Bakers Arms Lytchett Minster Review

We went to the Bakers Arms in Lytchett Minster, Poole on Sunday for a spur of the moment roast dinner around 6pm. It’s quite a busy place on the weekends and the car park was more packed than normal but despite that we had no trouble finding a table for 5.

This is one of those pubs where you go up and order your food, give them your table number (written on a wooden spoon here!) and pay. You also get your drinks at the bar and there is a nice selection of wines and beers with the usual britvic bottle collection.

As it was a Sunday you could choose from Roast Beef or Chicken and I had the chicken. Food arrived within 20 minutes or so which was fine as it allowed our youngest the chance to have a run around in the fenced garden area out the back. There is no Children’s play equipment but they will enjoy running around anyway.

The roast came with a separate vegetable dish and sauces were offered by the waitress. The roast was pretty average but quite tasty all the same and the portion size was ok.

I like the menu here as it’s one of those menus that you struggle to pick a meal from as there is so many nice choices which is always nice if you regularly go to a place.

The Bakers Arms dates back as far as 1851 and is currently owned by a group called the Vintage Inns who own over 100 pubs throughout the country and I think it is fair to say they do try a little harder to please than some chains.

If you have visited the Bakers Arms in Lytchett Minster then why not share your thoughts below and if you want to see whats on their menu right now go to: http://www.vintageinn.co.uk/thebakersarmspoole/

Da Gherardo Pizzeria Spaghetteria In Lucca

Well here goes, my first Italian meal in Italy! We pulled in at the port of Livorono and ended up in Lucca for a few hours so we found a little place called Da Gherardo for a quick lunch stop.

As I walked under the parasols to find a seat I was greeted by a waitress flipping out at me for dripping water coming off my umbrella onto their seat cushions – nice! Not quite the welcome you would expect when going to eat but hey we are in Italy know with the infamous Mediterranean tempers!

Once we got ourselves sat down I had Tuna bolognese and a nice Becks for a change and my partner had a seafood pasta dish. It seems that the Italians use very little of the actual bolognese sause with the pasta and kind of mix it all in. Very different to how we do it at home with a huge pile of bolognese on the top of our pasta.

The portion size wasn’t huge but I guess it was adequate for a light lunch and if you wanted a desert I’m sure you would have room. The Italians do definitely make some great ice cream actually.

There is not a lot more to tell you about Da Gherado’s as it was just your run of the mill pizzeria, not a gourmet restaurant. It was situated in a nice place though, P.zza Anfiteatro (Amphitheatre to you and I) in the centre of Lucca.

If you end up eating there why not let us know how you found it by adding a comment below. You can take a look at their website here to: http://www.dagherardo.com/

Toby Carvery Fleetsbridge Poole Review

I have to admit we visit the Toby Carvery fairly often and generally it is fairly good. The Toby Carvery brand seems to have done quite well and over the last few years they have opened up more restaurants in the area.

The great British roast is very popular and sometimes we find ourselves unable to wait until Sunday so this is where the Toby chain steps in to provide a roast dinner 7 days a week! However, ironically the day I would highly recommend avoiding like the plague to go to one is a Sunday – it becomes so busy you’ll find yourself waiting around 30 minutes or more for a table if you go more or less any time.

Because of the sheer volume of people going though on a Sunday and they way everyone helps themselves to the food you often find vegetables etc. all over the floor when you collect your food and it has a bit of a school dinners feel about it!

As for the actual food I usually find them quite good. They always serve a nice variety of Vegetables (7 types) so there is sure to be something the kids will like. The roast potatoes are always done nicely and the Yorkshire Puddings are large – so large in fact that you will find yourself just filling them with vegetables in order to fit everything on your plate!

Actually what makes me laugh is the way people shamelessly pile their plates sky high to the point they can barely walk back to their table without spilling some of the food off the plate!

You can break all the traditions at the Toby Carvery’s too – and beleive me people do. Cranberry sauce with your beef, apple sauce with your turkey and yorkshire puddings with everything here! Actually most people go for more than one meat too and get to choose from pork, beef or good old turkey.

One of the other big attractions I think is the value for money at just £7 at the time of writing for an adult carvery Mon- Fri it’s not bad at all.

I am sure the Toby chain will continue to grow and the Fleetsbridge Toby Carvery will be around for a long time.

If you go to the Toby Carvery in Poole, let us know what you think below and for more information on the Toby Chain go to: http://www.toby-carvery.co.uk/

Barcelona Hesperia Towers Bouquet Restaurant Review

So today Iam in Barcelona, Spain, Wow! What a beautiful hotel, very contemporary, very modern but you are greeted with the smell from hell whilst walking in on the red carpet which kind of distracts you a little. We stayed in the suites next door to the main hotel and decided to go to the bouquet restaurant quite late on a Saturday night.

We sat down around 10pm and there were I suppose 15 other diners so I expected pretty quick service – how wrong was I?! I know they like to take their time in Spain and that’s fine but the service here was just plain awful.

It took 15 minutes before we were even offered a drink and another 10 minutes before ONE drink arrived, they forgot the other drink for my partner! I had to ask twice if we could have some bread and then three times for butter. I want to make it clear that these issues were not caused by language barriers either, they knew exactly what I wanted as I said it in Spanish and English.

When dinner did eventually arrive it was a la carte o small portions all around. I had some skewered pork which on m first mouthful I found to be somewhere to between cold and warm. But it’s not all bad the pork got warmer as I moved up the skewer! God help me.

The bill for our two meals and two drinks came to around £60 and I left hungry and feeling mugged basically. We ended up going downstairs to the bar an had a great club sandwich for half the price of a meal… damn I wish we did that instead of the restaurant.

I understand there is a very expensive posh restaurant with a celebrity chef up the top of a tower in a dome shaped part of the building. I hope it’s better than the retaurant on the 3rd floor which I’m sure it is as it was fully booked.

If you dare eat in the Bouquet restaurant let us know. maybe they had an off day, mabe they have now sacked the staff and got ones that actually serve their guests!

Da Vinci’s Ristorante Pizzeria on Poole Quay

I went to Da Vinci’s last night for a spur of the moment meal with my family and though I have been there before I have never wrote about it so…

The staff at Da Vinci’s are all Italian so rest assured you will feel as though you are in an authentic Italian restaurant! We have always found them to be friendly and especially nice to our children. I can’t say that the service is excellent to be honest for example as we found that we had to ask for things twice. For example they forgot to come and offer pepper and parmesan but once they were told they swiftly brought it.

I ordered good old Spaghetti bolognese for my main course and prawn cocktail for my starters but others were more adventurous and ordered locally caught mackerel and Sea Bass. You can expect around a 25 minute wait if you order sea bass as it takes a while to cook but it was well worth it.

The portions are not huge but they are ample for most and besides it does leave room for some desert! You will find the usual Italian deserts such as ice cream, crème brulee, profiteroles etc.

They have a good range of wines and one of my favourite Italian lagers, Peroni. Prices are reasonable and they are located right on the Quay front which offers a nice walk after dinner.

If you visit Da Vinci’s in Poole why not tell us about it below and if you would like to find out more about them go to: http://www.da-vincis.co.uk/pizzeria2.php

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