Lemon Drizzle Cake
Plate Restaurant

Plate Restaurant

151-157 City Road, London, United Kingdom

Fish • Coffee • Cheese • Chicken


"Came here on a quiet Sunday. While the restaurant is beautiful and service excellent, I thought the set lunch menu selection was just average. Choose from a chicken breast, hake or vegetarian gnocchi for mains. We also assumed that ordering from the set lunch was optional but it’s not, we weren’t allowed to order from the a la carte menu during lunch but our waitress was kind enough to offer checking with the Chef to make exceptions in case we wanted something else . Eventually we decided to go with the 3 course set ordered the crispy pork skin to start, which was very decent, a little salty, but still yummy. The hake I thought the citrus, capers sauce were a bit too overpowering and you couldn’t taste the fish but cooked perfectly, and ended my meal with a delightful British cheese board. My partner ordered the gnocchi which he thought was very delicious, and the too pretty to eat coffee brûlée for dessert which he inhaled as it was perfect. It was a little pricey overall £54? even with the set meal as the portions were quite small, and there were lots of add on options i.e. cheeseboard was an extra £5, and coffee after another £4, which was a little disappointing. I am still on the fence with this one. All in all I thought the food was decent, but could suggest another similar resto for a similar price with a better set menu selection.... perhaps it’s worth returning to try their ala carte menu to make a final call. In my book, it’s 3.5/5."

Highcliff Grill

Highcliff Grill

St. Michael's Road, West Cliff, Bournemouth, United Kingdom, BH2 5DR

Steak • Grill • Lunch • Cheese


"At the bar, drinks were being poured and the girl mentioned that the cocktail would take a while to be brought to the table. There were a total of 9 people in the bar/lounge area with three servers. After 15 minutes, I noticed the bartender folding napkins and asked for the cocktail. He gestured towards the bar where the girl had been standing before serving other customers. The bartender seemed disinterested and gave me a look as if to say, "How dare you ask?" In the restaurant, which had 5 dining tables, my daughter requested a Hendrick's gin and tonic but the server had never heard of it. She suggested a Bombay Sapphire instead, but they were out of that too. My wife asked for black pepper, but the server claimed they only had white pepper in the shaker on the table. Midway through the meal, the restaurant managers ran by and inquired about the missing black pepper. Eventually, a server brought a pepper pot to the table and mentioned that it took so long because they didn't know how to open it, but it turned out to be a pepper grinder. Despite the food being good and the service friendly, the staff seemed to have no idea what they were doing. This particular location, the Marriot Highcliff Hotel in Bournemouth, does not live up to the standards of the Marriot Group. It lacked a sense of responsibility and interest, giving off a poor impression overall. A bizarre and disappointing experience."