Burrs - Newport***

This little Bistro, once the Tap at the back of the Bugle Hotel - do any of you remember that? has great atmosphere. It reminds me of one of those back street Parisian cafes full of Gitane smoke and accordion music. The food at Burr's suits the surroundings. In the past I have enjoyed scallops grilled to perfection - tender and creamy on the inside. Juicy pink slices of duck breast served with cherry sauce. Of course cherries are out of season so they probably came out of the freezer but the sticky sauce was a true reduction. recently the Brawn and I enjoyed, intense flavoured crab brulee (although I cannot get my head around the description of brulee for a savoury dish. I always thought it meant burnt topping as in burnt sugar). The Brawn's chicken liver pate was full of flavour. The main course  pheasant was nicely cooked and not dry as can often be the case and my rack of lamb came beautifully pink with a delicious reduction sauce. Only I could manage pudding, being the greedy one of the family. My all time favourite creme caramel was well executed.

Where is it? East side of Lugley Street

UPDATED REVIEW 2008

Consistency I have always argued is the main thing that establishes a good eatery - it will get you one star. So what is it that makes an eatery outstanding and on the road to two and three stars? A good food inspector is looking for something instinctive and special. There are three crucial elements. First is the timing. The Roux brothers had this off to a fine art. Their recipes were minusculy measured, almost scientific, and timed to serve up perfection at every serving. Secondly a top chef will have an acute understanding of ingredients and food marriages (not, I might add, mad ideas just for the sake of it) to offer good and exciting flavours. Thirdly, most importantly and the most difficult to achieve, identity and individuality. Be a trend setter not a trend follower, have at least one signature dish that will blow your mind away. Think creatively without it being silly food.

Chef/proprietor Mark Young is on this journey as my recent visit showed. Nina Bulley, local jeweller and myself arrived for Sunday lunch on a glorious sunny day in March. We were planning a long walk afterwards so missed out on starters to keep a hole for pudding and light enough to exercise. Nina professed that her roast beef was the best she had ever had. My rack of lamb with slow cooked breast of lamb came served with perfectly cooked green beans and a very  tasty sauce. I am always looking out for those sticky reductions that show serious dedication to cooking, this is Mark's next task but he is not far off success.

Mark has given himself the difficult job of training staff to have the same understanding of food and cooking as he has. Given that the next step towards seriously seeking stars is all about talent - that is the difference between a top chef and a bobbing along like a cork one -  he needs to ensure his staff are on the ball regards precision because at the end of the day it is all down to him.

St Helen's  cafe, come bistro, come restaurant is friendly and relaxing, the decor the kind of upmarket beach hut  one sees in Coast Magazine. It has a great holiday feel about it even in the Winter

Where is it? Park on the car park on the green. Walk across the Green in  the direction of Bembridge. It is on a corner, you can't miss it.

The Black Cat  *+ Shanklin new-entry

I have always steered away from Thai food restaurants in the belief they can never be as good as the real thing. I ended up at the Black cat in Shanklin because friend Dorene loves foreign food and it was her treat. All I can say is thank you Dorene for liking foreign food. We chose more than we could eat but it was so exciting with its little bursts of exotic flavours that we didn't leave much. Spring rolls - packed with little surprise-nuggets of flavour. The Duck with Chinese five spice - one of my favourite flavourings but probably because it reminds me of the cough tablets (an old fashioned candy) was excellent. The Green Thai prawn curry on the magical side. The Asparagus and baby corn cooked to perfection. The decors is strange for a Thai food restaurant, reminiscent of an olde English tea shop, but it somehow works and very cosy on Wintry nights.

Saffrons - Shanklin*new-entry

Recently changed hands but offering the same menu

This little bistro offers an eclectic mix of dishes which suggests the chef is by and large offering the kind of food he likes to eat. I take this as a good sign - the chef is cooking from the heart. With good sourcing of ingredients and a little more confidence in cooking times this chef is on the way to perfection.

For instance my asparagus wrapped in parma ham was a knatz too crunchy, while the poached egg that came with it was perfectly cooked but would have been nicer if it was a dainty pullets egg or a quails egg. Pork is the most difficult meat to cook as it goes from tender to hard in a split second. The pork in my pork and mozzarella cheese stack was just about right but would have been better if it had come from a younger pig. (do not buy pork that has no rind on it - this is the give away to the age of a pig). My side salad was a pleasure and came with a little jug of dressing and was much nicer than those horrible spiky rocket leave restaurants seem to be obsessed with. I have no idea why rocket leave are like this - the ones I grow at home are delicious and tender.

I loved the white chocolate and red berry brulee , but a brulee is supposed to be a rich custard made with egg yolks and double cream- one of my most favourite puds so it is always a disappointment to me when I do not get what I am expecting.

I loved the flat screen of changing art.

Where is it? Shanklin - Where Hard Times used to be

Olivio - Newport**

It is a tricky business putting on a roast special all day. Do you cook one large joint and reheat it for the end of day orders or cook smaller joints at intervals through-out the day? How a restaurant handles this is a good test - will it end up like reheated school dinners. Olivio did it like this... Cook fresh vegetables to tender perfection. Place while piping hot on plate. Lay on top nicely cooked cold slices of pork stuffed with parma ham and fennel seeds. Pour over hot, rich beer flavoured gravy. To my enjoyment it worked! The pork was tender, moist  and of good texture. It gives me pleasure to see such thought put into the presentation of what I consider to be a challenging dish.

My starter of deep fried calamari with spicy chickpea cream dressing was very good and my dessert showed and understanding of flavours. The fruit terrine was red berries set in a clear aspic. It was fruity and sharp and not drowning in sugary jelly, the white chocolate ice-cream was a good accompaniment and the presentation delightfully simple. Other desserts need some attention.

Surprisingly ,for an Italian restaurant, they do not always get their cappucino right. It's a third, a third, a third!

Where is it? St Thomas Square, Newport

Where is it? East side of Lugley Street

George Hotel Bistro - Yarmouth ** new-review July 2008

it was a sunny day and nice enough to sit on the sea wall surrounded by the old Castle and the traditional pier. I began with the Georges version of Salad nicoise- which was as good a any I have eaten in a pub. The tuna however, was tinned. My main course of salmon fishcakes was interesting. of the three fishcakes on the plate two turned out to be mozzarella rice balls. An unfortunate mistake due to both being the same shape. nevertheless the one I had was delicious and came with an excellent white wine sauce. I ordered the Strawberries with gratinee of sabayon sauce. This was again unusual, it was a bright yellow colour and quite thick as opposed to the foamy, liquidy sauce one would expect with such a dish. I was told that the yellow came form the Italian corn fed chicken eggs which the chef gets as a special purchase. Impressive to say the least.

Service was traditional, efficient and polite.

Where is it? Yarmouth is so small you will find it on the right as you walk from the Square to the ferry

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Royal Hotel - Ventnor **+

Compared to restaurants, bistros and pubs, dinning room eating is a rather genteel affair. Normally raucous parties take on a subdued demeanour, conversations become hushed - one is exposed enough, in such a large open expanse of room. Even children assume the behaviour of one intimidated by their surroundings. Dinning rooms call for formality, although thank god the silver service has been abandoned. These days what is on the plate is all down to the chef. On the down side veg' portions have disappeared and reappeared as garnish.

The dinning room at the Royal is large and simply furnished the expanse broken up with a wall partition. Peach coloured walls, dark blue soft furnishings, old gold framed oils, chandeliers, a bust and a slightly out of place art deco mirror complete the look. Service with a smile is discreet but at the same time attentive. I nibbled on a walnut and brown bread roll (H'made) while I waited my first course, a slice of terrine made up of confit of duck, foi gras and pasta, it was served with delicate orange segments and a light dressing. It was very good. I wasn't going to have a second roll when offered, but I was glad I changed my mind as portions are very small. My main course of steamed sea bream, stuffed with scallop mousse on a small bed of couscous was delicate on all counts, flavour, texture and size. It came with 4 spears of peeled (shows attention to detail) chargrilled asparagus. It was all delicious but I wanted more. (I visited another restaurant this week and also ordered couscous with lamb and fruit kebab and a hot chilli sauce but the sauce was lost as it was poured over the huge pile of couscous and absorbed into the grains (thoughtless cooking).  The tiny dessert of roasted caramelised pineapple (sweet with a tangy edge) with malibu panna cotta tender wobbly creation was a delectable but wicked tease. I still have difficulty understanding why such beautifully cooked food, not just at the Royal but at all high ranking restaurants, has to come in such small portions at high prices.

Where is it? Drive west along the Ventnor Esplanade up the steep hill, turn left and there you are

The Pond - Bonchurch **+

New-review July 2008

I recently enjoyed the most memorable dish of the year here. Oven baked skate wing with caper butter sauce - wonderful

These days the Pond  menu is a more simple affair. It has a nice atmosphere, formal trendy on the inside and casual on the roadside patio - great for summer eating.

Where is it?- a few doors up from Bonchurch Post office

Seaview Hotel - Seaview **+

New-review

The restaurant at the back is very blue and very cool, great after a hot day in the Summer sun - if we get any this year! The Brawn came despite it being a dinning room type restaurant and not bistro style. The menu gets straight to the point when it comes to cost. Starters it says are "Six pounds fifty pence" then it lists an interesting choice of what you get for £6.50. I chose Spider crab risotto with foam - very nice. The Brawn was intrigued by warm cucumber jelly with the mackerel and garnished with micro salad and horeseradish. The jelly was indeed warm but was more affectation than flavour packed and they forgot the horseradish garnish.

Main courses the menu says are "Sixteen pounds ninety five pence" I had the black bream with toasted rice water - yes, I really did say toasted rice water which like the cucumber jelly was more affectation than flavour packed. The Brawn had some minute duck breast on a bed of parsnips drizzled with an intense reduction.

My citrus pudding was the best part a warm, syrupy, caramelised orange thingy, a fabulously tangy lime sorbet and a delightfully smooth lemon cream. The Brawn who absolutely loves all things rhubarb went for the trio of rhubarb mousse, sorbet and milk shake, the only inedible item was the straw in the shake.

A couple of freebies were thrown in - an amuse bouche (amusing the mouth) at the beginning which was a spectacular chicken liver pithivier with a perfect stock reduction sauce and a pre pudding banana cake with orange sauce - slightly disappointing. With half a bottle of wine, some sparkling water it was excellent value for money. The new chef needs to look towards consistency and strong gimmickless flavours throughout then I am sure he will be on the way to a Michelin star.

Where is it? - High Street, Seaview

The Terrace Restaurant - Osborne House, East Cowes

The Terrace dinning room is a relaxed dinning room catering for an onslaught of tourists in the most elegant way possible. Beautiful white plaster cornices, stained glass window, contemporary lighting, polished floor boards and even with dark chocolate brown walls is light, airy and uplifting. Food is adequate with a few inspirational moments.

Where is it? - in the ground of Osborne House at the rear of the house

Priory Bay Hotel - Seaview *

new-review

All the dishes are home made and the vegetables from the kitchen garden and the exacting manner in which they are cooked set a high standard for the rest of the menu. The dishes served are hit and miss when it comes to seasoning. For instance seafood risotto that was too salty and tomato and basil pasta under-seasoned. However get this right and the new chef is on the way to creating a very nice dinning experience. My favourite pudding creme caramel was on the menu and I have to say it was divine.

Mojacs - Cowes

Some good basic cooking that can be relied upon

Hambrough Hotel - Ventnor ****

UPDATED REVIEW 2008

What I like about the Hambrough is standards never change and the new chef has made a seamless entrance. The cooking at the Hambrough is what sets the standard for the rest of the Island and any other Island chef should make at least one visit to learn what it is all about. Basically if they don't get it they are in the wrong business. My meal was faultless. Flavours, execution, balance, innovation. More over he has what all great chefs have, a palate. This is the singularly most important quality that sets the best chefs apart from the rest. This is the restaurant for dinners who want to experience the exquisite world of fine dinning. if your want a blow out, if you want quantity rather than quality if you eat out at places simply because you can get Sunday lunch for 5.95 then this is not the place for you.

The meal began with a complimentary cup of soup. and excellent house baked bread. My starter was sauted sweeetbreads with perfectly cooked carrots and an intense reduction sauce. My main course was perfectly cooked salmon (pink in the middle) on tender sheets of pasta and thinly sliced fennel. The white veloute sauce was the perfect accompaniment. The dessert came in a sundae glass. Apple posset, then sharp apple granita, then candied apples and blackcurrants, then apple foam, served with a wafer thin apple and candy crisp. No where else on the Island have I eaten food as good as this. If you are on a budget then I suggest  you try the lunch. However I must point out they were busy on my visit. This suggests to me people are prepared to pay for quality. Coffee and petit fours had as much attention paid to them as the rest of the meal.

Where is it? park on the sea front, walk up to the Winter Gardens and cross over the road. Turn left up the little lane and it is on your right overlooking the sea.

Forresters Hall *+

Yarmouth  New-review

The Blue Crab was closed so this is where I ended up. It was Monday night and seemingly very quite. The waiter thought it might be quite too but he was wrong and I had an entertaining evening watching this superman whiz from table to table, full of apologies for the wait, full of concern and consideration for the guests, in fact I didn't see him put a foot wrong. The food wasn't bad either. A well executed smoked salmon and prawn terrine and a very nice corn-fed chicken stuffed with chorizo mousse with a tasty peppercorn cram sauce. Something different at last. However, It all went a bit pear shaped with the brulee which had a runny undercooked bottom. I mentioned this to superman, something I do not normally do but I thought it a shame that such a nice meal prepared by some one who cares would want to know. However, I was wrong. In fact I discovered that having cooked some 2,000 brulee's myself and eaten them cooked by the best chefs in France and this country including Michelle Gerraud and Albert Roux I have just discovered we had all being doing it wrong - for it is meant to have a runny bottom. You learn something every day!!

The Blue Crab - Yarmouth *

new-review 2008

Basic rustic home cooking is the flavour of the day. The starters have become a choice of tapas, which makes it easy for the chef. Main courses consist mainly of fresh grilled fish on the bone with butter sauces and this is what he is best at. The meal comes with a selection of vegetables. Puddings are simple and I suspect not all homemade.

Where is it? Opposite Yarmouth Police Station

Albert Cottage - East Cowes *

Sad to say but I am not filled with delight at the prospect of going out to East Cowes for dinner. In the days when Padmore House was operating that was OK because it was in snooty Whippingham on the edge of E Cowes. Albert Cottage is on the cusp of E Cowes and Whippingham so you do not have to go anywhere near East Cowes unless you are crossing over on the floating bridge. However, I have to say the town's past reputation is diminishing. East Cowes I have to tell you is on the up - on the outskirts at least. I decided to go for the excellent value Sunday Lunch.

Another prejudice of mine is I am not keen on formal dining room eating, I think it tempers personalities and diners never look as if they are really enjoying themselves, best behaviour and all that! Formality is what Albert Cottage is all about. However, there is a curious walk to the restaurant along a long corridor and the dinning room is friendlier than most. The lunch was very good. Pink freshly carved beef, homemade Yorkshire although I think the batter may have been a little too thick, proper roast potatoes and perfect pan juice gravy not the flour thickened stuff you get at most places. The choice of starters are simple and un-adventurous. I had pears with crumbled stilton, walnuts, dressing and leaves. My version would be a pear stuffed with roqueforte cream, coated in sour cream dressing and garnished with leaves with honeygar dressing and toasted pinenuts. The dessert was perfectly executed, panna cotta - all the rage these days - (getting boooring...) - with hot caramelised pineapple and toffee sauce.

The evening menu looks interesting - I shall give it a go over the next few weeks.

I have also on two occasions enjoyed quality Sunday roast beef  at the Fat Cat in Freshwater, however, their starters and puddings tend to be bought  in.

Where is it? On the road towards East Cowes, on the right just passed Osborne House.

Morgan's*+ - Shanklin*

New-review

The decor is brand spanking new and needs to be worn in for extra comfort. The menu has grown since last year. I have real problem making decisions when it comes to eating out. Not so much what do I want but more a case of what am I going to miss.

Again I hadn't booked and the staff were pleasant and efficient. Fine, no problem where would you like to sit. I like that.  No fuss, no hassle, take a seat, we will be with you in a tick.

I love pate but never have it when I eat out because I do not trust menus that say Home- made or Chefs special recipe pate only to discover that it is not homemade at all. It really annoys me because it assumes the customer is stupid. So I was pleased when I saw chefs special duck liver and foi gras pate with red onion chutney. This had to be home-made. It was indeed delicious and served in small portions due I expect to the presence of the wildly expensive foi gras. It was definitely as good as those luxuriously expensive tins of foi gras pate I bring home from France. Catch of the day was fresh Bembridge Plaice an opportunity not to be missed. It came simply with freshly cooked vegetables - although French beans were crunchy rather than aldente and a little dipping sauce would have made it that little bit more special.

The pudding, a spicy apple crumble with custard was spoilt by the fact the custard was not proper egg custard.

Where is it? Shanklin High Street on the left as you go towards Ventnor.