Tag: bristol

Posted on

Awesome Fritto Misto

stall

Bristol has a decent street food scene, around where I work in Bristol, as well as all the stalls at St Nicks, there are twice weekly markets at Temple Quay and Finzel Reach. The organisers of those markets always try and have a mix of stalls and types of cuisine. There aren’t that many traders selling fish, one that stands out is King Fin. If I am at a market and they are trading, it is usually one I go for. So, when I went to the Finzel Reach street food market, I headed towards King Fin to try their new(ish) Fritto Misto dish. The Fritto Misto replaces the tempura monkfish on the menu. I remember when they had Fritto Misto on the menu before, and tried it back in 2022. I wasn’t that enamoured with what I had then, I wrote:

Overall, if I am honest, though I enjoyed the dish, I was a little disappointed. The calamari was great, but the rest of the fish was a little soggy, despite having just being deep fried. There were two prawns in the dish, one peeled prawn and one whole prawn. The courgette was floppy and was quite greasy.

When I heard that King Fin were bringing back the Fritto Misto onto their menu, I was eager to try it again, despite my reservations from my previous experience.

I must go to King Fin quite a bit as I got recognised as a regular, which was nice. I placed my order and waited. As with all their menu items, the food was cooked to order. After a short while I was handed my box of food and I think it looked amazing. I took it back to my office to eat.

fritto misto in a box

It was awesome. This was a delicious box of food. The freshly cooked squid rings, prawns and (small) fish were really tasty and it was a generous portion. The deep fried sage and courgette was a nice addition. I thought this was an amazing dish and I was well impressed. It certainly was much better than my previous experience. The batter was nice and crispy.  As per usual the fries were great. 

Looking forward to having this again soon.

Posted on

The Street Taverna

I was working in our Bristol office and I headed out to the Temple Quay street food market. As it was a Tuesday there wasn’t as many choices as there are on a Thursday. I decided I would have a halloumi wrap from The Street Taverna. This is a nice thick wrap with halloumi, salad and fries.

I did enjoy the wrap; the halloumi was tasty, the chips were nice and crispy. I also enjoyed the flat bread as well. As with my previous wrap from The Street Taverna sure if the chips added anything to the wrap. I am glad I went with the halloumi.

Posted on

Bento Box

It’s no wonder sometimes when I go to Bristol and there is a street food market if She Sells Streetfood (was She Sells Sushi) is there I will go with a bento box. I enjoy the food and I think one of the reasons I like it is that it’s not a sandwich or a wrap.

This time, I went with a bento box containing the Beef Donburi and the Tan Tan Udon. This was the same combination I had before. As this was a bento box the Tan Tan Udon came in a smaller cardboard bowl than if you ordered the full size version, alongside was the Beef Donburi.

I’ve always enjoyed the Beef Donburi and this was delicious as usual. The beef was beautifully tender, full of flavour. It goes so well with the sticky rice. I do like the addition of the (new) cucumber salad. 

Last time I really enjoyed the Tan Tan Udon, so was looking forward to eating that again. The Tan Tan Udon was udon noodles in a creamy sesame broth with spicy ground pork, Asian greens and spring onions. It was excellent and delicious. The creamy broth was superb, full of flavour, thicker than a normal broth (hence the creamy). Nice noodles and the spicy ground pork just added to this one tasty bowl of food.

I do like this food.

Posted on

I will miss those hirata buns…

One of my favourite street food stalls in Bristol is She Sells Sushi and I was intrigued to hear that after years of trading, that Lisa is changing the name to She Sells Streetfood and was also changing the menu.

So, when I was working in Bristol I headed down to Finzel Reach to see what was available and to try something new. I nearly didn’t go, as there was downpour, and I did get quite soaked in the queue. The menu now has four items and no sushi! Also gone are the lovely hirata buns.

The four items consist of two favourites, Katsu curry and the Beef Donburi. The two new items are Loaded Katsu Fries and Tan Tan Udon noodles.

I went with a bento box containing the Beef Donburi and the new Tan Tan Udon.

The Tan Tan Udon was udon noodles in a creamy sesame broth with spicy ground pork, Asian greens and spring onions. As this was a bento box the Tan Tan Udon came in a smaller cardboard bowl than if you ordered the full size version. This was served alongside the Beef Donburi.

I’ve always enjoyed the Beef Donburi and this time was no exception. 

Beef Donburi

Delicious full flavoured tender beef in a delicious sauce served on fluffy rice. It was delicious.

I was intrigued by the Tan Tan Udon and I did wonder how good it was going to be! 

Tan Tan Udo

Well, it was excellent, just delicious. The creamy broth was superb, full of flavour, thicker than a normal broth (hence the creamy). Nice noodles and the spicy ground pork just added to this one tasty bowl of food. 

I was well impressed with the Tan Tan Udon, so much so, that next time I might just go with the full sized portion and forgo the bento box. I am not really a fan of loaded fries, so might try those in the future, but then again probably not. I am though a little saddened that the delicious hirata buns are no longer on the menu, I will miss those.

Posted on

Big Lounge Breakfast

Ritorno Lounge on the Bristol Harbourside

I have had breakfast and lunch at various Lounges before, but had never been to the Ritorno Lounge on the Bristol Harbourside. Having had a lovely walk around the Harbourside, it was time for brunch. I chose the Big Lounge Breakfast, which was  smoked back bacon, Cumberland sausages, hash browns, baked beans, roasted tomatoes, black pudding, flat mushroom, two fried eggs and two slices of toast.

Though the place was really busy, it wasn’t that long before our food arrived.

big breakfast

It was a massive plate of food, but then I was hungry. Actually it looked a lot bigger than it was (well that’s my excuse I am sticking to that).

This was a lovely breakfast, tasty sausage and bacon, nice mushrooms and tomatoes. If I was to make one minor criticism, for me the sourdough toast was a little dry. I did like black pudding and the eggs were cooked well.

It was, for breakfast, I think quite pricey, but it was a good quality breakfast, served to your table in a nice environment. Would I go again, yes I would.

Posted on

Halloumi Bowl

Halloumi Bowl

I was in Bristol working and popped out at  for lunch to the Temple Quay street food market. Lots of choice as usual, in the end though I decided I would try something new and different, something that I wouldn’t necessarily be my first choice.

I went to the Hummusapiens van and ordered a halloumi bowl. This was honey glazed halloumi in a bowl with quinoa and hummus. It came with salad and all the trimmings. I did like the look of their flat bread they were using for their wraps, but you couldn’t order a plain one, though they do do artisan pitta bread. However, that is not the same thing.

The halloumi was delicious, and all the stuff in the bowl really made the dish. I absolutely loved it. The pickled vegetables added bite and sharpness. I enjoyed the quinoa and the hummus was excellent.

Posted on

Pipp & Co Doughnuts

Pipp & Co Doughnuts

Pipp & Co are a relative newcomer to the bakery scene in Bristol. I had been meaning to go there for a while, so when I did I was impressed with them. More traditional than the Americana style of Krispy Kreme or Tim Hortons. These sugar coated doughnuts are filled with different fillings, all very tasty.

Posted on

Bunsik is coming to Bristol

Cabot Circus is set to gain a new restaurant called Bunsik, which specializes in Korean street food and corn dogs.

The menu online looks interesting and the prices at the Manchester branch looks like good value for money as well.

No date when it will be open, but when I was at Cabot Circus at the weekend, I saw that the outside was all done up.

I think I will try and get there when it does opens.

Posted on

Shiitake Mushroom Donburi

I was charging my car at Cribbs Causeway and needing a quick dinner, a visit to Wagamama was the solution. You don’t need to book and usually service is efficient and quick.

There wasn’t much of a queue, and it wasn’t long before we were sat at a table pursuing the menu. The obvious choice was the mushroom yaki soba yasai, something I have eaten a lot when eating at Wagamama. However, this time I decided I would have something different, and there were some new donburi dishes on the menu.

I went with the pulled shiitake mushroom donburi. This was pulled shiitake mushrooms in a sweet + spicy teriyaki sauce on a bed of sticky new white rice, shredded carrots, mangetout, sweet potato, cucumber, edamame beans and kimchee. I added a fried egg to the dish as well.

Shiitake Mushroom Donburi

The bowl looked good, however despite the nice appearance, the dish was something of a disappointment. All the “extras” were nice, but the star of the show, the pulled shiitake mushrooms in a sweet and spicy teriyaki sauce was dry and lacked flavour. The mushrooms definitely needed more sauce.

I had also ordered some bao buns, but they never arrived. As the place was busy and I had virtually finished my bowl I didn’t get a chance to ask about them. When I looked at the app on my phone, they weren’t on the bill when I came to pay, so didn’t question it.

Posted on

Pasta from La Panza

Close to my office in Bristol is La Panza, now an Italian restaurant, which use to be Chatterton’s Cafe.

They have a £10 lunch deal which consists of pasta, focaccia, and a drink. I liked the idea and on my first visit I had a nice plate of pasta and a glass of wine. 

So when I was working in Bristol and wanting lunch, and not sure of where to go, I decided to make another visit to La Panza. I did their lunch deal for £10. I had a nice rigatoni pasta dish with a pork based sauce, a slice of focaccia and a glass of white wine.

I did think the pasta was a little undercooked, but the sauce was tasty. It was a delicious dish and I enjoyed it.

I feel quite continental drinking wine at lunchtime, but I thought it was really good value for £10 and it was nice to sit down in a restaurant (well this time I sat outside) and be waited at table and have your food served to you.

I would certainly go again.