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Carlton Riverside Restaurant (Llanwrtyd Wells)
by Essexgirl2006
Whilst away over the New Year period, my boyfriend and I decided to treat ourselves to a meal at top restaurant. Whilst the area we were staying in offered lots of choice, many were closed for the holiday period. With the Good Food Guide and the internet we located Carlton Riverside Restaurant with rooms just over the border in Wales. As ... it turned out it was a bit further away than we first thought, but I think it is well worth a visit if you are in this part of mid-Wales. It is situated on the banks of the river in Llanwrtyd Wells, which claims to be Britain's smallest town.
As you drive into the town, you cannot miss it as it is right by the bridge. We visited on New Year's Day and managed to park outside but I believe there is a car park across the road. The restaurant gets a 6 in the Good Food Guide (this may not sound much - but it is an honour just to be included) and the chef Mary-Ann Gilchrist earned a Michelin star in one of her previous establishments. The restaurant was voted in the UK's Top 100 in 2009. The restaurant is owned by Mary-Ann and her husband Alan. Alan greeted us, took our coats and showed us through to the lounge with a copy of the menu and took our drinks orders. We ordered soft drinks first of all and these were brought with a two small bowls containing nuts and olives. The lounge was comfortable with over stuffed armchairs and bookshelves of hotel and restaurant guides as well as recipe books and local food magazines on the table. Publications featuring Mary-Ann or the restaurant are also on the coffee table and we enjoyed browsing them and learning more about the ethos of the restaurant. As the books were their personal copies, it gave the lounge a more personal and welcoming feel than many hotel lounges. They don't class this place as a hotel, but as a restaurant with rooms - the emphasis is on the food, the rooms are for convenience.
They offer two menus - the more expensive A la Carte menu (two courses - £34, three courses - £39.50) plus a cheaper Carlton menu (two courses - £19.50, three courses - £25), but you can mix and match for a supplement. I would describe the food as Modern British. Alan took our orders whilst we stayed in the lounge, and seated us in the restaurant closer to the time our food was ready. I thought this was a nice touch, especially as the restaurant was empty! He explained that after a busy Christmas and New Year period this was their last night before closing for two weeks during the January lull. The dining room is very contemporary with smart wooden tables and leather chairs, and slate placemats. We were seated by the window overlooking the river and the town which was a good spot.
For my starter I chose the Cream of Mushroom soup from the Carlton menu, whilst my other half went for the salmon duo on the A La Carte menu (for a supplement). My soup was delicious - served in a huge, deep bowl, it was obviously fresh with a little bit of cream to keep it smooth, apart from small pieces of mushroom. This was served with fresh bread and butter. It was perfectly seasoned and probably one of the nicest mushroom soups I've ever had. In fact it could be a contender for one of the best soups ever. I couldn't eat it all, so elected to leave some to leave space for what was to come. My boyfriend really enjoyed his salmon served with a beetroot puree and an apple salad. Whilst most of their produce is sourced locally, we understood from Alan that the salmon was from Scotland, but smoked locally. They also try and use organic ingredients if possible, but the emphasis is on real, local foods. They buy their meat from certain local farms and their cheeses from Welsh artisan cheese-makers. Certainly their meals are all about the food - it is wholesome and unfussy. The food is unpretentious and tastes like what it is supposed to.
For mains my boyfriend went for the Carlton menu steak (I believe there was a small supplement of £2). I believe it was 225g, which he requested medium-rare. Upon tasting he declared the steak to be perfectly cooked. It was served with Spanish potatoes, courgettes, mushrooms and grilled tomatoes. It was a large portion, but he never likes to leave food so soldiered on. I ordered from the Carlton menu the egg fettuccine with spinach and basil. It was basically a pesto dish and was massive. I actually find such huge portions off-putting, as I know I can't eat it all. I even passed some over to my other half but still got nowhere near finishing it. Taste wise it was typical of other pesto sauces in that it was strongly flavoured with the basil and was obviously freshly made. I found it too much of a muchness, I don't think you need a lot of something so strong in flavour. My boyfriend wasn't a fan, and thought it quite salty. It was served with a green salad which was garnished with salt! Salty lettuce is a new one on me, and I left it after two bites.
For desserts my boyfriend chose Bread & Butter pudding brioche with Pembrokeshire clotted cream which got the verdict of 'very nice'. It was nice that they had done it has a brioche rather than regular bread. It was served in a massive bowl, but the portion size was more manageable. I chose the Chocolate and Orange tart with crème fraiche. It was served beautifully and was rich on flavour and texture, and was absolutely delicious. I'm not sure how I found room for it, but I managed to squeeze it in.
As they were so quiet we were served by Alan, though I would think on busier nights they would have a dedicated waiting staff. I cannot comment on what service would be like at other times but we found Alan to be polite and friendly, the service slow and steady. I am not using the adjective slow as a criticism - Alan is a big chap, obviously fond of his wife's cooking, and speed is not part of his way of life. Plus I imagine he doesn't usually serve. Before leaving I visited the lavatory. The Ladies loo was small, no fancy décor, functional and clean with Neal's Yard toiletries and individual hand towels.
In total the meal for the two of us came to £70. This included three courses with a supplement for the A La Carte Salmon starter and the steak, bar drinks and two glasses of wine. I actually think this was good value as the standard (my side salad apart) was high. I do recommend a visit if you wish to treat yourself and are in the area. We did not stay in the rooms, but this could be an option as the area is quite rural.
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Hafod Eryri - Snowdon Summit Cafe (North Wales)
by aero-zeppelin
While I lived back home in Snowdonia, I'd climb Snowdon very often, I'd say I've done it at least 25 times and overlooked the demolition of the old building as well as the building of the new one during my many visits to the summit.
The building is named Hafod Eryri (meaning summer house) and houses a visitor centre, shop, ... cafe and toilets. It was built to replace the old building which was Clough Williams Ellis designed and was basicly a concrete block, once famously described by Prince Charles as 'the highest slum in Wales'. It cost £8.4million to build but was delayed in opening due to heavy snowfall over 2 winters which limited the amount of work the builders could do. It was eventually opened by the First Minister of Wales, Rhodri Morgan in June 2009. It's opening times depend on the weather because the train acts as a shuttle for the workers and is only ever open when the railway is open, which operates during the tourist seasons.
The cafe, visitor centre and shop are all devised into one big room. It is designed to be walker and tourist friendly, with the latter taken up on the Snowdon Mountain Railway from the nearby town of Llanberis. It's spacious and easy to maneuver around it unlike the old building which was crammy. The new building makes a lot of use of natural light with large windows facing the sun unlike the old building which was always dark and cold. The food and drink as you'd expect in such a place is very expensive so if you always walk up like me then I suggest take your own food and drink! The cafe is licenced which is always nice to have a celebratory nice cold pint on a hot summer's day at the summit! I've had sandwiches from there before and they were what you'd get from a supermarket but with an inflated price. To be fair though they do let you eat your own food inside the building at the cafe tables. The shop is more of a little gift shop with a few souveneirs etc. and is basicly aimed more towards the tourists who come up on the train.
I'm quite pleased with Hafod Eryri, it's a very green building and is much more aesthetic than the old one. I always pop in after I've got to the summit for a sit down and shelter if the weather isn't so good outside. I think it's compulsary for anyone to visit Hafod Eryri when they're at the summit as apart from the views there's not much else available on the summit. I'd definitely recommend going if you're venturing up Snowdon.
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Strada Restaurant
by star3683
Strada is an Italian restaurant chain owned by Tragus Ltd. The Nottingham Strada restaurant is located on Burton Street and is part of the cornerhouse entertainment complex. The restaurant is quite large and has a modern but cosy feel about it.
My mum and I last visited Strada in November 2010 after I had converted my Tesco ... clubcard vouchers into Strada restaurant vouchers so thought I would treat my mum to a meal out. We had been to Strada a few months before and had a lovely meal so though we would go and try some more of the menu. Strada takes part in the Tesco Clubcard scheme which allows you to convert your Tesco clubcard vouchers into 3x the amount of restaurant vouchers, you can then use them to purchase food but not drinks. Although Strada often has many promotions on either the Money Saving Expert website or by registering to receive the Strada newsletter through the restaurants own website.
When we arrived at the restaurant the matradee desk is located just inside the entrance. All of the seating is located on the ground floor although some is slightly elevated if you wish to sit near to the window. There is also some outdoor seating, but this would only be suitable in the warmer summer months. We were quickly greeted and shown to a table next to the window, although the view is not the best I do quite like to people watch. It was around mid-afternoon on a Friday and there were quite a few people in the restaurant, sometimes when I pass Strada in the day it is often empty but busy in the evening. As we were shown to the table we were also given the food and drinks menus.
We were waiting around 10 minutes before our waiter came over and took our drink orders as well as our starter and main courses as we told him that we had already decided what we would like. He was very friendly and told us that our drinks would be with us shortly.
On this occasion for starters I opted for the Funghi Timo e Crema (£4.95) a selection of mushrooms with garlic in a cream, porcini and thyme sauce on grilled polenta and grana pandano. My mum chose the Bruchetta con Peperonata (£4.95) a ciabatta with warm caramelised pepper and onion peperonata, crumbled goats' cheese and fresh basil. For the main course both my mum and I choose to have the Saltimbocca di Maiale (£12.95) a fillet of pork with sage and Parma ham with potato puree, green beans and a white wine, sage and butter sauce. We also ordered a bottle Il Padrino Bianco White Wine (£13.95) which was described as having juicy fruit salad flavours from sunny Sicily.
The waiter quickly returned with the bottle of wine and asked if we would like to try it before he poured us full glasses. He also brought over a complementary bottle of filtered water which I think is a great touch and wish more restaurants would do this as I do not like to pay for bottled water but can be made to feel a little mean if you ask for tap.
The starters soon followed, they were both a good size and looked very presentable. I have never had grilled polenta before but was rather impressed as it worked fantastically with the mushrooms. My mum's bruchetta was also very good and had a wonderfully fresh taste. Our main course came out around 10 minutes later and was as also lovely, the pork was tender and melted in your mouth and was complemented beautifully with the sauce.
Our waiter did come over to us both during the starter and the main course to check that everything was alright with our meal. He also offered us the coffee and desserts menu after we had finished the main courses. We decided to treat ourselves and both chose a dessert which does not seem to now be on the menu but was like an amaretto and chocolate cheesecake served with whipped cream (£4.95). When the dessert first came over I did think the two triangular pieces on the plate looked rather tiny. But as soon as I began to eat the dessert it became clear that in fact the two pieces were rather generous as they were very rich and indulgent and I did almost struggle to eat it all.
I did also make a trip to the ladies while in there which is on the upper floor so quite a few steps to contemplate but I did notice a disabled toilet on the lower level making the restaurant fully accessible. The ladies toilets were very clean and fresh smelling, fully stocked with toilet roll and even hand cream.
When I asked for the bill I presented the waiter with our Tesco restaurant vouchers which he happily accepted. The bill arrived and was all correct, although I will warn you that Strada do add on a 10% optional service charge to the bill. This is something that I do not like at restaurants as I like to decide for myself whether the service and food quality has been good enough to justify leaving a tip. In conclusion it was a great meal with good service and I would recommend anyone liking Italian food to try it. Strada have a great selection of dishes from, pasta, pizza, risotto and salads.
Also keep an eye out for discount vouchers by signing up for the Strada newsletter on their website www.strada.co.uk or by visiting www.moneysavingexpert.co.uk
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