Frérot at Cambridge Street Collective: Sheffield's best value fine dining restaurant with a difference

Juke & Loe restaurant got rave reviews first on Sheffield’s Ecclesall Road, where it began life in 2017, and then at its new home in the old Milestone gastropub in Kelham Island.

I never got to sample the contemporary British cuisine that left Guardian food critic Jay Rayner drooling and earned a place in the Michelin Guide, which praised the ‘quality’, ‘fuss-free’ cooking there.

So when brothers Joseph and Luke Grayson - on whose names the old restaurant’s moniker was a playful twist - announced their third coming at the newly opened Cambridge Street Collective food hall in Sheffield city centre, I was determined to see what all the fuss was about.

The culinary siblings are doing things a bit differently at Frérot - the colloquial French term for brother.

Diners are seated around an elegantly designed chef’s table and get to watch the magic happen before them in the centrally located kitchen, where the sharing plates are prepared.

But all the elements which made the brothers’ previous ventures so successful are present - the seasonal menu combining quality ingredients and classic techniques with modern creativity, stylish but simple presentation, and a refreshing lack of pretentiousness.

Frérot stands out at Cambridge Street Collective, with its fine dining a notch above the still delicious globally inspired dishes served up by the myriad other street food vendors.

But the friendly, laid-back approach to cooking makes it a good fit at the new foodie destination, where aromas from around the world mingle temptingly in the air.

We’d heard great things about the brothers’ signature freshly baked focaccia bread, served here with a beef fat and marmite butter, and it didn’t dissapoint.

The bread was perfectly seasoned, with a fluffy centre and satisfying crunch to the crust, while the butter delivered an intense meaty hit.

The quality didn’t let up when it came to the flat iron steak, smothered in a velvety, rich bearnaise sauce, with mouthwatering truffle and parmesan fries on the side.

The beef was meltingly tender and perfectly cooked if you like your steak rare, as it always should be in my opinion.

The spiced monkfish was also immaculately cooked, with the meaty flesh imaginatively complemented by the sweet and slightly sour tomato and kimchi salsa, though the promised spice could perhaps have been more pronounced.

The tenderstem broccoli with almonds, chilli, anchovy, parmesan and garlic was a revelation too, elevating the humble brassica to new heights.

For dessert, we shared the lemon meringue with crème fraîche sorbet, honey and white chocolate, and our only regret was having to share the refreshingly light and tangy concoction.

Our bill came to £77.50, including a glass of pinot grigio, which I felt represented excellent value for such quality cooking.

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Frérot is the perfect spot at which to celebrate a special occasion, especially with the sense of theatre you get sitting at the counter and watching the chefs whisk up the bearnaise sauce and torch the meringue.

For more affordable everyday dining, there’s a takeaway menu, which when we visited included a bavette steak sandwich made with the outstanding focaccia for a very reasonable £14 and crispy monkfish scampi loaded fries for £12.

Fans of Juke & Loe will not be disappointed, and the Grayson brothers’ latest venture is sure to win them many new converts.

For more about Frérot, and to book, visit: https://www.frerot.co.uk/