It's quite a nice tradition that a group of us still try to meet for each others birthdays and usually end up going out for a meal to celebrate.
My friends fancied this place having read some reviews, and a look at some of them was enough to tempt us out of the city centre. Its located just off Great Western Road - near St Georges Cross, although I must admit the area itself / where it sits isn't the nicest or most noticeable.
Inside its a tiny affair decked out in quirky vintage signs and sheepy things.
Phoning ahead the week before, the only time slot we were able to get was 4pm for dinner which was pretty early. When we entered the place the first thing our waitress said was "how long will it be till your whole party are here as we need the table back by 6.15". Now, although we all try our best, various kiddie related commitments usually mean that a few folks are a bit late and we usually just order some drinks and wait for them.
We were given menus straight away and the waitress was friendly as she gave us water and took some wine orders advising us on choices. She also indicated that the bistro were famous for their desserts so said to bear that in mind when ordering.
A little later still no sign of the two latecomers, another waitress (not quite as friendly), said something to the effect that we'll just need to order without them. Now we'd already decided that we weren't going to be having three courses, so thought we'd have plenty of time, so it did seem a bit rushed and pressured.
That aside, the menu which is based around some home comfort classics, had a fair selection to choose from including, soups and tarts to start and hearty mains like macaroni and chips, steak pie, roast beef and haddock. Being a veggie, I opted for what was apparently a new option - an aubergine timbale. I asked what this was and was told it was layers of aubergine. I was hoping for some enlightenment as to what was in it, but decided to take my chances anyway. As the two latecomers arrived they quickly ordered feeling a little pressured.
A short while later we were presented with our mains - everyone seemed to enjoy their meal, with some dishes being a little larger than others. My aubergine thing was tasty enough but did look a little sloppy on the plate and was basically just some layered aubergines with some tomatoes and a bit of soft cheese underneath it. It came served with some salad and even although I'd asked for it without potatoes it seemed a little steep at £12 for what essentially was a few slices of aubergine and tomatoes.
Anyhow, that aside moving onto my favourite part - desserts. The menu has larger desserts which can be shared but we opted for the popular choice of the mini dessert plates choosing a total of 10 to share between us so we could all dig in.
The sticky toffee pudding was delicious but ludicrously sweet, as was the meringue with honeycomb icecream and salted caramel tart. The shortbread stacks and cheesecake were demolished with no complaints, but the malteser choc cake was a little dry and stodgy. They were really well presented and definitely redeemed my main course.
Suitably satisfied (or should that be stuffed), we managed to finish up and pay the bill just within our time slot, and at £155 for eight of us it proved not too bad value for money. Personally, the place feels just a little on the cramped side for my tastes and its not a location I'm in that often. However, if the opportunity arose, I'd certainly return and think its well worth a try - especially if you have a sweet tooth! read more