Having called in for drinks with my friends one day, we were enticed to sample the food on offer too.
There is a reasonably sized menu offering all sorts of food from grazer (starter options) to pasta, via burgers, sandwiches and dogs, steak plates and pizza. There’s also a fair range of vegan options.
Five girls choosing food can take a little bit of time, but we did quite well and quickly decided to skip the starters and focus on the main courses.
Our order was for a frankfurt calzone (£11.95), chorizo and meatball tagliatelle (£11.25), beef lasagna £10.25), a Giddy Goose house burger (£11.95), a pulled ham hock panzerotti (£12.25) and a portion of fries for the table (£3.50).
Nope, I’d no idea what a panzerotti was either, but the menu said it was a deep fried calzone style pizza and “if you fancy something new then be sure to pick one”. Being an obedient girl, that’s just what I did.
I was delighted that when I asked that they hold off a little on the brie (on the menu it came with ham hock, melted brie, mushrooms and tomato) as it’s not my favourite cheese, I was offered to change the cheese to something else. I chose mozzarella. A nice touch.
We also sniggered at our burger-ordering friend who asked for just a burger on a roll. Asking for clarity the server said, so no cheese or salad? Oh, I’ll have the salad, she said . . . and some coleslaw. So basically her “just plain burger”, which she asked to be well done, was only missing the cheese – I think there’s an easier way to ask!
We ordered some drinks and a bottle of wine and some water for the table and sat back to wait.
There is what looked like a nice seating area outside, though inside it’s almost like a garden, too, with lots of wooden trellis- type structures with green leafy plants and nice lights dotted about the place.
Beside the bar there’s a partially enclosed area they called Bohemian that looked like it would be a good spot to book if you were a larger party. There’s also a room along from the bar and a downstairs area that had a private function on when we were in.
Seats are a mixture of leather and cloth, with attractive bright cushions. The restaurant has a nice atmosphere.
We didn’t seem to wait very long for our food as we were busy chatting, though our server apologised that there had been a delay when he brought the plates over.
All the dishes were well presented.
The meatballs looked a little overdone and, when pressed, my friend agreed they were quite dry.
We persuaded her to ask for more sauce and the plate was taken away to be replaced by a whole freshly-cooked plate.
More sauce would have sufficed, but it was nice to see the restaurant strive to make things right.
The lasagna was a good-sized portion, with clearly defined layers. My friend said it was enjoyable, but she prefers her Italian pasta with a bit more sauce.
The 8oz burger was well done, as requested, and served with fries, salad and relish. It was a big plateful and very tasty.
The calzone was served with salad and had a lot of filling – including sweetcorn, so I’d avoid it – but the recipient enjoyed it.
My panzerotti looked like a soft calzone – I’d expected it to be crispy as it was fried, but it was quite doughy. The filling was delicious and I’d forgotten how nice ham hock tastes, so I ate the insides with my fries and salad and left some of the dough. I probably wouldn’t have it again but other people would love it, so don’t be put off.
I’d go back here again for food, or even just drinks.
