The High Field

This is one of my favourite pubs in Birmingham. It has an upmarket feel and a great atmosphere, whatever time you go.
The food is amazing every time I’ve been, last time I went I tried the Detox Salad and I can’t recommend it enough! The risotto is always a great veggie option too.
It’s the perfect place to meet friends away from the hustle and bustle of the city centre!

This is really a super nice venue. Very well presented from top to bottom, with polite, efficient staff (on the whole) and excellent food.
So why not 5*****? Well two things: first they offer a lunchtime specials menu on their web site that looks very nice and is well priced. I went there specially for the special! It was one of the days and between the times it’s advertised as available. I wandered in, was politely greeted and told I could sit anywhere. It was surprisingly busy and felt pretty posh.
Menu’s arrived quickly. I had enough time to check through options … but there’s no specials! Maybe they had a lunch specials menu separate. I asked and was told sorry, they didn’t do specials. Hmmm, that’s a royal PITA as your web site says you do. Well I was there now so may as well order. My main course cost rather more than the two course special that was on the web site. Hey ho! So much for a bargain lunch.
Second thing that irritated me was a waitress suddenly came over and just took the second chair from my table for another table to use. Didn’t ask at all. How did she know I wasn’t waiting for someone? I thought it was a bit ignorant and would expect better.
The redeeming grace was the beardy dining room guy asking me if I wanted a paper to read and then bringing me an Independent (cool!) and a Times (rag!) He was polite and efficient throughout and deserved his decent tip.
Food I have to say was spot on. Compliments to the chef as they say. But it’s interesting how just a couple of slack things can really irritate. I would go back, but not at a lunchtime because I don’t want to spend £17+ and tip for a normal working day lunch. I would be fairly regular if they provided the specials menu and pricing that they actually advertise!

I was very excited by the opening if the Highfield particularly as it gave me an excuse to visit the Edgbaston after (more on that on another review). The main thing that hit me was the amount of light and the cosy but cool décor — very much like the Village in Moseley.
The Highfield appears to a wide age group — I could easily go there for a date, for a drink with friends or take my parents. There appears to be a focus on dining but I admit I ve not been there on an evening as yet so it may have a different vibe on a Saturday night. In the first visit, I grabbed myself a gin in a glass as large as a goldfish bowl. I winced at the £8 charged but then this was quality gin & mixer and it lasted me the same time it took my fiancé to drunk 2 pints. We sat on the outside decking area which was a but of a sun trap in late September.
We returned in October to try the breakfast menu — my caveat here is that as it hadn’t long opened feedback was still being sought. My breakfast arrived and my toast was saturated in thick butter. I asked the waiter if it could be changed as it was not to my liking & this happened at good speed. I feedback a little on the portion size which I felt was small for the money. I ve heard that the roast is fantastic so will definitely giving it another try!

I have been wanting to go to this place ever since I saw it in Edgbaston; and I loved it! I loved the outside design and interior décor. It’s a vet sophisticated place, but appeals to a very wide age range.
I loved the ambience in there it was very nice to chill with friends or even for a date, either way I loved it.
Service was ok, one waiter was brilliant, I hope he served our table but didn’t…
The other waitress that we had she was ok but I think because it was busy she never gave us the attention that we wanted. Also our food took ages to come out so we were a little annoyed at that. However, that being said the waiter (the brilliant one!) gave us a free bottle of presecco to make up for the wait.
… I told you he was ace!
Overall I would recommend this place again. My only regret was that I only has a main, when I desired 3 courses. But The High Field you will DEFINATELY see me again!

Gastropub done right, nice cosy bustle from the bar and décor but with top class restaurant food and friendly service.
The well appointed bar greets you as you enter with a decent amount of space dedicated for appreciating your tipple of choice which then opens up into the large comfortable dining area. Food is Modern British and everything we sampled was delicious, it has the sort of menu that demands another visit and it appears to be on a seasonal basis.
Possibly pushing the pricing a bit but then again you’re in Edgbaston and quality doesn’t come cheap. We’ll certainly be going again, perhaps when it’s warmed up a bit and we can appreciate the garden at the back.

No stars off me, first and last visit, went their 29 Jan, toilets stank and one of the bar staff stank of B. O body odur, not very nice when your working with food and drink, should have a hygiene lesson. Young lad also who works their looks about ten or eleven squeeze’s limes into drinks with his fingers instead of using tongs, another one that has no hygiene manners. Also doesn’t know how to pour drinks. No eye contact or thank you or smile, just plain rude. Any way won’t be going their again.

Breakfast Review:
Firstly, its a lovely building — you walk up the stairs to be greeted by the pig statue telling you when its sausage O’Clock, then you enter a beautiful building, with a bar and the restaurant behind it.
The kitchen is open, immaculately clean, the tables spotless.
My area of expertise (?) is the Full English. Theirs is outstanding. Perfectly poached eggs, (my choice), Juicy sausage, perfectly cooked, quality bacon, black pudding, decent toast, (not supermarket sliced stuff), mushrooms, tomatoes and beans, (I ask for them to be separate — personal choice).
To date, I have visited over 30 restaurants and café’s, testing their breakfasts. In my humble opinion, to date, this is the best that Birmingham currently has to offer.

My Wife and I just returned from an early dinner. Overall a good experience but we felt the execution of the food wasn’t as good as it should be for the type of establishment.
The ambience of the place is great. The décor tasteful, well stocked bar and attentive staff. I’d rate it five for this part of the experience.
The food was good but not great. We Had the duck (consisted of breast and a confit cottage pie), salmon fish cake, and savoy cabbage for mains. Both aspects of the duck dish were very good. However, the seasoning on the breast was almost non existent. At £20 for this dish I consider poor seasoning unacceptable.
The salmon fish cake was good but again the seasoning was insufficient… The cabbage dish… we felt the cabbage was under cooked and it was swimming in water — not great really.
We had the cheese for dessert. The cheddar and stilton were past their best. Both had the appearance of spending too much time under refrigerated conditions. The goats cheese was perfect as was the quince paste and biscuits.
I would like to add that although I’m being critical of the cooking we did finish all of the food. I’m picking at fine details because this is a high quality establishment that markets itself likewise and I think they could execute to a higher standard for the price point.

Based on my first experience at The High Field, I will be back many times. Only ten minutes walk from Five Ways, this is a really gorgeous place. We went along for the Bonfire Night when they were selling hot cider and pulled pork baps, so I haven’t yet had a sit down meal.
It was good to have a chance to nosey round and spend some time in the lovely garden. The inside was buzzing with people drinking and eating and there was a live band playing. Outside, the wood burners were alight and we used them to light sparkers and toast the marshmllows they had provided!
I had myself a pork bap and this was delicious. Really good quality pulled pork, and the beetroot coleslaw was amazing. I loved my hot mulled cider too!
Will definitely be back for a meal based on the great experience I had on a November Wednesday evening.

Edgbaston has started morphing into a real food destination. With Michelin-​starred Simpson’s, The Deli at Edgbaston and the arrival earlier in the year of boutique hotel and cocktail lounge, The Edgbaston, it was already beginning to take shape. But with Peach Pub’s first foray into Birmingham in the shape of gastropub The Highfield, it’s knitted the place together. With a soft launch a week before the official launch party, I took the opportunity to head down and check it out.
Sunday nights at 7pm aren’t traditionally busy times for pubs, but word of The Highfield’s doors opening had clearly spread and the pub was as full of people and had a great vibrancy to it. The pub is open plan; the first half of the venue’s interior containing the well-​stocked bar; the back half of the pub which is presided over by the kitchen has more of a dining area feel to it. Décor is subtle but effective and the inclusion of booths, tables and barstools means the transition between the two spaces is seamless.
Choosing a booth beside the kitchen meant we were able to peak in. My friend Andrew, a food technologist who can spot a pre-​prepared meal a mile off, enjoyed noting that everything that came out of the kitchen was made on site. Given it was a Sunday we each ordered a Sunday roast. I went for the organic roast pork, which was served with an enormous Yorkshire pudding, which kept two very salty pieces of crackling nice and crunchy and away from the gravy. The pork and pudding sat on a bed of carrot purée and roast potatoes with cabbages and broccoli being served in a side dish. Each component part was expertly cooked and whilst it doesn’t look like a mountain of food it was a decent portion — plus extra potatoes were on offer.
For pudding Andrew and I shared a Sunday Sundae and an Apple & Blackcurrant Tart with Coconut Crumble. The sundae was made with Chantilly cream which made it much more interesting than usual sundaes, although I’d have liked a little more brownie. The apple and blackcurrant tart was more of a bakewell tart which despite having a very tough base was delicious and not too heavy after a large roast. And where there is cake there ought to be tea, which is Yorkshire tea and served by the pot and arrives with proper mugs, which can be actually quite rare!
With 16 other suburban pubs, Peach should certainly know what they’re doing and with The Highfield, even in its infancy, they seem to be on to a good thing. Service was efficient and friendly, food was fresh and homemade and though I didn’t try any of the drinks (pre-​dinner drinks at The Edgbaston had sorted that side) the bar was well stocked with a good variety of spirits and wines.
Whether it’s post-​drinks after Simpson’s, a spot of lunch after shopping at the Deli, or heading there for the whole experience, The Highfield is well worth checking out — but book, it’s already proving to be a popular destination!

Wow, this little bit of Edgbaston is really starting to boom. Simpson’s has been there for a while, as has Norsk (sp?) and the Deli at Edgbaston. But recently we’ve had The Edgbaston (über swanky cocktail bar and hotel) and now The High Field — a high end gastropub which probably isn’t for everyday eating but is most definitely affordable.
The attention to detail throughout the whole establishment is apparent, nice and cosy yet still spacious and airy with a hybrid décor of rustic unfinished wood combined with modern steel light fittings and accessories.
It’s the food that you want to hear about though, not the quality of the lighting. The menu is, as you’d expect from a gastropub, a decent size but not overwhelmingly extensive with starters and sharing plates, a selection of salads that can be either served as a starter or a main, steaks and mains. I had massive difficulty choosing as everything sounded delicious. Eventually we went for the meat sharing platter to start which arrived with freshly baked bread, venison salami, rare roast beef, ham hock terrine, pickles and a beautifully cooked iberico chorizo and tomato stew. All of which were delicious but the stew, salami and the beef really stood out as outstanding. For my main course I gravitated towards the duck from the moment I saw the menu, a huge moist duck breast cooked to perfection served with a duck cottage pie, roasted carrot and topped with duck crackling! Duck crackling!!! We decided to share a couple of side dishes of spring cabbage with bacon and hazelnuts, and a garden salad of beetroot and other delicious veggies.
We weren’t going to have dessert, honestly! But then we saw the menu and couldn’t resist the crème brûlée or the hazelnut parfait, so we shared. The parfait was beautifully creamy and amazingly nutty whilst the brulee could have done with a bit more vanilla — a comment we passed on which was received very gratefully, it’s a new establishment and they are looking to improve in every way.
The quality of food and service was exemplary, we’ll be back soon!

Wow. Just Wow. Now, this particular area in Edgbaston has seen a lot of great businesses move in recently (in addition to Simpsons which has been located here some time). Between posh cocktail venue and boutique hotel «The Edgbaston», the relatively new Swedish bar «Norjske» and now «The Highfield,» this place has become a great spot to head to for a night out. That being said, it’s not a cheap area to drink and dine, but it’s more of a «date night» or «special occasion» location.
The Highfield has now officially opened it’s doors to the public as a dining venue and a bar. I was lucky enough to snap up one of the «Sneak preview» places (where diners got a free main course in return for feedback on their menu) and popped there last night with hubby in tow to try this cute new venue.
It looks Fantastic! With it’s clean, white exterior and design touches that hark back to the 1920’s; it gives you a feel for the finer things in life. Inside the venue expect modern décor, a selection of small and large tables and a lounge style bar. I loved the open kitchen which showed how proud they are of their chef’s and their food.
They have a garden area out the back of the venue which will make it a great destination in the summer, but it’s probably a bit late in the year to enjoy it to it’s full potential now. Saying that; if you got some heaters and provided some blankets, it could make a lovely spot for a mulled wine as winter draws near.
I had conversed with a friend on Twitter before my visit and mentioned that it was nearly mine and Dan’s 2 month anniversary of being married. Cue 2 glasses of complimentary champagne on arrival! With the fantastic booking and great communication I received from the venue pre-​visit, this is the kind of service I would imagine you can expect as a diner at the Highfield.
Once we had been seated, presented with menus and were sipping on bubbly; it was time to make our choices. There were so many wonderful dishes to choose from! Me and Dan decided to go for a «Charcuterie Board» to start, which offered Venison Salami, Rare Roast Beef, Ibérico Chorizo & Tomato Stew, Free-​range Ham Hock & Parsley Terrine, Celeriac Remoulade, Pickles and a lovely mini loaf of warm bread to go with it. At £14.50 — this presented excellent value. The other options on the starters sounded great too; with everything from pigeon kiev to a crab cocktail (a twist on the 70’s prawn cocktail classic).
Our mains were decided incredibly quickly when we spotted what we wanted. What kind of person would turn down lobster shepherds pie, buttered peas & lobster bisque?! Dan went for the duck cottage pie and we ordered some savoy cabbage (with bacon and hazelnuts) and a green salad on the side. Everything was divine. The lobster pie was bursting with meat (I reckon there was a whole tail in there) and Dan’s serving of duck breast was just as generous. Now, as previously stated, we got our mains for free! My dish was supposed to be £20, but would be worth the price for the portion and the sheer amount of lobster that was in it.
After we had demolished our mains, we were pretty full. However, who can turn down a hazelnut parfait and crème brûlée when it’s on the menu? These were delicious. Our only feedback was that the brulee could have been more «vanillery» as it tasted very much like a sweet egg custard. The consistency and caramelised sugar on top were perfect though.
Our meal was a total steal at £37 with tips. However… We worked out that if you had, had what we opted for — you would be looking at a bill of around £90. There are cheaper options on the menu, but as we were celebrating; why not splash out?
A meal at the Highfield comes highly recommended from me for a celebration. If you don’t want to splash out on a meal, a visit to the bar would be lovely too (why not enjoy the conservatory with a nice pint of ale?). The service, décor and food… Fantastic.