AA Gill reviews

Sunday, March 20, 2011 - I had scallops on black pudding, an overfamiliar combination, and while the scallops were perfectly nicely presented, the black pudding was too timid. It was an usher rather than the groom. The addition of a tart apple sauce was a good idea. Rod had a lobster ravioli that looked like a femidom on a plate, but had a lovely delicate shellfish sweet freshness about it...I had a good bit of halibut, properly pronounced without the unnecessary H. It came with salsify and a wilted little gem, and a dab of cream and vermouth sauce, all very agreeable. Alan and Rod were both enthusiastic about the food.

Sunday, October 17, 2010 - The maitre d' pointed me towards the halibut with more garlic and spinach and a langoustine bisque. This was a brick of fish the size of Ryan Giggs's wallet. It had been cooked for twice as long as necessary. And then left under hot lights to make sure it was really dead. The langoustine bisque was, I suspect, fish soup with cream. It was a horrible waste of what had once been a good bit of fish. A chocolate tart was a thick mouth of sticky cocoa foreplay. By southern standards, all this was very cheap - 40 quid for three courses, water and coffee - but people told me that up here it was really very expensive.