A long term feature on a stretch of shops that's a bit of graveyard of failed attempts, this is a…read moregem of a café where you can easily spend too much time and money. Wood floors, smart wooden furniture, sharp service. Somebody has made the effort with this place, and it has paid off. You don't feel like you're being ripped off with the pricey food and drink, just that you're paying a premium for getting to sit around in a good café. This is all done without making it feel posh or exclusive. If money is tight there's wifi available, so you can just hide behind a coffee for an hour or so and distract yourself from the menu by checking your email. The menu's comprehensive and has been different every time I have visited though, so this might be a bit of a challenge. This is one of the ways that you might end up spending more here than you'd planned. If this isn't too much of a worry for you, then pay Deco Lounge a visit.

Of all the lounges in all the land, Deco beats them all. I remember when this place had that smoky…read morewine bar feel, but clearly the smoking ban has put paid to that. It's the kind of adaptable place that's just as much at home to an elderly gent having a mid afternoon pint (no longer having a puff on a cigarette though) as it is to a bunch of students/young professionals coming for a few cocktails and catch ups - which by the way, are well worth trying at less than £6 a go. The food is fairly priced too, with a good selection of tapas. The best thing is the breakfasts: if you go before 12pm it's £5.50 for a coffee and lounge breakfast which will really set you up well for the day. If you miss that though, not to worry, they serve breakfast it all day, definitely earning it a few more plus points. Should you want a quiet little hide out, away from the hustle and bustle of nearby Whiteladies road, the table at the top end to the right of the bar is nicely tucked away, it's always my seat of choice. The free Wifi, excellently stocked bar, and good food makes it dangerously easy to waste away far too many hours in here.

I live just around the corner and visit regularly. I love this place, the decor is beautifully done…read moremaking you feel cosy and welcomed from the moment you walk in. The staff are super friendly and helpful. The coffee is really good and the Bloody Mary's are delicious! The food is so tasty, I never know what to choose!! It's a great place to spend the afternoon with friends or just sit by yourself and watch the world go by.

The latest of the local Lounges to spring up in the city, this one is housed in a former bank in…read moreTotterdown. It very much follows the formula of the others in the small chain, with an identical menu and even the same pictures adorning the walls. Where I would say this is inferior to the original Bedminster-based establishment is that it's far smaller, with too many tables and chairs crammed in. Consequently it gets a bit crowded and waits at the bar can get a bit tedious. However, the reason that it always seems to be busy is that the food is very good and very reasonable. I would personally recommend the sweet chilli chicken panini with chips and salad for just £6, though this remains very much somewhere I would pop in for some grub (including breakfast - they open at 9am), than actually sit down and drink for more than a quick pint.

So after visiting Tinto Lounge on Gloucester Rd. we were ok visiting the original place in North…read moreSt. But what a let down. Coming here on a Thursday mid afternoon we experienced the SLOWEST kitchen in all of Bristol. The burger was ok but the fries were not great; the tapas looked pretty burnt up to me; and my appetizing sounding lasagne was served on a plate swimming in liquid cheesy sauce. Despite the poor presentation and long wait to eat we carried on with or late lunch. Only when we were told there were no boxes or foil to wrap up food to take away did we realize this place was poorly run and had to complain. After talking with the manager some money was refunded. Was it the time of day or the staff in general that makes this place come off like the management are focused elsewhere? The limited number of power sockets could be a good thing, but for mobile office folks there are more convenient places to settle in. Summary: C-grade, could do better.

Lounge is the kind of place that looks and feels as though it's always been here. It's a seasoned…read moreprotagonist of the North Street rear guard that paved the way for the regeneration of the area, showing that it was possible for more upmarket establishments to thrive in this formerly dilapidated and neglected district. Having weathered the gentrification of the area it has proven to have lasting appeal in an increasingly faddy world. Even the recession doesn't appear to be putting too much of a dent in their popularity. Minor modifications keep things fresh, Tapas is now responsible for much of the food sales, where a few years ago it was bistro fare, and since the smoking ban, the back yard has been converted into a small enclosed garden. Lounge is the first in a long line of Lounges that have been replicated throughout the city, and more lately have gone national. New branches have recently opened in Reading and Plymouth. It is the only one of the Lounges that offers a private garden as well as outside seating along the pavement in front of the establishment.

Had a delightful meal and drinks this evening at Porto Lounge!…read more Being able to order directly from your phone made it super convenient to be able to place an order for whatever you wanted and it would appear at your table quickly and everything was delicious. We had mojitos, tapas, pasta, flatbread and the sticky toffee desert and we were RAVING with how good it was. Highly recommend to any and all that can swing through this delightfully bright neighborhood spot in fishpond! It was so cozy and inviting for a night out and bring your dog along too :)

Came along to the Porto Lounge this morning after being turned away by Melanie's Kitchen…read more Ive always enjoyed a good lounge and The Porto is no exception. A lovely comfy homely decor, that doesn't distract to much. The service was good despite being busy. And when me brekky arrived I wasn't disappointed. Top quality and well priced. I shall be back !

For those not from Bristol I'll give some brief directions, just because it's a bit out of the way…read more From Redland train station follow the train line towards Clifton (away from Gloucester Road, keeping it on your left. You will pass a wall with a giant nose made out of wicker (no, really), and will find it on a corner on your right soon after. High end, it's been recently done up and the owners have sunk a ton of money into this place. There's stone flooring, expensive furnishings, and various other bits of interior design to convince you to part with your cash. They're asking for quite a bit (though not too much to be honest), with mains around £10.50. I'm not convinced to be honest - I can get the same beer and similar enough chips for a lot less at half a dozen places near by. I can't see them making a success out of this place. Whilst they have do make a very good posh pub, not that many people want this from a night out, even in Clifton. I'm not a business man, or a pub owner for that matter, though, so we'll see. The Kensington Arms is expensive and tries hard to justfy itself, but I'm not convinced.

Situated in a residential area in Cotham/Redland (the boundaries are very ambiguous), the…read moreKensington Arms seems like quite a high class establishment. It's been decked out smartly inside, with the type of thick wooden tables that seem to have become standard in any bar of quality. The prices are fairly high, and it's home to a mixture of local elderly types and typical Bristol uni students (by that I mean the ones who can afford to come here regularly without blinking an eye). It's just around the corner from Chandos Road, which is a street with a hell of a lot of Kudos for what it actually is, and that kind of applies to the Kensington Arms; it's not all that great for the price. The food is good though, all be it a bit poncily described on the menu, but it certainly deserves a good reputation as a fine gastro pub. It's got a nice outdoor seating area at the front, which makes use of its quiet residential setting - you can sit out here and really not imagine that you're anyway near the centre of Bristol. Also, it's a total suntrap in the sun, which earns it a few more marks again.

Perfect location for a lazy hungover brunch which lasts several hours. Number 10 also has a lovely…read moreoutside seating terrace to soak up the rays on summer days. When I first went there with pals I was a bit confused as to what the place was purporting to be but further visits proved it's nicer not really knowing. It offers brunch, lunch and dinner, as well as coffees and alcoholic beverages. The full English was generous enough to keep my husband quiet for at least 20 minutes. And there are also simple breakfast options like poached and scrambed eggs and vegetarian muffins. The vegetarian thrust in the menu is very strong here with stuffed peppers, samosas, frittatas and mezzes. But there are also grander dishes for evening meals like sea bass, steak and Persian lamb. And the scrummy selection of desserts is well worth sampling.

Such an asset to the Redland/Gloucester Road area, Number Ten is a thoroughly calm cafe-bar which…read moreseems to have something to offer everyone: big British fry-ups with tea and fresh fruit juices, or small, bistro lunches with cold beers or cider, or perhaps a large-scale steak supper with a bottle of wine. With big shaded tables outside on the terrace of Zetland Road, and some tables inside, the place has the lovely feel of perhaps a Spanish roadside beer stop, but then add to that the incredibly good food and service, and what you have is one of the nicest eateries in North Bristol. I sampled the dinky little Thai fish cakes with a sweet chilli dip and side salad, which was a pretty cheap lunch at only £4.50, along with a bottle of Becks, and I lunched on the terrace, while reading a newspaper. The clientele sharing that lunchtime with me were mixed: on one side, a group of lads having some cider and probably heading towards a slap-up meal, on the other some slightly older women having a catch up over a glass of white wine and, I think, some sort of elegant grilled fish and vegetables. It's a classy place, and really worth a visit. If I have one tiny criticism it's that whoever was in charge of writing up the menu on all the chalkboards has a distinct problem with apostrophes; this place is all about "tea's" and "coffee's" and "drink's". Slightly annoying, but not enough to put me off.

This is the younger sister bar & kitchen to Urban Standard on Gloucester Road and, like it's older…read moresibling, does not disappoint! We, a group of 5, came here for a late brunch on a Sunday morning. From the outside you can immediately tell this place has a hipster, minimal kind of vibe going on (think minimal industrial), if this isn't your normal cup of tea, don't let this sway you away as once inside and seated you feel instantly relaxed. The breakfast and brunch choices all sound immensely delicious however I can whole-heartedly recommend the Standard Breakfast which is a take on the good ol' English fry-up. The wait for food is probably a little longer than some other places, however I can attest it is well worth it as the quality and taste of the food is very high and perfectly seasoned. The coffee here is really nice too. A recommended place for breakfast/brunch if you haven't tried it yet.

They can be rude and obnoxious behins the counter. Been there a couple of times.read more

This cocktail bar, just off Corn Street, often has a couple of bouncers and a red rope seperating…read moreyou from getting in. Don't let this put you off, they just seem to want to make sure they don't let in the groups of drinkers you get round here on a Saturday night. It's a good thing too, because this is a cosy, classy place that would probably be absolutely rammed full of drinkers otherwise. On a winter's day the hot toddy here really hits the spot. Otherwise, just pick a cocktail that takes your fancy. They have a decent wine list too, and if you're serious about your drinking (e.g. you have quite particular tastes, rather than just you like to drink a lot...) you should enjoy yourself here. The Rummer is a paradise for those that want to appreciate their drinks in peace and comfort.

As others have said, this is a nice but quite expensive bar. The cocktails are a speciality, which…read moreI discovered when I spent a rather drunken bank holiday Sunday here (see main picture!). We tried just about everything on the menu, which was mainly due to the fact that a friend of a friend works there and she blagged us about 70 per cent off the final bill. For this, and this reason only, I did sample the £15 cocktail (I think it may have had champagne in it), and though my memory is hazy, I do remember thinking that it certainly wasn't worth the full asking price (it tasted, er, a bit like a cocktail). My only tip (other than to have a friend of a friend who works there and thus can blag you about 70 per cent off the final bill) is that it's also a nice place to pop in for a hot drink while you're out shopping, as it'll set you back something ridiculously cheap like £1 and is perfect to enjoy while collapsing into one of their big sofas.