Large bar and restaurant in a picturesque city park setting, the Dam House is ideally suited to the summer months.

The Venue
Dam House occupies a particularly scenic location within Crookes Valley Park. It overlooks a small boating lake and sits atop the dam after which it is named. Crookes Valley Park can be reached off Crookes Valley Road or Oxford Street (not far from the busy Netherthorpe Road), and you’ll reach Dam House either by a short walk around the boating lake or down one of the lanes that run along the back of the park – it’s perched, quite literally, above the dam, so its is pretty hard to miss.

The restaurant has something of the feel of a large, open summer house – a large bar occupies one wall, looking out across the park and over the lake through several sets of patio windows. Off to one side, low tables and comfortable chairs occupy an area primarily intended for drinkers; at the other side, pleasantly secluded by wooden screening, you’ll find the restaurant area proper.

The Atmosphere
Dam House has always tried to sell itself as a restaurant, but in doing so faces the perennial challenge of fighting against the way in which its picturesque surroundings make it an ideal drinking spot. It’s also inevitably popular with families (indeed, kids eat free in the restaurant when dining with adults).

For the most part the season, the weather and the time of day is the deciding factor in what sort of a feel Dam House actually ends up with – in good weather, and throughout the summer, the place becomes far more popular with drinkers, or, at least, those for whom eating is only a secondary aim. In the evenings and at chillier times of year, Dam House will attract predominantly diners, taking on very much the feel of a restaurant, with its patrons confined indoors to the candlelit tables.

The Food
The cuisine is described as a mixture of the international and the traditional. Dam House sometimes seems to be fighting a losing battle between its ambitions and the natural demands placed upon it due to its location, and such a mix is perhaps the ideal response.

The lunch menu consists of mains such as gourmet burgers, beer battered haddock (£8), or venison sausage and creamy mash potato (£9). The menu moves more upmarket in the evening with dishes such as braised lamb shank, Gressingham duck breast, and roast butternut squash and goat’s cheese apple strudel with sautéed green beans and red pepper sauce (£13.50) – an excellent, amazingly light dish for one so rich. Pastry of any kind is a dead giveaway as to quality, and here that quality is excellent, airy, light and free from greasiness. The same high standards apply across the menu. It’s perhaps a shame that more people don’t make use of it. Expect to pay under £10 for main courses in the daytime, closer to £15 in the evening. Two courses can be had at lunchtime for £11.50 or three for £14.50; in the evening two and three courses can be had for £15 and £20 respectively.

Given the slightly split identity of Dam House, there are also bar snacks available - bread and olives (£3) for instance, though in the hot weather you will find ice creams and bags of crisps the nibble of choice for many.

The Drink
Several continental lagers and a handful of ales are available on tap: Becks Vier (£2.90 a pint), Staroprammen (£3.20), John Smith’s (£2.90), and Hoegaarden (£3.40). There’s an excellent wine list with both reds and whites from £3.75 to around £6 a glass; a wine of the week is offered at £15 a bottle. 7 or 8 reds and whites are available, ranging in price up to about £26 a bottle; champagnes and sparkling wines can be had for up to £70 a bottle. There’s a good range of soft drinks (especially important considering the location and its popularity with summer drinkers) and there are also 100% pure fruit smoothies available at £3 each. In a clear nod to its status as a place for the sunshine, ice creams are on sale at the bar.

The Last Word
The location is both a blessing and a curse – a blessing for those who want to make use of it, perhaps a curse for the venue’s loftier ambitions. A good venue all year round but an outstanding one in the good weather – one for the summer.

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