Tucked away on a corner of Cathays Terrace you'd be hard pushed to know this little gem was here…read more When you walk inside for the first time you can't actually believe it's that small! The main bar area as you go in is smaller than my living room and is furnished with wicker chairs and kooky little bits and bobs. I only realised last time that there is now a downstairs area too - which is great for adding more space but I have to say it smelt a little damp!! The real thing about Bar En Route is the atmosphere, it's jam packed with candle-lit ambience and is the perfect place for a relaxed evening with friends. Although it seems to get really busy there never seemed to be a big queue at the bar - even with the HUGE choice of beers etc to really make deciding what to drink a struggle! I don't really like beer (sorry) however I was very happy with my bottle of Gaymers Pear Cider - yum - and the boys I was out with informed me that the choices of beer and lager was fantastic. I think there is a choice of over 60 imported beers surely something for everyone. On a different note - the toilet upstairs has some of the most interesting graffiti I've ever read and is just another example of how individual this place really is. The staff are friendly (I think it's family run), the windows nice and big to watch the world go by and you can snuggle down for an evening and pretend you are in some cool european bar. I don't want too many people to discover this gem though, frankly I'd like to keep it all to myself!

Yay it's open again! A great little wine bar with fantastic staff. Now they just need to make it a…read morebit more warm, cozy and arty feeling and they have a winner

Popped in here for one before going to a reservation elsewhere- we were so glad we didn't choose to…read moreeat here , blimey ! I'll guide you through our ten minutes there: *enter stairs and approach front door, cue three chavvy boys thinking they were " lads" weyyyying in my face* After loosening my involuntary fist clench, thinking one of them was about to grope my crotch, we walked inside. I have to say, the decor in here is fab, still quite simple, but marvellous church architecture, with matching wood about the place, and a varied bar. This is where the good stuff stopped. Short changed, short measures, odd and not entirely welcoming clientele, and music that was far too loud for an eating venue. It would however, if you kicked out the clients, and put on some decent music that didn't just sound like when you half hear crap through the wall to your neighbour with bad and bassy taste's walls, this could be a pretty damn good venue for a wedding reception!

Downstairs is the bar area, with seated snugs where guests can eat. The welcome is warm, with…read morefriendly staff, lots to eye contact. They also have an upstairs which was full with well-shod diners. It looks great. I ordered the sirloin, with the house fries. The steak arrived promptly, and looked the part. It was not good. It was poorly seasoned, and incredibly tough. The waiter apologised and offered me an alternative dish (the service is good). I really wanted the steak, and made the mistake of asking the kitchen to try again. The Chapel is a lovely venue with good service. The butcher who supplies them is not good. The chef doesn't know how to cook meat. The fries are run of the mill. The wine is ordinary. Style = 4 Substance = 2

This smart new bar sits tucked away along Womanby Street, a lane just opposite Cardiff Castle, and…read moreis run by the same people as Clwb Ifor Bach (The Welsh Club), which is just across the lane from it. It's stylish and has strong Welsh links, even playing host to Welsh conversation classes. On other nights, they have DJs, music quizzes, film screenings, and small acoutisc gigs - while the venue is also available on some nights for private parties. The bar stocks lots of Welsh-produced drinks and a wines from around the world, and has two big screens aimed at drawing in sports fans wanting to watch the game. A pub by the name of The Red Cow was actually located in this spot right back in the 18th century, giving this bar its Welsh-language version of the same name (in fact Womanby Street itself was known as Red Cow Lane at one stage!).

I always find sister bars to the major clubs to be a little too mercenary for my tastes; I can't…read moreseem to divorce myself from the idea that they are trying to sucker me in a get my money twice. When I go out, I like to have a little variety; take in the nightlife and dip into a range of bars, and the intended set up here, with Y Fuwch Goch playing primer to it's big brother Clwb Ifor Bach seems to be the anti-thesis of that. However, much like the Old Library/Metros combo further up St. Mary's Street, this place happily avoids that. The atmosphere in Y Fuwch Goch is relaxed, and calm. There's a certain element of pretension in the air (it is a hipster joint, after all) but nothing so offensive as walking into Buffalo at 10pm on a Friday. All in all, it provides a welcome contrast to the other bars surrounding it. Ifor Bach is the place to be seen. Pica Pica is for the hen parties. Dempsey's is for the 20-something graduates. Gatekeeper is for the yardies and the students and Y Fuwch Goch is for those who like delicate conversation and quite contemplation with their drink of choice, plucked from a fine selection of local beverage.

The first time I've been to Chez Francis, but certainly not the last! Everything was fantastic,…read morefrom the delicious food made from fresh ingredients to the extensive wine list; we also received fantastic service from our waitress Pip, who was very attentive to our needs. Certainly one of the best French restaurants in Wales, and has recently won an award for being exactly that!

From the owner: Cardiff's Only True French Restaurant based 10 minute walk from City Centre.read more

Ba Rooba is one of those places that looks pretty dead when the students aren't around. I guess…read morethis is the issue when you target the student population in Cardiff, because the inevitable back-lash is always that you lose the local trade, and mine for that matter! (It's not that I'm anti-students by the way... it's just that I'm a bit too long in the tooth to want to hang out with them en masse of an evening!) As far as it goes Ba Rooba is probably one of the better student haunts. They at least put on live music every now and again. Somewhat inevitably they have the big screens, so you can go and watch the rugby and footie, if that's what floats your boat. They boast about serving 'great food', but I haven't ever felt compelled to eat here, so I can't comment on it myself. (What I can say is that I've seen more inspiring menus in other pubs!)

While Buffalo Lounge (formerly Mr Smith's) is showing the whole of Cathays how to pitch a student…read morebar without accentuating cheap over cheerful, just up the road Ba Rooba is a comparable but faintly less focused competitor. Taking over over-aspiration-filled Welsh restaurant Armless Dragon, there's nothing wrong with the multifaceted bar as such. But in attempts to grasp all corners of the student market, it becomes a jack-of-all-trades, master of none. The food menu is steady if unremarkable, although the drinks show a little more guile: anywhere that serves Taffy Apple cider gets a double thumbs up and, like Buffalo Lounge, you can down two cocktails for £6. But here come the complications: live bands, DJs and big screens showing Sky Sports (including a massive 50-incher in rear area 'The Snug', with PlayStation 3 and Wii for advance hire). Ba Rooba isn't so much killing several birds with one stone as throwing handfuls of gravel at an entire flock.

We arrived at La Cha Cha after searching for something apart from the usual chain restaurants which…read moredominate Mermaid Quay. Despite having no reservation on a busy Sunday evening (Monday was a public holiday), we were seated without having to wait, and given the wine and food menus. The restaurant and bar have a proper "Spanish" feel, with wood panelling, wooden barrels and other wine related décor, without feeling cheesy or over the top. The food was good, although not outstanding, but perfectly acceptable, and the portions of tapas a good size for sharing. The wine we picked (£18) was one of the cheaper items on the list, but was very good. Service wasn't quick, but we weren't left waiting for too long for anything. It was also good to see all the staff were Spanish! By the time we left, all the tables in the restaurant area were full, and the previously quiet bar was full of people drinking and possibly waiting for tables, so it must be quite popular.

Tapas is most definitely one of my favourite meals. There's no need for food envy, or awkwardly…read moreasking someone to share. You can try LOTS of dishes without too much commitment or judgement for having seven empty plates sitting in front of you. La Cha Cha is one of the newer Tapas and Wine Bars to open in Cardiff Bay. Once inside the décor makes you feel as though you've stepped into a wine cellar and with the help of a Spanish guitar playing in the background you almost instantly forget that your umbrella turned inside-out a few seconds before entering. My Menu Highlights: Calamari served with Aioli: £6.95 Serrano Ham, Manchego Cheese with Mixed Bread and Oils: £11.95 Chorizo Rio Jana: £6.95 ...they also have five different drink menus including Sparkling & Champagne, Rose and House Wine. I'll admit that a trip to La Cha Cha can be slightly expensive yet if you visit during the day you can get three Tapas dishes and a glass of Sangria for just £10.95! PS - It's far too dark in here to take pictures. Even a filter couldn't save me! Visit their website and take a virtual tour of their restaurant and menu.

I never realised Nicolas was a chain until recently - and I also didn't realise that in some…read morelocations they even have wine bars, too. It makes sense, really, since they're wine experts. This is the only off licence I know of in the city centre, so it's handy if you're off to a BYO (bring your own) restaurant somewhere near the centre. With supermarkets seeming to take over on sales of wine (and just about every other product!), a lot of off licences seem to have been hit by the recent recession and have disappeared off the high street. Luckily, this one has survived - and still focuses on quality. They stock an excellent range of French wines including well-known regional wines such as Bordeaux and Bergundy, plus sparkling wines and Cremant, and bottles from less well known wine-producing areas of France. If wine's not your drink, they stock plenty of spirits and champagnes, too.

To celebrate 'Us' I wanted to get my lovely a bottle of wine we could both enjoy that wasn't from…read morethe supermarkets. Enter Nicolas, a French wine/champers/liquors etc. If your in anyway a wine etc connoisseur (I am but a mere student at the moment) then whatever your looking for you will probably find here. From just a few pounds to the pricely sum of £500 plus if your in real trouble with the lady. Back to my story, I went in with a vague idea of what McLovely is into and headed for the member of staff there. I explained what she liked and was escorted around the store a little bit, learning about the taste and region the wines were from. It was all very interesting truth be known. Anyway I settled on a beautiful bottle Château Bellegrave 2006, Red. It was exactly as the guy said it was and madam lovely really enjoyed. I got browny points and a decent wine for a reasonable price, I was happy.