Turtle Bay Norwich Preview Dinner

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission should you make a purchase using a link I have included. All affiliate links will be denoted by an asterix (*), so you'll know exactly when a link is an affiliate link. Don't worry though, using these links won't cost you any more money and I only ever promote things that I think my readers would love. Thank you for supporting my blog! You can read my full disclaimer here. 

---

  

Turtle Bay opened its first restaurant in Norwich this week and last Thursday, I was lucky enough to attend the preview dinner with some other lovely bloggers and press to see what Turtle Bay is all about. The restaurant is located on Swan Lane in the Norwich Lanes and it certainly can't be missed with its turquoise exterior!
Inside the restaurant is no different, with graffiti paintings and twinkly lights, the decor itself  is definitely something to go and see! There is an eye-catching campervan in the centre of the restaurant which has been split in half to offer around 4 tables. I have a feeling the campervan tables will be in high demand! There are also other sections and booths in the restaurant which have all been decorated with different paintings and objects. There are lots of halogen signs throughout the restaurant also, which makes it really quirky and lively. On arrival, we were greeted at the bar (which looks like an island hut!) with a rum punch, made with Dark Rum & Passoa- passionfruit liqueur, fresh passionfruit, orange juice and lemon. It was truly delicious, even if I did feel like my hand was going to fall off because it was served in such a cold glass! As we mingled, we were brought round seasoned chickpeas and sweet potato fries, and thats when we got chatting to Christie and her partner, James. I'd met Christie before at other blogging events so it was lovely to have another catch up and we all got on so well that we decided to sit together when the sit down meal started.

The cocktails were flowing all night long and between us, we probably nearly tried the whole menu! We tried a Jumbled Julep first of all, which was a very fruity tasting cocktail made with White Rum & Passoa, Strawberries, Mint and Apple. If you weren't a rum fan, you had the option of changing the spirit to vodka, which I thought was a nice touch. Next, I had a Mojito, although having looked at the menu since I wish I would have asked for the Vanilla and Passion fruit Mojito as it sounds delicious! My Partner, Ruben, tried a 'One Love', which was made with Blackwell Rum, Passionfruit Liqueur, fresh Passionfruit and Coconut served in a Martini glass, garnished with half a passionfruit. 

 I obviously had a sip, and I can definitely say it's one of my favourites as it's very sweet and tastes lovely and fresh. There were a couple of other cocktails that we tried, but I can't for the life of me remember what they were called (Sorry!). Turtle Bay has a really extensive cocktail menu, so i'd definitely recommend going there, if only for a drink, as their happy hour runs 11.30am-7pm and then 10pm 'till close.

For our starter, we were served the 'Beach Food Platter' (£12.95) which included a selection of popular starters perfect for sharing. On the platter were Spicy Jerk Chicken Wings, Pepper Roti, Sweetcorn Fritters and Garlic 'n' Herb flatbreads. My favourite part of the stater was probably the Sweetcorn Fritter! All the components of the starter were quite spicy but it was great to be able to try a variety of the starters on offer as all of the individual tasters are available individually. Other starters which caught my eye are the Chilli Squid, Jerk Pit Prawns and Island Bait, which are all £5.10. 

After the starter was cleared we were served the next course which was Turtle Bays famous Curry Goat, served with rice 'n' peas and Caribbean dumplings. Being totally honest, I didn't try the Goat as it’s not something I want to eat personally, however others on the table said it was tender and succulent- tasting just like Beef! I did however try the sauce, which was a bit like a gravy with curried spices, scotch bonnet, citrus juice and ginger. I wouldn't have chosen this as my main myself, however I did enjoy the dumplings and rice it was served with. The curry goat is part of Turtle Bays 'One Pot' range, which are a selection of rich, slowly simmered curries priced at £9.70 each. Afterwards, we were also served half a portion of Jerk Chicken, marinated for 24 hours with sour orange chutney and coconut shavings. The Jerk glaze is a lot sweeter than I was expecting, but it was still delicious! The Jerk Chicken is part of the Jerk Pit BBQ range and would usually be served with rice 'n' peas, sweet potato mash, sweet potato fries, spiced fries or a beach salad. 

Lastly, and my favourite part of the meal, was the dessert! I have a really sweet tooth so I loved the fact that we were served a selection of the desserts on offer which are usually £4.85 each. My favourite dessert was the Banana and Toffee Cheesecake, which is probably one of the best Cheesecakes I've ever had! We also tried the Lemon and Lime tart drizzled with a passionfruit sauce, Dark Chocolate Brownie, Caymans Rum Cake and Rum and Raisin Bread Pudding. The only puddings on the menu that we didn't get to try were the Spiced Chocolate Pot and the BBQ pineapple, so I might have to try these the next time I'm at Turtle Bay! 

I think one of the best things about Turtle Bay is how reasonably priced and varied the menu is, and also the fact that their happy hour runs from 1.30am-7pm and again from 10pm 'till close.  I had such a fantastic evening trying out the menu at Turtle Bay and want to thank the team who were there on the night for their hospitality and also their PR team for the invitation! 

I can't wait to go back to the restaurant and try some of the other things on the menu!

Have you dined at a Turtle Bay before?

xo