet onion chutney, fresh green seasoning all in a creamy coconut jerk sauce.  I asked for my steak medium rare and as you can see it was cooked to perfection.

The grilled steak and green seasoning, mixed in with the spicy fries definitely shouted Caribbean flavours and the salad certainly packed a punch too, full of life and flavour. It definitely was a unique dish that doesn't even compare to your bog standard steak and chips- it's on a totally different level.

The final course to finish our Caribbean date was dessert. If you read my post on the preview menu, you'll know I was really blown away and impressed by the puddings so it was inevitable I'd have to indulge once more...

Chris chose the Caymans upside down rum cake which was warm right through with a fabulous kick of rum caramel and ice cream to accompany it. Again I sampled it just to check it wasn't poisonous and could definitely picture eating it as a winter warmer when the colder months come.

I chose the banana and toffee cheesecake because well obviously cheesecake is life and I was again daring the desserts to disappoint me. I love banana but as a flavouring sometimes it can be rather overwhelming so I was dubious that this would be the case but yet again Turtle Bay nailed the flavours. This triple layered cheesecake had crispy biscuit base with incredibly soft creamy cheese that had a very subtle yet delicious hint of banana running through with the toffee.

I audibly made a noise of appreciation followed by lots of nodding to show my enjoyment of this dessert. It definitely was the perfect way to round off the meal even if I was crazy full by the end of it.

Once dinner was finished we were left to enjoy more cocktails and each others company on the rest of our Caribbean date night.

Returning to the restaurant was a real pleasure and the staff were just as attentive and wonderful as they were on the preview night. I left again feeling well fed and full of rum and cannot wait to go back. I'm actually going again in a few weeks with my colleagues so will get to experience the Caribbean social hub in another atmosphere once again.

If you haven't been to Turtle Bay yet I urge you to go. It's fast becoming one of my favourite places.

Turtle Bay comes to Peterborough*

A brand new Caribbean bar and restaurant has landed in Peterborough that's got me pretty stoked. Turtle Bay has come to town and lets just say I was extremely thrilled to be invited to their VIP preview dinner.

Set behind the New Look store in Queensgate, this 180 seat restaurant is something to be excited about. With over 40 rums behind the bar, my inner pirate was released as I tried a variety of cocktails on the menu. Who knew I liked rum so much!? Every cocktail told a different story and the flavours all worked harmoniously together. My favorites had to be the Marley Mojito  and as recommended by our fab waitress- Bahama Mama which I wouldnt have normally gone for but it tasted delicious.

Another thing to note is you can book a table purely for drinks! Making it the perfect destination for a cocktail night- squee!! And it gets better- they have Happy Hour 2 for 1 on cocktails!! It's available from 11:30am to 7pm then  9.30pm until closing time Sunday to Thursday and 11:30am to 7pm then 10pm until close Fridays and Saturdays.

Whilst sipping a cocktail or two, three, four, we nibbled on Jamaican jerk nuts and Jam Rock spiced popcorn with tangy lime flavours.

Food is at the heart of the Turtle Bay experience just like it is within the Caribbean culture. Looking at the amazing menu we wondered how we'd be able to pick just one thing but little did we realise we were in for a treat of sampling each of their best dishes.

The eclectic cuisine has something to offer for everyone. Not a big fan of spice? Not to worry- there are some aromatic choices on the menu that won't blow your socks off. There's of course some fiery foods and a great selection for veggies too! I found I was really rather taken with the sweetcorn fritters which were spicy and beautifully crispy too. Overall, there is a vast variety of bold flavours and rustic dishes, all inspired by the laid back, social outlook of the Caribbean. Some of the signature dishes we sampled were their famous jerk chicken and curried goat, but there is plenty for all palettes to choose from including a new burger menu which I am definitely trying on my next visit.

If you're not feeling the sit down service, Turtle Bay offers take out too which is perfect for a Friday night in with the girls or a date night!

The atmosphere at Turtle Bay is all about relaxing with loved ones and enjoying the lively soulful feel of the place over dinner or drinks. Both Chris and I felt right at home as soon as we entered with staff being incredibly attentive and eager to suggest what would make our dining experience perfect. We even had the head chef come and speak to us to get our opinion on the dishes he had prepared.

When the dessert course came out, I have to say I was dubious... Could Caribbean dessert really be pulled off? I immediately thought of an Indian restaurant with fantastic main courses but forever the disappointing dessert. Was this final course going to let the Caribbean dream down? In short- No. If I could have some more of that Rum and Raisin bread pudding right now I absolutely would. It was so warm and soft and uber comforting! Infused with dark rum and mixed in with cinnamon, brown sugar and raisins, it was absolute perfection and went perfectly with a cocktail and cool vanilla icecream. The dark chocolate brownies were melt in the mouth and totally divine and the Spiced rum and chocolate pot certainly packed a punch!!

After all this cracking food we were feeling suitably stuffed but chuffed to have tried the fantastic menu. The only thing left to do was try a few more cocktails. I mean, it'd be rude not to right?

Chris is something of a rum lover so was asking the staff about the varieties of rum available. They were incredibly knowledgeable having had to try everything on the menu as part of their training and giving a real insight into the flavours and origins of each liquor.

I however was well on my merry way so left Chris to try neat rum whilst I stuck to pretty cocktails and sitting at the bar!

The bar and restaurant itself will easily make you forget you're in the centre of Peterborough and whisk you away to a Caribbean beach front with twinkling fairy lights and rustic decking.

Overall I cannot rate Turtle Bay highly enough. It's definitely going to be my main source for dinner, drinks and get togethers with friends and family in Peterborough and I cannot wait to return! It opens tomorrow- Sunday 25th June so be sure to get yourself booked in pronto for the Caribbean dream!