All we ask for is a bit less noise in the kitchen!!We were a member down this month, due to Gemmas holiday to Scotland (lets hope for some Grubgang on tour reviews there!!) but, it did not deter the remaining three members from venturing out for an evening of culinary magic!!
So, Ask! In Fareham was in our sights for our latest review. It is a chain of Italian restaurants which we had heard was good, but could be a little pricey! Along comes their set menus, offering the choice of a few dishes, 3 courses for £13.95........fantastic for the Grubgang ideal. This was the menu of Deans choice, whilst the other two of us decided to perhaps go over budget to sample the main menu.
I wasn't wowed by the starters, to be honest, settling for the goats cheese with Rosemary and Sea salt bread. Not actually a starter, but a "nibble" from the menu, but I thought it made a great starter, personally!! Dean chose bruschetta from the set menu, whilst Mike had INSALATA CAPRESE, with mozzarella cheese and vine tomatoes, apparently an Italian Classic!
.Dean just had to have one of the pizzas, as they were presented so well on a wooden board, looking delicious. He had to admit, it was the best pizza he had had in ages. He had decided on PRIMA PIZZA ESTIVA, with a range of delicious vegetables cooked to perfection in the pizza oven!! I fancied trying an old classic with a twist, therefore having the Fish ravioli. It was so sublime, I could have easily had more if I hadn't have been so eager to try the desserts!! Mike chose TERRINA MEDITERRANEA, a casserole with chicken and prawns which he said was fantastic. He doesn't even like olives and they didn't even bother him being in the dish!!
to have the Honeycomb cheesecake (although I was almost swayed by the Apple Rustica) and I was so glad I chose it! It was presented beautifully once again and tasted as good as it looked!! Dean had the pistachio gelato (ice cream!) which reminded him of his holiday in Lake Garda and was devine! Mike had the TORTE AL LIMONE, and again was satisfied with what he was given!!
The food was so good, it is a shame we have to add some criticism. The restaurant was lovely and airy and bright, but there were so many tables, we were seated by the kitchen and bar. This meant we were brushed every time a waitress went past and the noise of clattering pots and pans was getting a little too much! At one point, we saw flames leaping up from the bar behind us......I'm sure it looked fab from another part of the room, but not behind Mike and Clairs heads!!
The service was friendly, but we did have to wait a very long time to order our drinks, to the point that we were actually ready to order our food by the time the drinks order was finally taken. The
prices of the drinks are quite high, so be prepared for this if you visit. This is definitely not the place to go if you are looking for a nice, quiet meal! The food is great, but this means that the restaurant gets very busy, even during the week and therefore noise levels can be quite high. This you would probably expect from a chain restaurant, however. We also had to wait a fair while between our starters arriving and Mikes starter arriving, which made it awkward for us all as we didn't want our food getting cold, or to start without our friend!!
So, although the food was devine, we have had to take these little things into account, as we do with all our reviews!! We would go again, but maybe for a celebration with a few friends rather than anything more intimate.
Marks out of 10..................................................................... 7 (Deans choice)
No comments:
Post a Comment