07.31
0 Comments | Evening Post; Bristol (UK), Jul 29, 2010
certainly got my digestive juices bubbling: ham hock and foie gras terrine with pink grapefruit and cress salad; Thai beef salad; breast of chicken dusted in sumac; fish of the day with vermouth and saffron sauce, mussels and crayfish tails and so on.
The River Grille has one of the best harbourside locations close to Pero’s Bridge and it makes for a great spot for people-watching.
On the night I visited, there was a huge pub crawl with employees from Lloyds and everybody passing the restaurant seemed to be dressed as an airhostess, cowboy or Hawaiian island.
The room is wide, light and airy with cream leather banquettes along one wall beneath angled mirrors that make it feel even bigger than it is.
Staff have name badges, as is always the case in large hotel groups, but they were excellent throughout – efficient, friendly, knowledgeable and all the things that well-drilled hotel staff are when they decide to work in hospitality for a career rather than a gap year hobby.
After a board of good complimentary bread for dunking into the pot of fruity olive oil and balsamic, I kicked off with the most expensive starter on the list.
At Pounds 13.75, the seared scallops with black pudding risotto and tomato and lime compote had a lot to live up to.
That’s a central London price tag and a hefty mark-up on a dish that probably cost a third of that to produce even if the scallops were the best that money can buy.
The three scallops were, in fact, quite small and not the baby’s fist-sized bivalves I would expect for that price.
They were precisely cooked, though, and topped with a tomato relish with a sweet and sour edge due to the lime juice.
Best of all was the pillow of creamy risotto into which was mixed enough crumbled black pudding to give it a deep flavour without overpowering the scallops.
To follow, best end of English lamb (Pounds 15.75) comprised one large, juicy pink chop and a separate helping of roast lamb shoulder which had been taken off the bone and reformed into a neat tower.
Beneath the rich, flavoursome shoulder was a slim disc of fried rosemary polenta cake and a dark and sticky lamb and port jus was dribbled over the top.
To the side, there was a mound of ratatouille-like Provencal vegetables – small dices of courgette, peppers, carrot, tomato and garlic.
To round things off, a double espresso mousse (Pounds 5.50) served in a tall espresso cup topped with a layer of cream.
The mousse had more of a bavarois texture, hinting that perhaps gelatine had been added to the mix, and there was a discreet but noticeable coffee flavour.
It was accompanied by some stunning lemon shortbread biscuits that were so light and crumbly that they dissolved on the tongue like Refreshers.
After my previous visits to the River Grille, I was a little nervous about my return but what I found was a restaurant that has improved enormously thanks to an ambitious and talented new chef and excellent service.
After years of mediocrity, this landmark hotel restaurant is finally a force to be reckoned with and not before time.
MARK TAYLOR VERDICT Prices: Starters from Pounds 4.50; main courses from Pounds 11; desserts from Pounds 5.50 Wheelchair access: Yes Food: 8/10 Service: 9/10 Value: 8/10 Atmosphere: 7/10 Overall: 8/ 10