Venue > Eating Out West > Bristol & Bath Restaurants

HOTEL DU VIN & BISTRO
Sugar House,
Narrow Lewins Mead, BS1 2NU
Tel: 0117 925 5577, web: www.hotelduvin.com
A winning mix of urban chic and urbane surroundings at the gorgeous Hotel du Vin continues to keep the Bristol fooderati very happy. On one of his many visits, our chief foodie declared Hotel du Vin to be ‘a small price to pay for paradise’ before awarding it one short of a maximum number of stars. The lounge bar and dining room offer the best atmosphere in town for both lunch and dinner, while the wine list – like the food – is the stuff that classic bon viveur dreams are made of. Menu S: braised pig’s cheeks with swede purée and black pudding; chicken liver and foie gras parfait with pear chutney. M: pan-fried fillet of halibut with olive mash, provençal vegetables and crayfish gremolata; roast partridge with pommes pailles and bread pudding. P: crème brulee; homemade sorbet Price ALC: from £5.75/from £14.50/from £6. Land Sea & Local Menu £15.50 for two courses, £17.50 for three Wine list Extensive and impressive. HW: approx £14.50 btl Open Mon-Sat 12noon-2pm, Sun 12.15-2.30pm & Mon-Thur 6-10pm, Fri-Sun 6-10.30pm. Children welcome - kiddie-orientated dishes & smaller portions of main menu available. Disabled access, toilets on ground floor. All credit cards. Three function rooms for hire. Parties of up to ten in bistro, but on separate tables. IDC: CMC. PC: 15% off, plus bottle of wine at lunch; 10% off plus bottle of wine evenings (not Sat).

HOWARDS
1a-2a Avon Crescent, BS1 6XQ
Tel: 0117 926 2921, email: info@howardsrestaurant.co.uk, web: www.howardsrestaurant.co.uk
Charming, award-winning harbourside bistro with waterfront views, alfresco opportunities and a warm, welcoming atmosphere, serving top-quality Anglo-French cuisine. Outside you’ll find primroses in the window boxes and a characterful British racing green colour scheme. The feel within is cosy yet smart, with friendly, efficient staff enhancing a relaxed yet slick operation where ex-head chef Dave Short is set to acquire ownership as we go to press. There’s the possibility of some décor changes and summer’s a la carte menu being a particularly fishy affair, with meat dishes appearing as specials. Menu S: a rich chicken liver pate with green peppercorn and brandy with warm granary toast and onion marmalade; warm salad of marinated goat’s cheese, olives and roasted vine tomatoes with a light mustard seed dressing. M: loin of pork with spring onions, ginger and soy sauce with noodles; marinated venison lightly roasted and served on spiced red cabbage with a mushroom shallot and blackberry sauce. P: dark chocolate fondant pudding with Grand Marnier cream and a warm white chocolate sauce; iced praline and Drambuie parfait with a heather-honey sauce and shortbread Price ALC: from £5.95/from £13.95/£5.25-£7.20. Bistro set menu: (lunch) 2 £8.95, 3 £12.95 / (dinner) 2 £16.95, 3 £18.95 Wine list Mainly European & new world. HW from £15.00 btl Open Food served Mon-Thu 12noon-2.30pm & 6-10.30pm, Fri-Sun (inc. bank holidays) 12noon-close. Children welcome. Major credit cards accepted. Disabled access. Parties welcome – call in ad . IDC: Presently complimentary main course, phone for confirmation.

JAMESONS
30-32 Upper Maudlin St, BS2 8DJ
Tel: 0117 927 6565; email: info@conradatjamesons.co.uk; web: www.conradatjamesons.co.uk
Exciting food, a superb atmosphere and excellent service keep this city centre stalwart at the top of its game. Beautifully presented modern English and international dishes proliferate on the menu, and Sunday lunch is always a spectacular treat. The express daytime menu offers delights like old spot sausage and mash as well as chilli beef noodles, all done with Jamesons’ class, naturally. Menu S: gravadlax of salmon topped with free range hen’s egg, dill beurre blanc; chorizo and red pepper tart on a bed of dressed watercress. M: monkfish with roasted lemon and herbs; fillet of beef Rossini topped with foie gras and served with a morel sauce. P: English cheese with biscuits, celery and grapes, sticky toffee and date pudding with ice cream Price ALC from £4.95/from £13.95/£5.50. Express daytime menu mains £4.95-£6.95. Set menu 3 lunch £17.95/dinner £22.50. Sunday lunch 2 £12.50, 3 £14.50 Wine list International & fortified wines, ports, cognacs, liqueurs. HW from £15.00 btl Open Mon-Fri 12noon-2.30pm, Mon-Sat 5.30pm onwards, Sun 12noon-6pm. Children welcome. Major credit cards accepted. Disabled access. Parties welcome – call in adv.

MARRIOTT ROYAL HOTEL
College Green, BS1 5TA
Tel: 0117 925 5100
Breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, a very stylish sundowner or a full-on, contemporary fine dining experience all under one very elegant roof. This grand Victorian-style hotel is infused with polished marble, warm mahogany and gleaming brass, with polished, warm, gleaming staff to match. The Champagne Bar is the afternoon tea/cocktail zone, the Club Lounge offers lunch and light bar snacks, and the Palm Court Restaurant specialises in modern , locally sourced cuisine and offers a rather spectacular global wine list, too. Menu Daily changing; check with the hotel for today’s selection Price A la carte and menu de jour from £21 for three courses Wine list Extensive, global, with an emphasis on New World/European. HW from approx £16 btl. Excellent cocktails, very well-stocked bar Open Breakfast Mon-Fri 6.30-11am, Sat-Sun 7-11am; dinner Sun-Thur 5-10pm, Fri-Sat 5-10.30pm. Club Lounge Mon-Fri 8am-6.30pm, Sat 9am-7pm, Sun 9.30am-6pm. Champagne/cocktail bar Mon-Sat 11am (Sun 12noon), closes to public at 11pm. Children welcome. Disabled access. Major credit cards accepted. Parties/weddings/functions – call in adv.

PICTURE HOUSE
44 Whiteladies Rd, Clifton, BS8 2NH
Tel/fax: 0117 973 9302/1529, web: www.thepicturehouse.eu
Impeccable taste and incredibly high standards mark the work of Picture House owner and head chef Nick Armitage. The lunch and dinner menus at this chic yet comfortable haunt change daily depending on what fresh local produce is available, and the Mediterranean-inspired tapas menu allows diners to graze from a large selection of different dishes including griddled fresh water king prawns with chilli, rock salt and garlic, roast peppers with goat’s cheese and Bush farm bison with chips and peppercorn sauce. Nick’s attention to detail means that everything is homemade, right down to the warm butterscotch sauce drizzled over the knockout apple tart. The beautifully crafted bar boasts an extensive selection of excellent spirits and wines, the latter focusing heavily on New Zealand, testament to Nick’s many years in the Antipodes. Menu S: dripping toast - rare roast forerib of Lackham Farm limousin beef on hot dripping toast with parsley, capers, sea salt and creamed horseradish; organic Picture House salad (salad leaves, red onion, herbs and dried fruit, vine cherry tomatoes, fresh vegetables, toasted seeds and radish sprouts). M: beer-battered fillet of pollack, thick-cut jacket chips, pea puree and tartare sauce; Lackham Farm limousin rib-eye steak, hand-cut French fries and béarnaise sauce. P: toffee apple crumble with rum custard; dark chocolate nemesis with crème fraiche and thyme sugar Price ALC: from £4.50/from £8.90/from £4. Tapas from approx £4. Weekday (lunch): 2 £10, 3 £13.50; Sun (lunch): 2 £15; 3 £18.50 Wine list Wide selection of wines, cocktails, spirits. HW: £13.50 btl Open 12noon-12midnight. Children welcome, especially at lunchtimes, high chairs. No disabled access. Most major credit cards (not Amex). Parties of 20+ welcome. PC: £10 for 2 courses (£15 on Sun) for lunch inc tea/coffee; 10% off dinner.

GREEN PARK BRASSERIE
Green Park Station, BA1 1JB
Tel: 01225 338565, web: www.greenparkbrasserie.com
Intimate yet spacious Euro-style brasserie boasting a well-stocked bar and an extremely competent kitchen. Indoor/outdoor seating opportunities (a 60-seater port-cochere out front, a 70-seater deck out back, in what was once a railway station but is now home to the popular weekend farmers’ market) further adds to the overall appeal, while broadband access in the library area and regular live jazz ups the good times ante. Mornings are given over to coffee and muffins, the lunchtime menu is a notch up from ciabattas and paninis, and the evening a la carte is always imaginative. Menu S: Dorset mushroom, spinach & ricotta tart served with salad & balsamic syrup; smoked duck breast salad with pomegranate, spring onions & a roast garlic dressing. M: prime Aberdeen Angus fillet with sunblush tomato & a green chilli pesto; steamed leek, celeriac & Worthy Farm cheddar pudding. P: chocolate & praline roulade with white chocolate sauce; honeyed brioche & butter pudding Price ALC: from £4.25/from £10.95/from £4.25; Tue-Fri (order before 7pm) & Sat (order before 6.30pm): 2 £9.95 Wine list Extensive and eclectic. HW: from £10.95 btl, £3.70 gls Open Tue-Sat 10.30am-11pm. Children welcome. Disabled access. Major credit cards. Large parties/weddings/business functions welcome (up to 200). IDC: CMC. PC: Cardholders & up to 3 guests receive 2-4-1 on main courses Tue-Fri (evenings only); complimentary glass of wine Sat (evenings only).

WOODS
9-13 Alfred St, BA1 2QX
Tel: 01225 314812, fax: 01225 443146
Enjoying a prime location opposite the Assembly Rooms, Woods opened in the late 1970s. Since then, the upmarket but informal bistro environment and affordable food to match have earned it local institution status. A French-style bar-brasserie (dark wood and lots of greenery) at the front leads to an elegant, spacious dining room - all white cloths, fresh flowers and candlelight - with softly-softly carpet underfoot and walls lined with all things racehorse-related. ‘A refreshingly uncomplicated approach sums up the Woods ethos,’ said Venue’s Lady Bath, after a recent trip. ‘Well-sourced ingredients, competently cooked and nicely served in quietly convivial surroundings.’ Good old Woods! Menu S: sesame marinated squid with fresh anchovies, chilli couscous & a coriander, red pepper & caper dressing; homemade oxtail soup with gruyere cheese & herb croutons. M: seared Gressingham duck breast on root vegetables with a fresh thyme & red wine sauce; whole grilled lemon sole with garlic, lemon & herb butter. P: orange bakewell tart; crème brulee Price ALC: from £5.50/from £12.50/all £5.50. SL 2 £12.95 SD Mon-Fri 5.30-6.45pm 2 £14.95 (2 £21.95 after 6.45pm) Wine list Lively selection, inc good range of organics and a regular ‘Wine of the Month’. HW: from approx £14 btl Open Mon-Sat 12noon-2.30pm & 6-10pm. Children welcome. Wheelchair accessible with staff assistance at entrance, no problems inside. Major credit cards. Room for private hire, up to 45.

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