The Pryordurkins

Posts Tagged ‘drink’

We paid another visit to Ambience Cafe Bar at 40 Glllygate York for lunch today.  We wanted something light and quick while out shopping in the City Centre.  As we arrived around 12 noon, the walled garden was starting to fill up with other customers.  We took a seat at one of the plastic tables and waited to be served.  Within moments we were greeted by the friendly owner, who said someone would be with us soon.  A nice touch.

A young guy with a blank look turned up to take our order.  We knew after placing the order, it was unlikely to arrive without problem.   Sure enough my chicken sandwich arrived covered in coronation sauce, despite my specifically asking for it to come plain.  Despite this the sandwich was fine.  Paul had opted for Ham and it certainly looked home cooked.  Accompanied by curly fries (how can respectable places still serve these grease laden things) and a small bowl of soup, it was good value at £5.90 each.

The garden itself is very private and sits within the walls of York City Centre.  It has certainly filled out with planting since we were last time and was as usual very nice indeed.

In summary, this cafe bar, while not exactly serving ‘Gastro’ food, does do what it says on the tin, and provides a nice place to stop and refresh in peaceful surroundings.

Pryordurkin rating 3 stars.

We decided to have a no brain activity evening last night and headed off to Clifton Moor to grab something to eat and take in a mindless but entertaining film at the Vue Cinema. We noticed a Frankie & Benny’s restaurant and despite the awful music they insist of piping outside the front door, we decided to go in. It was not a good start. The ‘greeter’, a man with a huge jaw, scowled a little and showed us to a cramped tiny table with paper napkins (I have a thing about paper napkins OK?) and plastic menus. Sitting a little while we noticed a second table who were seated after us where already placing their orders, so I stopped a passing waitress and asked if we could order. To give her credit, she was very pleasant and professional. Anyway the food was ordered, the drinks arrived and we waited for our starters.
Taking in the surroundings as the restaurant filled up, it quickly became almost impossible to hold any type of conversation due to the noise of the place. The incessant background music, mixed it seemed every five minutes by Happy Birthday and a Congratulations track by Cliff Richard was just too much to take in. To get over this, it seemed every other diner in the room was shouting to make sure they were heard.

Anyway we looked forward to getting our food and getting out quickly (which is exactly what these places are designed to do). The starters arrived and were ok. The table was cleared and yes they did replace the cutlery for fresh ones, so we were happy with that. The mains arrived and I tucked into my full rack of ribs. However Dusty was not so lucky. The fish he had ordered was not properly cooked so he had to send it back for a replacement. Again the staff were quite professional and made no fuss about ordering up a second meal. Dusty finally got his meal as I finished mine and this time, the fish was fresh and cooked properly.

Finishing off, we paid the bill, tipped the staff who were actually good and headed off swearing blind never to return to such a noisy place again.

Score: 1 Star. Visited April 2009

This was a return trip for Sunday Lunch to Hazlewood Castle which lies just off the A64 in between York and Leeds.  This time we were joined by my brother and sister in-law and the kids.  The first time we dined here was great.  With good service, good food and good surroundings we were looking forward to another treat.

One of the measures we look for when reviewing places is consistency.  Unfortunately on this occasion, the food and service were not quite as good as before.  We had telephoned ahead to book a table for 12noon and on arrival were shown straight to our table.  No option of an aperitif in the bar beforehand.  The restaurant manager did not even offer to take our coats, so we found ourselves hanging them over the back of the chairs and I had to put my hat on the FLOOR!.

We ordered up our food and having seen bar menus in use last time, I mentioned there may be a simpler option for the kids to enjoy.  However this time, the waiter never gave any option for the kids to order from the bar menu and they had to make do with a kids tailored version of Sunday Lunch. Our drinks soon arrived and after a little wait were closely followed by starters which were nicely presented and very good.  After the plates were cleared we then had what seemed like a long wait for the mains to come out.  When they did, my beef was tuff and on the small size, as compared to last time.  The Yorkshire pudding, which was so good last time, was hard and brittle this time around.  The kids, who love Yorkshire puddings both seemed disappointed.  The vegetables were cooked to perfection though. Desserts followed and these were very good indeed.

Overall as mentioned earlier, this visit was let down by the service and the quality of the main course.  The restaurant manager made you feel as though you were a bit of an annoyance really and certainly not warmly welcomed, which was a pity as the Castle itself, the grounds that surround it were all great.  She seemed to take particular umbridge at being called over to take an extra order of drinks!

Pryordurkin rating 3 Stars. (dropped 1 star since our last visit in January) Tel: 01937 535353

It was spring-like and after a short stroll through the grounds of RHS Harlow Carr we headed off into Harrogate to explore and find a little bistro for lunch. We eventually came across Van Zeller Restaurant on Montpellier Street, a little restaurant that we liked the look of, even though we could not clearly read the menu since the window was steamed up. As it turned out, this place had only officially been open since Fri 13th Feb 09. The owner and chef is Tom van Zeller and according to the advertising is the only chef in Harrogate to have been awarded 2AA rosettes, whilst head chef at the Hotel du Vin, Harrogate. With backing from David Moore (one of the inspectors from BBC2’s The Restaurant) Van Zeller’s is aiming to be the premier dining destination in and around Harrogate.

It had just gone 2.15pm  but the chef was still prepared to accept two more covers. The restaurant is on the small side, which makes listening to fellow diners extremely easy, but was smart and stylish. One table was screened off from the till, and when the couple seated at this table were being served one person was served and then the waiter would run around the screen and the till and then serve the other half of the table. They did make the comment that they felt hemmed in. This place is certainly bijou. We were readily seated, our coats taken, and were glad to note the linen napkins. Two menu options were available, the ‘Du Jour’ which consisted of two courses and a free glass of wine, for the bargain price of £14.95, and the A La Carte menu. We both opted for the A La Carte menu. Michael opted for the game terrine and then the lamb confit with leeks and potatoes, I opted for the salmon balotine to be followed by the lamb too.A little sliver of butter (that was sitting in a little puddle of water) was put on the table but we were half way through the starters before we eventually managed to ask whether we could have some bread to go with the butter. Additionally,  whilst we were told about the free wine, the front of house weren’t so keen in promoting the drinks that we had to pay for and we had to ask for a drinks menu. The drinks menus were given to Michael to browse and one menu promptly dropped one of the fastenings into his terrine. Instead of replacing the starter (or at least removing the fastening in the kitchen) Michael was asked to pick the fastening out of the terrine and hand it over! Michael chose a glass of Shiraz that he said was very nice but looking at the bill when we got home we were charged for 2 Erdinger beers instead (another loss in profit). Michael thought the terrine was ok but had tasted better recently, and the centre of my salmon balotine had ice crystals in it. Not the best of starts. The mains were acceptable but not overly outstanding. Being a cheesecake aficionado, Michael ordered the rhubarb and lime cheesecake but said the two flavours clashed, I opted for the apple tarte tatin but the caramel had been burnt and left a bitter aftertaste. Two double espressos were ordered but they did not come with any cantucci or the like and I could still taste the burnt caramel even after the coffee but I could not find any mint imperials.

Whilst Van Zeller’s is hoping to become the premier dining destination in and around Harrogate,  the front of house need to pull their socks up, they weren’t even half full, and more attention needs to be paid to the food being served ie not to send out frozen or burnt food. Whilst we wish a new business to succeed we don’t feel that Van Zeller’s has yet achieved the standards that they are clearly hoping to attain. The chef Tom Van Zeller did apologise for the frozen salmon though.

Pryordurkin rating: 3 stars.  (We will go back though to see if our experience was just early opening snags)

Telephone 01423 508762

Returning home today from working in and around the South East I found newly printed cards confirming our joint membership of York Theatre Royal.  We’ve come to be regulars at this fantastic theatre so thought joining up would be a good thing.  For the £58 pa fee, we get 10% off up to 4 tickets per show, and  10% off all food and drink when we’re there.  They also offer up special events, newsletters and other special promotions.  There might even be the chance to meet some of the cast one day.

The thing I particularly like as well, is the ability to get the discount even when booking your tickets online; which is usually my preference because we tend to need our diaries to hand when booking things up in advance.

Membership

Having finished work on Wednesday with two colleagues I set off for a spot of dinner at a restaurant in Reading.  On our way we stopped for a pint at the Allied Arms on St Marys Butts in Reading.  A strange name I thought for a location, but as I learnt more about Reading from the locals inside discovered it has quite a history when it comes to monks, nuns and religion in general.  The outside of the pub would normally have resulted in me walking on by, but my colleagues seemed confident that what lay inside would be good.  Stepping through the door and having ordered up our drinks we took a table near the window.  One colleague then wandered back outside to make a phone call, the t’other went off to the loo and I was left at the mercy of a very small man with a limp, a scar and a broken arm who seemed to think we were long lost buddies and that we needed to get reacquainted.  He proceeded to ask lots of questions but those who know me, will realise the futility of that particular tactic.  Nonetheless he chatted away for the next twenty minutes without stop.  My colleagues had returned by this point but it made little difference and one colleague who professed to be good at empathy kept acknowledging the conversation and egging this bloke on.  However after a while, my miserable non responsive, emotionless face must have eventually worn him down as he finished off his drink and left the pub completely.

The pub itself serves up real ale which for people who understand these things is apparently very good and I could see and hear from the other punters that this place has a real following.  Cosy traditional and probably a great place to spend a few hours on a cold winters evening.  However it isn’t quite my cup of tea as there were no flashy lights, no house music and no eye candy to speak of.

Pryordurkin 3 stars.  (it might not have been my thing, but this is clearly a well liked traditional pub serving real ale, hence the three stars)

For reasons that are still unclear, I found myself having a spot of lunch at the Monks’ Retreat on Friar Street in Reading last Wednesday.  Along with two colleagues, I arrived at just after 1pm and the place was very busy indeed.  The clientele were predominantly elderly, unemployed or strangely confused looking (I fell into the last category).  The temptation to run after being inside for no more than two minutes nearly overtook my otherwise calm casual self, but I managed to resist and we sat down at a recently vacated table.  Sitting to our left were a bunch of drinkers who looked as though they had been there since breakfast was served, but despite an atmosphere that felt like it would kick off at any moment, we ordered up some food.  My colleague went for the £2.95 Ham, Egg and Chips Lunch time special.   I resisted this and went for the roast chicken at £6.50 (the chicken served up was the strangest looking chicken I have ever seen; it was like a baby chicken with big breasts! – Goodness knows what went into it (and now me) to make it grow like that.)

The service was quick and within moments of sitting down having ordered, our food arrived.  As it happens, it was what it was.  Cheap and cheerful food.

As we left I noticed a monk climbing a rope towards the exit.  I knew how he felt and would probably not return either.

Pryordurkin rating 1 star.

Phone: 0118 950 7592

Tuesday gone had me dining with a colleague at the Royal Tandoori Restaurant, part of the Royal County Hotel on Duke Street in Reading.  From the outside window looking in, it didn’t particularly appeal; what with the plastic table covers and paper napkins, but at around 8pm with the snow falling at the treacherous street underneath, anything would have done.

We were shown to a window table and after a little wait were offered up drinks and popadoms while we looked through the menu.  After a little while our order was taken and I went for the Onion Bhaji starter with a Chicken Dhansak main.   The food itself was good, although the quantity was a little on the mean side.  Accompanied by a Cobra beer it was a welcoming warming meal.

The restaurant itself also serves as the breakfast room for the hotel, which explained its sheer size.  Not a great place for a romantic meal I guess, but one that probably undertakes several functions.  The service was efficient and friendly and all in all, we were happy with the meal just completed.

The total bill came to just over £41 for two people including drinks which was reasonable value indeed for the meal just had.

Pryordurkin rating. 3 stars.

With the weather having turned very cold and snow being forecast I decided to get the train from York to Reading today, instead of driving, as has been the norm for the last two weeks. Paul dropped me off at York station just after 8am and with my train due at 8.27am I was pleased to see it being reported on the information boards, as on time. I had therefore had a little time to sit down in the Costa Coffee bar for a medium Americano. The lady serving, well girl, was on her own and a little underwhelming with her friendly personality and broad smile.

Anyway as indicated, the Cross Country train from Newcastle to Reading via York, Doncaster, Sheffield, Birmingham New Street, Leamington Spa, Banbury and Oxford was on time. I took my seat in carriage A. The carriage was clean and quite warm but the seats were a little more suited for short commuter rides than long distance inter city journeys. There was also not a great deal of luggage space and had the carriage being full this would have been a problem. As it was for most of the journey I had the carriage more or less to myself.

There was a power point for my laptop and each seat had either its own table or a shared table. Being the miserable sod I am, I always try and get a seat on my own. There is no free wireless access though and if I didn’t have my own mobile wireless network card, this would have been a big problem. As we pulled out of York I immediately noticed that this wasn’t going to be one of the quieter train rides I had. I am not saying it was noisy, but the rumbling that was immediately evident would no doubt start to annoy me after about an hour of my four hour journey that lay ahead.

The train offers up light snacks to keep you going and where I was sitting, complimentary drinks and Bacon Butty’s were a very welcome treat. The service from the young lady was attentive and regular. With a genuine warm smile on her face as she asked if you needed any more refreshments, I compared her with the cold hard faced witch that I so often came across on the National Express East Coast mainline train service.

The toilets were those that come with an electric door, which I hate. You never quite trust these things and I have seen a number of people suitably embarrassed because of the inadvertent opening that continues to be a high risk. As for their cleanliness, it left a little to be desired and I will even more fervently follow the rule of no number twos in a public loo!

A good thing about this journey is that it is certainly more scenic than the usual East Coast main line which I know so well. This line trundles through many a town and village offering the bored commuter, who has finished doing any preparation for work and exhausted the morning paper, a chance to see other parts of old blighty. With much of the country being covered in snow today, this is quite a treat. The only slight problem is a pretty poor wireless network signal as you travel across the countryside.

There was of course a momentary panic as we pulled out of Birmingham New Street train station. The journey up to that point had me facing forwards in the direction of travel. For a brief moment, I panicked that I was on the wrong train as upon leaving Birmingham New Street, we suddenly started going backwards and continued to do so for the rest of the journey. I could have just moved seats, but this one by now had taken the shape of my cheeks and was nicely warmed through!

Anyway we are now nearing the end of this journey and while it has been a long one, it has in the main being comfortable, relaxing and on time.

Pryordurkin rating 3 stars.

Having complete dinner at a nearby restaurant last night, with a colleague I went to the Island Bar and Restaurant on Pipers Island near Caversham Bridge in Reading.  The place was near empty except for a couple and the bar man.  The place has clearly been renovated and is actually very stylish.  It has both indoor seating and outdoor decking where during warmer weather I could imagine many people enjoying themselves.  The music playing in the background was very mediteranean in style and this only added to the sophisticated nature of the place.   We ordered up a couple of Remy Martin Brandies and I was very pleased when the said bar man offered to warm our glasses and bring our drinks over to where by this point we had taken a seat.  With fantastic views of the river and only a short stroll from my hotel room at the Crowne Plaza a pleasant wind down from a reasonably busy day was underway.

I would certainly go back here and look forward to the warmer weather if I am in Reading again.

Pryordurkin rating. 4 stars.

Telephone +44 (0) 1189 479530