Mushroom and miso bao, Edit on Cheltenham Road, Bristol

Edit: Audiophile restaurant on Cheltenham Road

One of Cheltenham Road’s newest offerings, Edit, is a unusual blend of classy tapas restaurant and cosy music bar. Labelling itself as an ‘audiophile restaurant’, the concept is inspired by Tokyo’s food and drink scene; offering Asian-inspired tapas style small plates, with an impressive Klipsch heritage sound system playing a range of ambient, soul, funk, electronica and world music. The idea is to delight all of your senses, and it achieves this, for the most part.

It’s very much a ‘drop-in’ place, with long high tables and bar chairs – making it feel casual yet a little sophisticated at the same time. The drinks menu is extensive and impressive, prepare yourself to be dazzled by a wide range of spirits, sake, beers and wine.

We decided to order and share a variety of their small plates and snacks; mushroom and miso bao, kimchi, fried squid with mango chilli sauce, chicken dumplings and prawn dumplings. For five dishes and two drinks it came to £32.

While the food arrived in seemingly random dribs and drabs (including one of our plates being delivered to the couple sat next to us), it was all incredibly delicious.

The slightly spiced, fried chicken dumplings in gyoza style parcels, were the standout dish for us. But the fried squid was a close second; it would be a perfect dish to pick at while having a few drinks. I would advise ordering quite a few dishes if you’re hungry, they’re little and delightful and definitely leave you wanting more.

Despite the slightly disorganised service, and a missing dish, we will definitely be returning.

As a concept, Edit is unique and quirky, just right for the Cheltenham Road/Gloucester Road junction that it finds itself on. However, it’s definitely more of a drinks,snacks and music venue, than somewhere you want to come for ‘dinner’ and leave completely filled up.

Find out more about Edit on Cheltenham Road, Bristol here.

OOWEE Diner

Restaurant Reviews

Over the last couple of months it seems like everyone has been talking about OOWEE diner in Montpelier, so last night I finally got to see what the hype is all about. Having made no dinner plans, but desperate for a decent burger this seemed like the perfect opporunity.

Tucked away in a corner of Picton Street, OOWEE diner is a tiny little place filled with the most incredible smell of burgers, fries and all things greasy and not so healthy.

It was pretty hard to narrow down what we wanted to just one meals worth of food – it all sounds, and smells, so good. I went for the The Pimento: a beef patty with spicy pimento cheese, pickles and relish, with added bacon. (£6.50 + £1)

The patty itself was well done on the outside with just the right amount of pink inside, and juicy, falls apart in your mouth beef. The bacon was crispy and delicious, and the pickles were big – which always earns bonus points from me. The spicy cheese gave it that little extra kick to round off the flavour.

I also went for some of their dirty fries – Bacon Jalapeno fries (£4.50), and a side of Buffalo Shrimp (£5). The fries didn’t quite live up to my expectations, but they were still wonderfuly decadent in their greasy excessiveness. The overwhelming highlight though was the huge, juicy Buffalo Shrimp, while there was only five in the serving they were amazing, so next time I’m definitely going to give the Shrimp fries a try.

OOWEE Diner is up there with some of the best burgers in Bristol. It’s simple, no fuss, dirty fried food that will fulfill all unhealthy food cravings. It’s also pretty good value!

Burger Theory

Restaurant Reviews

I’m going to jump right in with a bold claim here: Burger Theory is the best burgers I’ve had in Bristol.

I’d tried their burgers from their stalls at St. Nick’s Night Market and other events around Bristol, but hadn’t really appreciated just how perfect they are until a couple of months ago we stumbled across them at Kongs on King Street where they’ve taken over the kitchen. And since then we’ve been back a few (many) times!

Kongs is a great place – it’s nice to chill out in the day time and really fun for drinks in the evening. It reminds me quite a lot of Penn Social in Washington DC, though not quite as big.

But, back to the best burgers in Bristol- Chris went straight for the Hairy Beast: a beef and jalapeño patty AND a southern fried chicken breast, with crispy crispy bacon, beautifully melted cheddar cheese, Frank’s hot sauce and blue cheese dressing (£11.75).

It was immense! A little hard to pick up but that didn’t stop him, it was still gone within minutes, a sign of how great it was.

I went for the more traditional (I would say boring but it really wasn’t), Cheese Theory: Beef and bacon patty with crispy bacon, cheddar cheese, gherkin, mustard mayonnaise and their homemade ketchup (£7.75).

The patty was perfect – tender, well cooked but with absolutely no burnt taste. The gherkin, my essential burger ingredient, was crunchy and sweet and the lettuce and tomatoes were so fresh. All these great ingredients and the amazing sauces that were dripping off it made for one very juicy, delicious burger.

I also had the cheese theory another time but when they had run out of the beef and bacon patty so I had the beef and jalapeño patty, it was just the right amount of spice so I’m definitely tempted to try a different burger with that patty now.
If you haven’t got the message by now; I would definitely definitely recommend Burger Theory – take a look at their menu here and go grab one now!

Bristol Roast Dinners

Restaurant Reviews

Before living in Bristol I could probably count the number of roast dinners I had had on my fingers, but it quickly become clear that Roast Dinners in Bristol are a big thing.

After a Saturday night of light (or heavy) drinking, and a week of unhealthy food, a Sunday Roast is usually the perfect way to end the weekend.

Bristol Foodie’s blog on roast dinnners in Bristol has been really useful for finding great places to eat, so I thought I would start my own.

The Lazy Dog
112, Ashley Down Rd, Ashley Down, Bristol
BS7 9JR
0117 9244 809
Price: £10.95

A modern, cosy pub in Ashley Down, The Lazy Dog is a great place to end the week with a Sunday Roast.

Roast dinner at The Lazy Dog

We turned up at about 1.30pm, without booking and it was pretty busy but we found a little table in a corner. The beef was perfect, the yorkshire was huge and just the right combination of fluffy and crispy, and there was plenty of roast potatoes and vegetable.

Roast dinner at The Lazy Dog

Yurt Lush
Plot 3, Isambard Walk, Temple Quay, Bristol,
BS1 6DG
Price: £13

Right next to Temple Meads is Yurt Lush, is the one permanent home of Eat Drink Bristol Fashion. Inside is pretty warm in the summer so we sat on one of the benches outside. We didn’t book a table even though you can, but at 2pm on a Sunday there were two or three empty tables. The Yurt Lush roast is a little more than some others at £13, but the setting and the food make it worthwhile.

Appetisers

The appetisers were delicious, and an added bonus to a great roast dinner.

There was a fairly long wait for the food, and intially I was a little disappointed with the amount of vegetables, but there was a generous helping of meat and a huge yorkshire pudding.

The Social
130, Cheltenham Road, Bristol
BS6 5RW
Price:

Stepping inside The Social feels a bit like going into a Tardis, a brief look in the window made us think it was quite small and very busy but when you go in it’s suprisingly big – we easily found a table towards the back at about 1pm for our roast dinner.
The atmosphere is laidback and cosy, perfect for recoperating after a heavy night or meeting up with friends.
However, the wait for the Sunday Roast was well over 45 minutes, and by the time they arrived we were desperately hungry!

The size of the roast dinner made up for the wait though, plenty of tender beef as well as a generous amount of perfectly cooked vegetables. It might not look fancy, but it was just want a Sunday roast should be – delicious, fresh comfort food.

The Volunteer Tavern
9, New Street, Bristol
BS2 9DX
Price:£11.95

I’d heard really good things about roasts at The Volunteer Tavern, so I was pretty excited to try it out. We tried to book in advance, but apparently you can only book if you’re a party of 8 or more. When we arrived at 1pm all the empty tables inside were reserved, so we ended up sitting outside at the back.

We both went for the beef, and the food came out within about 5 minutes of ordering. Unfortunately, this was the only really impressive thing about the roast.

For me some of the meat was a little fatty and chewy, so much that I couldn’t cut some bits with a knife. However, there was plenty of meat that was tender and delicious.

The vegetables were a little on the stingey side – one brocolli floret, boiled carrots and cabbage – all well cooked but nothing special. And the yorkshire pudding was minimal. The roast potatoes were the highlight, crusty but fluffy on the inside.

Overall, for the price I wasn’t impressed with The Volunteer Tavern, there was nothing wrong with it, but I’ve definitely had better roast dinners in Bristol.

Under The Stars

Restaurant Reviews

Located at the top of the harbourside in Bristol, Under the Stars is a lovely little bar and restaurant on a boat.

I’ve been wanting to try Under the Stars for a really long time, particulary in the summer when you can sit out on top and enjoy the harbour.

We finally went on a dark January evening, but this didn’t disappoint. Downstairs inside the boat is a lovely eating area with a small bar, we had a little table by the window perfect for looking out over the harbour.

Under the Stars serves tapas and Pizza, all of which sounded too good, so we ordered both!

Oak Smoked Trout and Spanish Chorizo

The tapas:

Oak Smoked Trout with roasted piquilo peppers, sherry vinegar and chilli oil (£5) Incredible flavours, the chilli was an amazing twist to the strong fish flavour.

Spanish Chorizo cooked with Somerset Cider, red onions and garlic (£4.50) You have to order this, the meat is soft and deliciously infused with the flavours of the cider and red onions. Use the extra bread to soak up the leftover sauce – don’t waste a drop!

Patatas Bravas with tomato chilli sauce and alioli (£3.75) Not the most exciting of the tapas dishes, but the chilli certainly added a kick. It worked well with the other two intensely flavoured dishes.

Patatas Bravas

The pizza:

Calabria – Italian nduja chilli salami, buffalo mozzarella and black olives (£10.00)
Thin and just a little crispy on the crusts, there was plently of cheese and the salami was just the right amount of spicey, and of course the olives- a pretty perfect pizza!

Under the Stars is a lovely little boat perfect for a romantic meal, or a quiet evening with friends. I look forwards to going back in the summer and sitting outside enjoying the sunshine and harbourside atmosphere.

Fuego, Bristol

Restaurant Reviews

“Fire your soul” – Despite being a lot smaller than it’s next door neighbour Turtle Bay, it’s hard to miss Fuego with it’s bright yellow exterior.

Inside it’s equally cheerful and bright, with distressed, reclaimed tables and chairs, and colourful vintage posters.

Fuego was created by Columbian-born Gonzalo Trujillo who was involved with Bristol favourites Pieminister and Grillstock, and Spanish-born Esmerelda Martin-Rivera who was a founder of My Burrito that was previously at 7, Broad Quay.

Their Latin American inspired menu is packed with fiery and flavoursome dishes. The second time I went, last Friday, I had to try one of their burritos – and compare it to my favourites, Mission Burrito.

I went for the Bar-ba-cow-a burrito, with no sides, and we shared a portion of Nachos.

When we were ordering food, we started to order our drinks and were informed that we could get a free Sol with a burrito – which was great news, but I hadn’t noticed this offer anywhere in the restaurant or on the menu, so it seemed a little strange but it made us happy.

The food came all at once, which was perfect, and I have to say I have never seen Nachos piled quite so high! A generous amount of tortilla chips were topped with Guacamole, frech Pico de Gallo, plenty of melted cheese and black beans with sour cream on the top.

These were up there with some of the best Nachos I have had, stingey toppings is the thing that usually lets them down, and these had it all. I was only slightly disappointed with the small amount of sour cream.

The Bar-ba-cow-a burrito was a lovely soft wrap filled with smoked beef braised with Mexican spices and dark beer, and the usual rice, beans, cheese, sour cream, salad and pico.

Bar-ba-cow-a: Burritos can’t help looking messy, but they taste so good!

It was smaller compared to a Mission Burrito, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing! The meat was delicious, full of flavour, and the choice of sauces to add was great.

I would definitely go to Fuego again, it’s burritos really don’t compare to Mission Burrito but that’s okay because I can’t wait to try their empanadas and quesadillas!

The Good Earth, Wells

Restaurant Reviews

This is only a brief post about my favourite restaurant in Wells, which to my surprise is a vegetarian restaurant. Everytime I go to Wells I make sure to have lunch at The Good Earth, they offer great fresh and diverse vegetarian dishes that never disappoint.

Their menu offers two main courses which are different every day – but that shouldn’t worry you because they are without fail delicious. The Good Earth also offer four different salads, quiches and baked potatos with amazing fillings.

Today I had Roast Sweet Potato and Aubergine Tian, topped with Goats Cheese. The other option was a black bean chilli with rice, but I love anything with Sweet Potato in so I had to give the Tian a try.

The vegetables were delicious as usual, but the generous topping of goats cheese gave it a perfect twist.

Ljubljana

Travel food

I’m excited to write about Ljubljana because I had no idea what to expect from the city and it was amazing. Despite being the capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana has a small-town friendly feel, especially in the old part of the city.

We found some great places to eat in Ljubljana, although I did struggle a little as there was a lot of venison, veal and lamb on the menu, which I don’t eat.

Eating fresh, homecooked food is a big part of Slovenian culture – they have a market every day in Ljubljana selling all kinds of produce and you can really tell that Slovenian’s pride themselves on the quality of their food.

Open Kitchen

If you’re planning a trip to Ljubljana then make sure you are there for a Friday. They have an incredible food market where restaurants from all over Slovenia come to the city and set up a stall. It’s the best place to eat amazing, and cheap, food in Ljublana – plus your dining choices are almost overwhelming.

We went there for lunch after we had done the free Ljubljana tour, and then in the evening we walked around looking at restaurants and eventually ended up back at the food market having shrimp noodles and chicken from two different stands.

Hood Burger

We had heard that Hood Burgers were the best burgers in Ljubljana – but they were based a little further out from the city than we want to walk. So when we stumbled across the Open Kitchen we were even more excited to discover there was a Hood Burger stall.

For just €5 I had one of the most delicious burgers I have ever had – I went for a cheeseburger while Chris had one with bacon. If you don’t make it to their Open Kitchen stall on a Friday I would definitely recommend making the trip out to Yams Road 105, Ljubljana.

Klobasarna

On one of the main streets in the old town, look out for the giant sausage hanging in the air. Here you can sit outside in the street enjoying the sunshine and eat delicious, traditional Slovenian sausage.

We both had half a sausage with mustard, horseradish and bread for just €3.50. Klobasarna is the ideal place for a quick lunch in Ljubljana.

Most

The riverside in Ljubljana is lined with restaurants and bars, and it’s a beautiful setting for an evening meal. All of the restaurants had great menus and we had a hard time choosing where to eat. Eventually we decided on Most, which is just next to Butchers Bridge. They have plenty of tables outside where you can enjoy the buzzing atmosphere along the riverside, but if it’s cold they also have a huge inside seating area.

We both had the Beef Broth with Noodles to start, as we had seen it on almost all the restaurants’ menus. When it arrived it looked watery, but the flavour was strong and delicious.

For the mains I had a really difficult time choosing between the Home-made Buckwheat Ravioli filled with porcini mushrooms and truffles in a leek and shrimp sauce, or the Spelt Spaghetti with Smoked Trout with champignons and semi-dried cherry tomatoes. I settled on the spaghetti (despite having sworn off pasta and pizza when we left Italy), and Chris went for the Tagliatelle Most with chicken breast, green peppers, home-made basil pesto, plum tomatoes, and roasted pine nuts.

The pictures don’t do them justice, but both dishes were delicious, and you could taste the freshness of the ingredients. The combination of trout and curry flavours with the pasta made it a completely different dish to the pasta that we over indulged in in Italy. If I ever make it back to Ljubljana, I will definitely be going back to Most to try the ravioli.

Take a look at Most’s menu here.

Cat Caffe

Not strictly somewhere to eat, but we loved Ljubljana’s cat cafe so much that we went twice in the two days we were in the city! It’s a little way out of the main area in the old town, but it’s worth the walk.

The cat cafe is a great place to sit down and relax with a glass of local Slovenian wine, in the company of five lovely cats – perfect if you’re having feline withdrawal.

Travel Tips and Recommendations

I can’t recommend enough the Free Map for Young Travellers for Ljubljana – pick up a copy as soon as you arrive! We had no guidebook and very few recommendations, so this map with useful tips and places to see, eat and drink was indespensable.
Do the Free Ljubljana Walking Tour – they run every day at 11am, starting in front of the pink church in Preseren Square and take about two and a half hours.

Rome

Travel food

I love nothing more than excessive amounts of pizza, loaded with cheese and delicious toppings..so a trip to Italy has been heavenly.

Here’s where I ate and what I found were the best places to eat in Rome on a budget because even for amazing Italian food I’m not willing to break the bank.

Tomoko Tudini

Via Principe Amedeo 27, 00185 Roma

We left Bristol at 6am and by the time we arrived in Rome at midday we were absolutely ravenous. So we dropped our bags at the hostel and headed out in search of some hearty Italian food.

Walking down from Termini Station we stumbled across Tomoko Tudini on a little side street with tables outside.

The ‘tourist’ offer of margerita pizza or lasagna with a glass of wine and tiramisu for €8 might give you the impression that the food will be quick and cheap.

However, the lasagna was well presented and tasted delicious. The layers of pasta were soft and there was plenty of cheese – so I was content! It was absolutely ideal for a relaxed, casual lunch at a great price.

Florians

Piazza dell’Independenza, 9, 00185, Roma

Again, we left finding somewhere for dinner until we were starving, and also pretty tired. So we just wondered around the corner from our hostel and happened on Florians.

Sitting outside on the pavement the restaurant had a laid back, friendly atmosphere. We went straight in for the pizza, I had the Cappriciossa and Chris had the Pizza Paza (salami).

As our first experience of genuine Italian pizzas it was pretty good, the edges were crispy and the middles were laden with cheese and toppings. My only dislike was the toppings not being mixed up, but that was easily solved and there was generous amount of olives which is always a bonus! The pizzas were around €8 each and a bottle of wine was €18.

All round a successful first day in Rome.

Falmouth

Travel food

The choice of restaurants in Falmouth is almost overwhelming, so here’s a few of the places we ate during our short holiday in Cornwall:

Rick Stein’s

You can’t book a table at Rick Stein’s so you just have to turn up and keep your fingers crossed that the queue isn’t too big. We went with the intention of going elsewhere if the wait was long, however once we were inside, and we smelt the fish, we couldn’t resist.

After about 20 minutes and we were sat at a high table near the kitchen. The atmosphere is laid back and casual, but definitely a few steps up from your local chip shop at home.

We were all tempted in by the three courses for £20 menu. To start with I had the Amritsari Fish, which was fried sea bream in a chickpea batter, garlic and ginger sprinkled with chat masala. It was the perfect combination of flavours – the pieces of sea bream were quite spicy but you could still taste the flavour of the fish and it was served with a cool cucumber raita dip.

For the main course we all went for the cod and chips.All of the other main courses sounded, smelled and looked brilliant but it seemed like Rick Stein’s is THE place for fish and chips in Falmouth. The batter was delicious and crispy, the chips were chunky but not too big and even the mushy peas looked good.

For pudding there was a choice between strawberries with pouring cream, Lemon Posset with mixed berry compote, or sticky toffee pudding.

I chose the sticky toffee pudding, which was delicious but also a mistake. After all the food I should have gone for something light.

Rick Stein’s is definitely worth the wait, but the dishes are large so if you have a small appetite stick to a main dish.

The Shed

If you’re looking for somewhere to eat in Falmouth, then Discovery Quay is a good choice – you have your regulars Pizza Express and Zizzi’s but also three sister restaurants The Ranch, The Shed, and The Shack. They all cater to different tastes, but they’re all great for a lunchtime or evening meal in Falmouth.

Half cocktail bar, half restaurant The Shed’s menu is very simple but it had captured our attention and I was excited to try the Shed Burger.

Cornish beef, bacon, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, a big slice of pickle, onion rings, and BBQ sauce served in a brioche bun with fries. It was just as good as it sounds. The only, only let down was the small amount of BBQ sauce – I completely forgot there was supposed to be BBQ sauce until I tasted in some in the last few mouthfuls. But, it was still perfect.

The Shack

You can order Oysters individually for £2 each.

I had the Sea Bass with sweet potato mash, green beans and capers. I can’t quite explain how good it was – the fish was perfect and the combination of flavours was incredible. And it was relatively healthy so there was no over-eating-regret afterwards.

Lunches
We also had some really delicious lunches while in Falmouth, in between pasties, which are definitely worth mentioning.

Trelissick
Trelissick is a beautiful National Trust property that runs down to the River Fal, and it’s also a great place to stop off for lunch. Entrance to the gardens is £8.50 for non-member adults, but you can park for £4 (or free for members) and enjoy their lovely cafe as well as take a look at the art gallery. They have sandwiches, toasties, pasties and hot food options – all very delicious looking.

I had a bacon, brie and cranberry toastie – this combination is my weakness – and it was amazing. The only downside is that on a sunny day there can be a lot of wasps flying around the outside seating.

Truro Arts Cafe

On the Wednesday we were staying Falmouth we got one of the FalRiver Enterprise boats that goes from Falmouth to Truro (stopping by St Mawes). The trip takes about an hour and a half – two hours, and is definitely worth the time and money!

In Falmouth we sat outside the Truro Arts Cafe which is next to the Royal Cornwall Museum and had some great smoked salmon and cheese sandwiches surrounded by lovely flowers and a good view of the street to people watch.

Charlotte’s Tea House

Located upstairs in the Coinage Hall, Truro, Charlotte’s Tea House is a step back in time to the Victorian era with traditional cream teas and a selection of homemade cakes. They are only open until 4.30pm though!

Pasties!

Lastly, you cannot go to Cornwall and not eat at least one pasty. Rowe’s bakery had some amazing combinations, including pork and Ratler cider, and steak and Doombar. My favourite was the extremely cute, and delicious, Pixie sized traditional pasty from Oggy Oggy.

Verity May eats

Always hungry, always eating.

Edit: Audiophile restaurant on Cheltenham Road

OOWEE Diner

Burger Theory

Bristol Roast Dinners

Under The Stars

Fuego, Bristol

The Good Earth, Wells

Ljubljana

Rome

Falmouth