Slym Gyms Healthy Bistro,
Castle Street,
Derry
028 7136 4330
slymgyms.com
I WOULD never claim to be a doctor, not since that last court order, at least, but lately circumstances have required me to mug up on matters medical.
A persistent pain in my right knee saw me hobbling bravely to the doctor’s for advice. Normally, any health problems would have me in denial – I’m a man, after all – but the agony was such that burying my head in the sand was actually a physical impossibility.
I explained how, in my youth and early adulthood, I’d been remarkably sporty – playing football, rugby, cricket, squash, tennis, and twice nearly thinking about entering the Great North Run. I was sure I was paying the price now for such exertions.
He didn’t seem to take this in, and just asked my age. I’m 52, although I look a good five, maybe even 10 minutes younger. He weighed and measured me – all the time silent – did a few sums on the back of a prescription pad and said my BMI indicated I was obese. (Interestingly – or not – my great-grandmother’s maiden name was O’Bese.)
In addition, a blood test concluded my cholesterol was elevated. I was initially quite pleased with that – elevated makes my cholesterol sound a touch classier than most people’s – but apparently it’s not a good thing.
I won’t blind you with medical science, so suffice it to say I’m 73 per cent butter. I now go swimming three times a week, where my trick knee and vast stomach make me resemble both Captain Ahab and his nemesis, and I’ve started eating more healthily.
Which is why I’m here with our kid, this Tuesday lunchtime, at Slym Gyms Healthy Bistro (no apostrophe, you’ll notice, but apparently theyre really bad for you anyway).
It’s been open for a few months only, but it’s already building a decent trade. The location will have played a part in that, I’m sure, as the café sits opposite Castle Gate, on what is becoming an increasingly attractive run down from St Augustine’s Church and the Yellow Yard, past the Siege Museum and First Derry Presbyterian, down to the Tower Museum and the Guildhall.
The interior helps, too. It’s bright, clean, and fresh, with bare brick walls, banquette seating, and a lively green and turquoise colour scheme.
It’s the food that counts, though. Given that my body is a deconsecrated temple, I started with the Detox Gate Crasher, a vivid purple combination of wheatgrass, carrot, parsley, beetroot, celery, and cucumber. Quite.
No, it was absolutely fine. The flavours of all the ingredients came through clearly and it tasted like it would do me plenty of good. An acquired taste, for sure, but one I’d acquire happily. I don’t think my brother will be joining me, though. He took one sip and his face was a picture, a rather abstract one.
He was much happier tucking into his Oriental Chicken Stir Fry. This was a big beast of a meal, so big he couldn’t finish it, with plenty of well-cooked chicken strips, rice noodles, and sugar snap peas and baby corn. It had too much sauce for my liking, but he loved it, and it was certainly full of flavour.
I chose the steamed sea bass, which came with coriander and ginger rice, spring onions, pesto, and an interesting pot of Thai curry sauce. I really liked this. The fish was cooked just right, by a chef with enough confidence to let the flavour of the fish speak for itself. The rice, while not revealing too much evidence of ginger, had a sharpness and zing which lifted the whole dish. The pesto was delicious, although there wasn’t enough of it for my liking.
The side dishes were great. The broccoli was crunchy and fresh, and the flaked almonds sprinkled on top gave it depth and a touch of sweetness. We both loved the sweet potato fries, which were crisp on the outside and perfectly soft on the inside, and went beautifully with the sea bass in particular.
This isn’t a health food restaurant, to be fair. It’s a healthier food restaurant: a lot of gluten-free options; few, if any additives; crème fraiche; rapeseed oil; no butter or cream; plenty of good, tasty, grub. And puddings, too: they’re not savages. Oh, and they do low-calorie cocktails. It’s well worth trying.
THE BILL
Gate Crasher £3.50
Oriental Chicken Stir Fry – £7.95
Steamed Sea Bass – £9.45
Diet Coke - £1.65
(Side dishes included)
Total – £22.55
