Bristol
BACCHUS
59 Apsley Rd, Clifton, BS8 2SW Tel: 0117 973 4892
• Having taken over the premises of Rucola last year, the new owners have retained local fans, offering a great, laidback atmosphere, sumptuous menus and a cheery welcome. Lush all-day breakfasts, groovy lunches and splendid early suppers, alongside an excellent wine list, numerous vegetarian options and plenty to keep the kids happy. All-weather terrace is popular all year round. Price ALC: £1.95-£5.95/£7.50-£9.50/£3-£4.50. Breakfast £2.50-£6.75 Wine list International. HW £11.50 btl, £3 gls Open Mon-Sat 9am-8pm, Sun 9am-4pm. Disabled access. Parties - call in adv.
GIRAFFE
Glass House, Cabot Circus, BS1 3BX Tel: 0117 930 0603, web: www.giraffe.net
• One of more than 30 restaurants in the feel-good, spreading-the-love, world-music-playing Giraffe chain. Foods are family-friendly, and you can eat your way around the globe from Mexican enchiladas to Asian salads and soups, via classic burgers and pizzas, plus a mean brunch menu (from full English to stacks of American-style pancakes). Lots of kids’ activities and a fun, busy website featuring promos and special offers. Price ALC: £2.65-£7.95/£8.95-£14.95/£4.50-£5.95. SL (daily from 7pm): 2 £9.95. Breakfast £3.95-£8.25 Wine list HW £14.50 btl, £3 gls. Large cocktail selection, 50% off selected drinks Mon-Thur 5-7pm, Sun 6pm-close Open Sun-Fri 10am-10pm, Sat 9am-10pm. Disabled access (lift to food court).
NEW HUONG QUE
209 Gloucester Rd, Bishopston, BS7 8NN Tel: 0117 373 8882
• Venue visited this recent addition to the growing raft of Asian-style restaurants on offer and found it ‘satisfyingly authentic and reasonably priced, with a friendly ambience’. Expect clean-tasting, not overly rich food, with ginger, chilli additions, pho soup and well-prepared meats served at a quick pace. ‘The brightly decorated dining rooms are buzzing, the small crew of waiting staff is practically running from table to table and trays of food are appearing at an unbelievable pace.’ Friends of theirs own the Vietnamese supermarket further up the Gloucester Road, so the ingredients and produce are no doubt authentic. Already proving a hit - booking advised at weekends. Price £5-£8 Wine list BYO while waiting for licence Open Daily 11.30am-10pm. Disabled access. Takeaway.
NEW IROKO
27-29 Midland Rd, St Philips, BS2 0JT Tel: 0117 329 4462
• Family-run, in the old stomping ground of John’s Cafe, Iroko has kept John’s clean minimalism, leaving an Afrobeat soundtrack and the exotic (to many) menu to establish the African mood. Nigerian food features dishes like starter nkwobi (spiced cow’s foot), ewa riro (stewed beans) and a kids’ menu that includes fried chicken gizzards. A big selection of delicious main-course ‘soups’ (all coming with meat or fish and various yam or semolina accompaniments), plus yam dishes and rice dishes including the legendary jollof rice (rice with tomatoes and spices such as curry and coriander). More conventional dishes are also available. First African place in Bristol since Kalabash shut down on Gloucester Rd about three years ago. Price ALC: £4.99-£11.99/£6.99-£14.99/£2.50-£3.50 Wine list HW £12btl, £3gls Open Tue-Sat 5.30-11pm (Fri-Sat till late). Disabled access but not to toilet. Takeaway. Private parties up to 70. Outside catering.
PREVIEW BUFFET BAR
The Venue, Merlin Rd, Cribbs Causeway, BS10 7SR Tel: 0117 959 8282, web: www.previewbuffetbar.co.uk
• Sister to next-door Carvery restaurant, with a similar style and feel. Diners pay the bargain set price on arrival before helping themselves to everything from soups, salad, pizza, pasta, grills and oriental wok dishes to burgers, traditional English roasts and desserts. Popular with visitors to The Venue – especially those grabbing a bite before taking in a movie or going bowling. Save room for the ice-cream machine. Pre-pay/self-serve system means there’s no waiting for meals to be delivered to the table, or for the bill to arrive at the end. Menus vary, with extra dishes to choose from on weekend eves, and a larger carvery selection on Sun. Price As much as you can eat: £6.95 (Mon-Fri 11.30am-5.30pm, prices vary at other times), under-10s £4.95 Wine list HW £10.95 btl, £2.95 gls Open Mon-Sat 12noon-late, Sun 11.30am-late. Good disabled access.
SASPARILLA
65 Whiteladies Rd, BS8 2LY Tel: 0117 973 0574, web: www.sasparillabristol.co.uk
• This place has fast become one of Bristol’s most upmarket and stylish cocktail bars for the more discerning crowd. Vast range of cocktails and liqueurs, brasserie-style cuisine, resident DJ and opulent, laidback first-floor lounge - dine before you dance and it won’t break the bank. Sustain your boogie energies on nibbles (nachos, duck spring rolls, buffalo wings) or a full meal of ribs, burgers, pasta or fish, with plenty of veggie options. As we went to press, a new menu and refurb were in the works, and while they’ll still have food on offer, they’re planning to concentrate on the old-school cocktail side of things - stay tuned. Try the old mixing thing yourself at one of their Cocktail Clinics – call or see website for details. Price ALC: £5-£7/£7-£12/£5-£7. SD: 2 £13, 3 £15 Wine list Extensive. HW £12.95 btl, £3.50 gls. Huge range of cocktails, inc non-alcoholic Open Mon-Thur 4.30pm-12midnight, Fri-Sun 12noon-12midnight. Disabled access - call in adv. Parties catered for.
SOUK KITCHEN
277 North St, Southville, BS3 1JP Tel: 0117 966 6880, web: www.soukkitchen.co.uk
• The Evening Post waxed lyrical on their launch last year: ‘The best new restaurant to open in the city so far this year. This was confident cooking of vibrant Middle Eastern dishes packed with interesting flavours and ingredients.’ The name refers to the commercial centre in Arab/Berber cities where stall-holders use fresh, locally grown ingredients to cook up a feast of dishes from dawn to dusk, filling the air with the aroma of citrus and spices. And just like a traditional souk, SK support the local community by using fresh, local, seasonal ingredients wherever possible, and dishes are packed with flavour, prepared with passion and made for sharing. Menus feature mezze, posh kebabs and traditional sides (hummus, baba ganoush, falafel), plus Moroccan-type fare (tagines) and weekend breakfasts. Call or pop by for current offers. Price ALC: £2-£4.10/£7.95-£10.75/£4.10. Breakfast £2.60-£6.50 Wine list Good global selection. HW £13.50 btl, £3.20 gls. Beers, lagers, etc (inc Moroccan) Open Daily 9am-10.30pm. Disabled access. Parties up to 20 welcome.
STUDIO ONE AT CINEMA DE LUX
Showcase Cinema de Lux, Glass House, Cabot Circus, BS1 3BX Tel: 0117 910 0091
• Restaurant and full-service bar within Cinema de Lux, with an internationally inspired menu, kids’ menus, cocktails and daytime food specials from £3.95 (11am-6pm daily). Price ALC: £3.50-£3.95/£4.45-£10.95/£4.25-£5.95. Sharing platter £9.95-£19.95 (min 2 people) Wine list HW £11.95 btl, £2.55 gls Open Restaurant: Sun-Thur 10am-10.30pm, Fri-Sat 10am-12.30am. Bar: Sun-Thur 10am-11pm, Fri-Sat 10am-12.30am. Disabled access (via lift). Parties welcome - call in adv.
NEW SURAKHAN
52 Park Row, BS1 5LH Tel: 0117 929 0806
• Replacing the short-lived Legend Oriental Kitchen (which had itself replaced the short-lived Takala), the new owners are trying something off the well-beaten path, by specialising in their native Korean food. Try the bibimbap (rice served in a sizzling earthenware bowl, topped with vegetables, meat and either a raw or fried egg, with the ingredients stirred together just before eating - and hot sauce at the ready). Also popular with the steadily growing fans is the bulgogi (barbecued beef cooked over an open flame: ask for kim chee, or fermented cabbage, to go with it – you’ll wish it were in a bottomless bowl). Friendly staff and central location; we hope this lot stick around for a good long while. Group bookings welcome - private basement area with licensed bar is good for large parties. Price ALC: starter £4.99/main £7-£11.99 Wine list HW £13.99 btl, £2.75 gls. Asian beers Open Sun-Thur 12noon-11pm, Fri-Sat 12noon-12midnight. Disabled access - call in adv. Parties welcome – book in adv. Takeaway.
NEW TIKI
44 Whiteladies Rd, Clifton, BS8 2NH Tel: 0117 973 1529, web: www.tikibristol.com
• There’s no stopping the force that is Nick Armitage, with his latest project Tiki (located at the original Picture House location) offering a wide selection of cocktails alongside real ales and 16 wines available by the glass - the perfect accompaniment to all-day menus that focus largely on chargrilled skewers of unusual meats, seafood and vegetables that gave the new venture its name and exotic South Pacific theme. A screening room is perfect for private parties and sporting events. Live music is provided by up-and-coming local musicians as well as regular DJs. Price Burgers, hotdogs, sandwiches £3.90-£7.50. Skewers, steaks £6.50-£24. Desserts £2.50 Wine list Tropical, inspired cocktails from £4, plus beers, spirits, wines. HW £14 btl Open Daily 12noon-12.30am. No disabled access. Private parties up to 80.
Bath
NEW GIRAFFE
8 Dorchester St, BA1 1SS Tel: 01225 463333, web: http://www.giraffe.net/
• Another link in a 30-strong chain of restaurants specialising in crowd-pleasing, family-friendly food set against a hip’n’happening, world music-playing backdrop. Bath branch claims to be inspired by ‘New York’s clubby coffee shops and restaurants’, resulting in a split-level affair featuring quirky decor flourishes in an admirable (and largely successful) attempt to distinguish itself from the blander food outlets that so far dominate the SouthGate shopping centre. Menus (inc impressive breakfast/brunch selection, served till 12noon) largely focus on familiar flavours from around the globe, including burgers, stirfries, jambalayas, massive salads, sharing platters and Mexican standards (chillies, burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas). See website for regularly updated, wallet-friendly promos and special offers. Price ALC: £2.25-£6.95/£6.95-£15.95/£4.65-£5.95. Breakfast/brunch £3.95-£7.95. ‘Feel Good’ menu (daily from 5pm): 2 £9.95 Wine list Good global selection. HW £14.95 btl, £3.05 gls. Large cocktail selection, 50% off selected drinks Mon-Fri 5-7pm, Sun 6pm-close Open Mon-Fri 9am-11pm, Sat 9am-11pm, Sun/bank hols 9am-10.30pm. Full disabled access throughout.
NEW JIMMY SPICE’S
6 Dorchester St, BA1 1SS Tel: 01225 426802, web: http://www.jimmyspices.co.uk/
• Eighth in an ever-expanding national chain bringing together the flavours of Thailand, China, India, Mexico, Italy and Japan on an array of hotplates and woks, with a huge salad bar and Willy Wonka-style dessert buffet supplementing the lot. According to one Venue critic, ‘As long as you avoid the classic buffet blunder of over-zealous amalgamations (few pastas sit well with a side-order of lamb rogan josh and a pile of spring rolls), food is lively, tasty and fresh.’ Make the most of the various regularly updated offers and it’s a rollicking good bargain, too. Price Serve yourself, all you can eat. Lunch: Mon-Fri £7.99, Sat-Sun & bank hols £10.90. Dinner: Sun-Wed £13.99, Thur-Sat £15.99. Under-10s half-price Wine list HW from £14 btl, £3.80 gls. Wide range of lagers, beers, cocktails, shooters, etc Open Daily 12noon-10.30pm (last food orders 10pm). Full disabled access throughout. Parties/private hire welcome - call in adv.
|
