Barn Again Bistro

I must disagree with various of the other reviewers of Barn Again Bistro, & in the strongest terms. Firstly, I live close to Barn Again Bistro, in the Leazes/Spital Tongues area of Newcastle, & the area of the city in which the restaurant is situated cannot be described as grotty. This impression may perhaps be reached by those who approach the venue via the rather grotty Newgate Street/Gallowgate area, home to various cheap pubs for a mainly middle aged football crowd clientele, & dominated by the planner's nightmare of the back of a horrendous shopping centre, with attendant ugly multi story car parks. This thoroughfare bears absolutely no relation to the character ...  Read the complete review

Great! - Advantages: Interesting menu, Friendly staff, Fab food - Disadvantages: Slightly expensive

Des O’Connor gurns out at you from some “What on earth possessed him?” album of his and you wonder what you are letting yourself in for. You glance around at the area and find yourself in a dimly lit road off one of the main Newcastle drinking thoroughfares right next to a Social Club and down the way from St. James’ Park and again you wonder what you are doing. Then you step through the door. Once inside, the instinct is to either panic or to try and explore. The bar area of this restaurant is something else. I looked around for a good minute or two and was absolutely amazed. The only thing I can liken it too is being sent ...  Read the complete review

Despite growing up in Newcastle I hadn't been back for some time until a school reunion a few weeks ago which was held at the Barn Again Bistro. An unpreposessing exterior leads into a small seating/bar/cosy area at which you can while away the hours after your meal. The main restaurant extends back from this area and is unusually and quite elaborately decorated and is generally pleasantly surprising. Seating is reasonably plentiful - we had a group of around 14 seated on a long table without this being a problem whilst other tables were placed pleasantly around for other diners. The menu is quite haute-cusine with good variety and interesting ...  Read the complete review

So far I have only written opinions on restaurants that I have been impressed with in order to pass on my recommendations to dooyooers. Last week however I visited Barn Again, a bistro in the heart of Newcastle and it has left me with a bad taste in my mouth. On arrival I was optimistic, the interior is like the secret haunt of a compulsive collector of bric-a brac. The walls are adorned with zany, talking point ephemera. Every nook and cranny boasts another quirky item and the menu matches them point for point. Unusual and interesting dishes like smoked chicken cakes with mango and chilli jam (£4.95), tuna fillet with salad and pineapple jam and marlin with ...  Read the complete review