bristol Archives - Page 15 of 19

July 3, 2019

A different kind of pizza

Bristol has many places to eat and as well as high street chains there are many independent places. Having been invited to dinner the family headed off to one such independent place, the Florence Lounge in Totterdown in Bristol.

It certainly is a popular place with most tables reserved, even though we went to eat in the early evening. It was a hot and sunny day, so they had put most of their tables outside. They don’t have air-conditioning, so on a hot day you will want to sit outside.

I went with the Gamberi pizza. It came with a base covered in homemade tomato sauce, baby spinach, mozzarella, king prawns, silver skin anchovies, roasted asparagus, black olives, lime and rocket.

I loved how there was a varied selection of toppings on the pizza and the handful of fresh rocket was a nice addition. The prawns were very tasty and I enjoyed the silver skin anchovies. If these had been traditional salted anchovies then I may not have ordered the pizza. The base was cooked well and wasn’t soggy. I have had better bases recently and I felt that it let down the pizza slightly.

Unlike many other restaurants, you order and then pay at the till. The food is then bought to your table.

For those who are gluten free, unlike many pizza places these days, the only gluten free option is gluten free pasta and there is no gluten free pizza available.

Be aware that it is cash only, but there is a free ATM next door in the Tesco. Also it doesn’t have a licence, but you can bring your own alcohol if you want to (again useful having the Tesco next door.

May 8, 2019

Carluccio’s has closed

Walking around Bristol the other day I noticed that Carluccio’s in Quakers Friar had closed.

Doing a Google search I found out that according to one news article, it was said The Quakers Friars branch will close on Sunday, January 6.

I have walked around there before, but hadn’t noticed.

Though I have eaten at Carluccio’s before, it wasn’t a place I frequented. As I said in a recent blog post after a visit to a branch in London earlier this year.

It has been nearly ten years since I visited a branch of Carluccio’s. I do like Italian food, but I’ve not really had the inclination to visit Carluccio’s in that time. Their menu always looks interesting, but for quick lunches it was always on the pricey side.

You can probably guess that I had never been to the Quakers Friar branch in Bristol. I wonder how long it will remain empty for?

March 3, 2019November 4, 2019

It was a nice pizza

I do like the rustica pizzas you can get at Zizzi, the thin and crispy base is a tasty alternative to the solid doughy bases you can sometimes have at other (especially American style) chains.

This time I went for the Pinoli Pizza, which can be had with the rustica base. This has goat’s cheese, mozzarella, caramelised balsamic onions, sunblush tomatoes, pine nuts, riserva cheese & basil.

The pizza was cooked well, the base was thin and crispy with a hint of soft dough at the edges. The topping, though in my opinion, a little sparse, was tasty and delicious.

The service was warm, welcoming and friendly.

November 19, 2018

I like Korean BBQ

I have no idea if all the Korean BBQ dishes and meals I have eaten recently are at all authentic, but I do like what I have been eating. One day I might need to visit Korea for the actual experience, like that will ever happen.

My most recent Korean BBQ experience was at Itsu where I went with their Korean BBQ Chicken Rice Bowl.

Lean chargrilled chicken with wholegrain brown & red rice, fresh seasonal greens, gochujang chilli, thai & teriyaki sauce.

Now mine didn’t look the picture on the website, mainly as the pot it arrived in was not as wide as the one on the website.

The chicken was chicken, the greens were fresh, I liked the rice with the Thai sauce. The gochujang chilli added heat, but not excessively so.

Overall it was a tasty dish, filling and fresh.

August 13, 2018September 12, 2020

Not that different, just a little different

I know in my last blog post about SheSellsSushi I said that I would go for something the next time I went to Lisa’s stall. Well I did and I didn’t.

I once more had the delicious Beef Donburi. This is succulent short rib slow cooked in a teriyaki style marinade of soy, fresh ginger and garlic. It was served on a bed of rice with beni shoga, mayu and spring onion. Do I know what they are? Well I know what spring onions are, as for the others I would need to Google them.

As usual it was delicious and full of flavour. The beef was meltingly tender and the garnishes added to the dish. I always love the care and attention that Lisa pays to each and every dish. This isn’t just thrown togther, this is food artistry made with love and passion. The result is amazing cooking and delicious food.

I once more went again with the tempura chicken hirata bun. The steamed bun is made with activated charcoal and inside is a couple pieces of crispy tempura chicken.

I do like the combination of flavours and textures in the bun.

So though I went with my normal order, I also added a side order of Takoyaki in octopus and duck varieties. These are freshly cooked on the stall and always look really nice.

They are covered in a range of sauces and garnishes, and I couldn’t tell you what they were, but thankfully Lisa on her website describes them as dumplings with tonkatsu sauce, japanese mayo, toasted seaweed and bonito flakes. Again some googling required for some of those ingredients. I did enjoy these, however having had them from SheSellsSushi (and Yo! Sushi) I don’t think they are my favourite dish, so next time it will probably be the just the donburi and the hirata bun. However if the summer weather has gone, I might just try out the ramen. Oh and one day must try the sushi.

July 21, 2018July 22, 2022

Quick(ish) Greek Lunch

I don’t go to The Real Greek for a while and then I go not just once, but go again real quick.

I had actually intended to have pizza from Bella Vista down by Bristol Bridge, but they were really busy and there was going to be a long wait. I had enjoyed my recent visit to The Real Greek, so decided to go for their lunch deal again.

As before there was a warm welcome from the staff and this time I chose to sit inside. The Lunch Menu is a fixed price at £8.50, where you can choose between a Greek Trio or a Greek Plate or a Souvlaki Wrap & Side. This time I went with the trio of dishes.

I had the warm flatbread with houmous and taramasalata. A nice starter, though I should have asked for it to all come at once rather than separately. If I had chosen one of the other ramekins available, such as tzatziki, I would like to have that along with the main.

The middle of the trio was Loukaniko beef and pork sausage. A traditional Greek beef and pork sausage, chargrilled and sprinkled with oregano.

I’ve had similar dishes before and really enjoyed them, this was a tasty dish, strong flavours and a really meaty experience. It was served with smoked chilli relish, which I didn’t really like, I found it somewhat harsh and overpowering.

The final choice was the Aegean Slaw, thinly shredded cabbage, carrot, red and green peppers, with an olive oil dressing. I was slightly annoyed that the Loukaniko sausage was already accompanied by a reasonable portion of the Aegean Slaw, so I got extra slaw. If I had know this I might have chosen a different final choice. This was nice, fresh and crunchy.

The service was excellent, and it was a pleasant lunchtime experience with some great food, great value and nice environment.

July 20, 2018June 19, 2021

I promise next time, I will choose differently!

After a last minute change of plan I found myself in Bristol on a Thursday, which meant that I had the opportunity to attend the Temple Quay Market. There was a wide range of stalls and a lot of choice. As is my usual practice, it was a quick look round to see what was there, what was available and where the queues were. It was a beautiful day, quite hot and sunny, and the market was proving popular and the queues for most stalls were quite long.

I was tempted by the pasta at Socarrat Catering, this always sounds delicious, but felt it wasn’t quite the weather for pasta. I did feel like trying the seafood chicken & chorizo paella from Chef De Maison, however it had proved popular and there was none left when I looked. I do like squid, so the South Street Kitchen with their crispy squid was tempting, as was the Neapolitan style pizzas straight from the wood fired oven of Wood Chop Pizza.

In the end I splurged at Lisa’s She Sells Sushi stall. I know I could have chosen something new or different, but SheSellsSushi is really delicious, very tempting and certainly a favourite of mine. There was quite a queue, so it game me time to think about what to have. Lisa has started selling ramen and it did sound rather nice, and as I got closer to getting served I did see how it came together and it looked delicious. The sushi looked wonderful as usual and looked very tempting, as did the Takoyaki available in octopus and duck varieties. As I stood in the queue the woman behind me was chatting with her friend and I couldn’t help overhearing her, how she always intended to have something different, but in the end always went with her favourites of the Beef Donburi and sushi. That I could certainly identify with.

I try not to have what I have had before, this time I went again with what I had before. Which was exactly what I did last time I visited the stall. Next time I am promising myself to go with something different.

As is typical for me I took a bento box with the Beef Donburi, which is slow cooked beef rib in a teriyaki sauce with a hirata bun.

Like last time there was a choice of two hirata buns, pork belly with kimchi and a chicken tempura. Both served in a charcoal steamed bun. Previously there was only the choice of the pork belly bun. This time I was (slightly) different and went with the chicken tempura hirata bun,

The Donburi beef was again delicious, the flavour is great, it was well balanced and so tasty. Served with rice and spring onions, great rice with some really tasty savoury tender beef. Really tasty and moreish.

I really enjoyed the tempura chicken hirata bun, the chicken was flavoursome, as well as being nice and crispy. I also did enjoy the soft charcoal steamed bun it came in.

Again it was really nice, delicious food and I know I will probably have it again, but next time I am planning to go with some variety, the ramen did look very tempting.

July 13, 2018September 11, 2020

Go Greek (again)

It’s been a while since I was last at The Real Greek and I have been meaning to make a return visit for a while. Well looking for a place to eat and sit, even though it was a Thursday with the Temple Quay market been very tempting, I with a couple of friends decided to visit The Real Greek.

There was a warm welcome and what with the music playing inside, we asked to sit outside. Now outside was a weird thing as we were inside Cabot Circus, a shopping centre in the heart of Bristol. Even though technically it was inside the shopping centre, the way Cabot Circus has been designed and built, it’s more of a covered shopping area, in some places you can see sky above you and the whole place is open to the elements. So even though we were outside the restaurant, there was a glass roof above us. Having said all that, once you were sat down, it didn’t feel like you were in the heart of a shopping centre, it felt more like you were in a street cafe sitting outside watching the world go by, without the cars and scooters you would probably find in Greece.

It was really nice that a carafe of water (as in free tap water) was provided without us needing to ask. The last time I went I said

The Real Greek has a great lunchtime menu, and if I visit again I will probably choose from that and it looks like great value.

So I went to have a look this time at the lunch menu, though I was still somewhat tempted by the hot meze choices of grilled octopus and the lamb cutlets that I had on the previous visit.

The Lunch Menu is a fixed price at £8.50, where you can choose between a Greek Trio or a Greek Plate or a Souvlaki Wrap & Side.

The trio’s are fun coming on an afternoon tea style rack with the starter on the top, the main in the middle and the accompaniment on the bottom. Well I think it should arrive like that. Both times I have been, the dishes have been mixed around… The trio is also a great choice if you are vegan, as there are plenty of vegan choices available.

I went with the Halloumi Greek Plate which was served with saffron rice, a Greek salad, tzatziki and warm flatbread.

The halloumi was very nice, grilled, but not overcooked. The interesting texture, saltiness and flavour was balanced with the vibrant Greek salad comprising peppers, tomatoes, feta and lettuce. I enjoyed the flatbread which was soft and fresh.

Overall I really enjoyed the plate of food in a pleasant environment (and great company).

I think I will go again.

May 24, 2018November 5, 2021

Cheesy

Near to my office are various eating places, I often drink coffee at the Exchange and have heard good thing about many of the places on Old Market, but apart from buying bread from the Assembly Bakery I’ve not actually eaten at many of the establishments.

So it was with some hopeful anticipation that I went for lunch at 25A Old Market. From what I was told they usually offer a range of (posh) sausage rolls and cheese toasties. On the day we went only the toasties were on the menu.

The welcome was warm and friendly and after placing our orders we went downstairs into the basement and our food was brought down to us.

There was a choice of two toasties a five cheese one and a meat one. I went with the meat one.

It arrived hot and toasty with a really nice side salad. They use the sourdough from the Assembly Bakery and it was really tasty, good strong flavoured cheese and great bread. I think I would have been perfectly happy with the cheese variant, not sure how much extra the salami added to the toastie.

I am not usually a toasty or panini fan, but this was a really nice toasty.

May 23, 2018January 28, 2025

It was different

Though I like to try different things when I go out to eat, it would appear that when I visit Wagamama that I seem to go for the Wagamama Ramen and if I have a side, it’s the Chilli Squid.

So on my most recent visit to Wagamama I made the bold choice of going for something different and it was. I went with their Shiitake Donburi.

This is shiitake mushrooms and broccoli omelette served on brown rice in a teriyaki sauce garnished with shredded carrots, spring onions, chilli and pea shoots.

This was (for me) an interesting combination of flavours and textures. I really like the taste and texture of the shiitake mushrooms, which combined with the smoothness of the egg, the roughness of the rice and the saltiness of the teriyaki sauce resulted in a delicious dish of food.

The addition of the carrots, spring onions and pea shoots added a freshness and crispness to the dish.

Overall I was pleased with the dish, though I don’t think I will go for it again, I will either (more than likely) go with the ramen again, or try something new.