TRIED AND TASTED: The Stoltman Pizza at Sutor Creek in Cromarty
IF a portion of pizza usually makes your mouth water but the prospect of yet another pepperoni begins to pall, perhaps it's time to try something a little different...
If you have a hearty appetite and enjoy a bit of this, a bit of that and a bit of the other, it's time to head to Cromarty's Sutor Creek to check out the newly created Stoltman Pizza.
Name sound familiar? Of course it does – the world's strongest brothers are kind of hard to miss with their gigantic, game-for-a-laugh presence across social media and a home-grown Stoltman Strength Centre now starting to enjoy a global reach. NOt to mention the fact Tom is two-times World's Strongest Man.
Once you reach Cromarty, look across the firth and you'll glimpse Invergordon, a town so proud of its famous strongman sons that it heralds their name across its welcome signs.
So, the question at hand – was it really a match made in Ross-shire heaven when the dynamic duo from Invergordon teamed up with the acclaimed Black Isle wood-fired pizza slingers to create something they would be happy to put their name to?
It was time to head up from the seashore to Sutor Creek to check it out...
The wee restaurant passed the vibe check the second we stepped inside the door to take refuge from a wind whipping across the firth.
Cosy with a classy wood-dominated decor and some quirky touches, it looked like a great place to spend some time this particular Sunday afternoon. Some banging tunes as background music never hurts and, sure enough, it wasn't long before my oldest sister was singing along tunelessly as we awaited our order.
The main attraction took a while coming – and I have absolutely no problem with that when I know it's being made from scratch, the company is good and the craic is fierce.
So, just what's on a Stoltman Pizza?, I hear you ask. What do you reckon those burly lads would want atop their perfect platter? How does black pudding, pulled pork, chicken, bacon, venison salami and buffalo mozzarella sound? It sounds a bit much, doesn't it? But here's the thing– it's really not.
First impressions are that it's pretty big (I'd have whipped out the measuring tape had only I remembered it) but relatively thin. Large, but perfectly formed, you might say.
The crisp platter is indeed a hearty bite but it's also surprisingly delicate and ridiculously moreish. I guess those cunning creators at Sutor Creek got their proportions just about right. On paper, I was expecting a last-man-standing slugfest in which I'd risk bursting trying to finish it or slump vanquished on the table, falling face first into a final unfinishable slice. The culinary equivalent of the epic 14-round 1975 Muhmmad Ali v Joe Frazier Thrilla in Manilla, if you will.
But it wasn't like that at all.
It was awesome.
In the interests of thorough culinary research, I shared it with my three companions and the reaction from all corners of the table was the same – a resounding thumbs-up followed by puppy dog eyes indicating a desire for a second slice. They were out of luck. My eyes were NOT bigger than my stomach and I instinctively knew I could handle whatever (food) the Stoltmans could throw at me.
By the way, if beer and pizza is your idea of the perfect match, wash it down with the local brew, Happy Chappy, concocted just a mile or so up the road. The perfect combo in my view (though the others were happy to couple it with the tap water kindly supplied the moment we had sat down).
That bad boy is priced at £16.95 and a portion of every one sold goes to the RNLI – a lifesaving charity of which Invergordon is justly proud. The Happy Chappy was around a fiver. Full disclosure: I have lost the receipt (there goes any hope of expenses) but our one-course visit (a roasted vegetable pizza and crispy chicken burger were also sampled and heartily recommended) left everyone suitably fuelled up and ready to head back out into the wind.
Final verdict on the Stoltman Pizza? It's a strong recommendation from me.
Need to know more?
The Stoltman pizza
Black pudding (John Munro Butchers)
Pulled Pork (cooked overnight in wood-fired oven)
Chicken
Bacon
Venison Salami (Great Glen Charcuterie)
Buffalo mozzarella
Fresh thyme
Sutor Creek dough and pizza sauce made fresh daily.
Pizza baked on stone in a traditional Italian wood-fired oven from Valoriani Ovens.
Sutor Creek
21 Bank Street
Cromarty.
T: 01381 600855
https://sutorcreek.touchtakeaway.net/menu
