Strada, Princesshay – (3.5)

This is really the first proper restaurant that I have reviewed in Exeter that I have gone in with some really high expectations. However, as is normally the case, I was sorely disappointed.
I really wanted to write something good about Strada. I wanted to say how wonderful the service was, as it wasn’t bad really, and I wanted to say how nice the dining experience was, I wanted to say that the surroundings were nice, as they were, and that that the food was stunning.

So I am going to say half of those things, the service was good and the food was nice.

There I have said it.

The rest of it was, with foresight, to be expected from a chain restaurant that makes its money from cramming people in to small spaces.

I thought, as it was our anniversary it’d be nice to take myself and my wife to Strada in Exeter. I had heard good things about the food and good things about the service too, so my expectations were high. However, when we got there, we found that we were playing elbow fencing with two sets of couples having loud conversations about gastric bypasses and what her aunt said to the chef’s daughter, or something.
I couldn’t hear what my wife was saying as the din was horrific. Strada is a glass building with no soft carpet (that I could see, or at least not enough to absorb the din) so everything resonated and echoed terribly. The waitress who was kind and friendly, but seemed hurried, gave us a menu and we sat down. After attempting to talk to my beloved, we realised that we couldn’t actually hear each other, so I called the waitress and asked to be moved to another table. Off she toddled to the maitre’d who suggested we moved to another table on the same floor. I said, well this isn’t going to help, it’s just as noisey there as it is here…” So off she toddled again.

They offered to put us upstairs where it was quieter.  The reason why they hadn’t put us upstairs in the first place was that there was a party of loud women upstairs. So off we went upstairs, where indeed the loud women were in fact nothing compared to the horrific mind bending din downstairs. We mentioned it was our anniversary too and they gave us two glasses of expensive champagne on the house.

So we waited, and scoured through the menu, a lovely three page affair. Strada, in their drive for authenticity, had committed a cardinal sin in my books. When looking through there was NO V signs. Nothing denoting that there was any vegetarian dishes. So after 10 minutes we still had to analyse every dish description to make sure we were not ordering something meaty. After extensive analysis, the thing that amazed us was the total lack of vegetarian dishes, especially for an Italian restaurant, which normally has a decent amount by definition.

After a comparatively short wait, the food came and I asked the waitress if the parmesan was vegetarian. She said she didn’t know, so I declined, so generally it was pretty bland. I had a spring vegetable risotto which tasted nice, the risotto was well done and the vegetables were really tasty and fresh.

We didn’t bother with dessert and left feeling sorely let down by the experience. In conclusion, good food, really good service (the staff were friendly and I felt they’d bend over backwards to help), but crap building, soul destroying menu and for what you received, not good value.

Exeter Phoenix Bar (4)

They have a bar, they have seats, they have pictures and a nice place outside to smoke and throw things at passers by.
And, thankfully, they have a lovely menu with a nice range of vegetarian options.

For those not initiated to the ways of the Phoenix, it is the arts centre and focal point of everything cultured and alternative in Exeter. Sweeping generalisation I hear you cry? But I challange you to name me somewhere else in Exeter that has more going on. See, you can’t. OK, so the University and some other venues do have cultured goings on, but the Phoenix is by far the most proactive when it comes to events.

The bar is a large area with a great menu, reasonably priced with lots of seating and a vibrant exciting atmosphere.  But the floor is grotty, the ceiling is horrid and everything feels a bit sticky and well worn.  But then, I imagine most people go there for the great coffee and the warm atmosphere the friendly bar staff create.
The food is locally sourced and there is a strong emphasis on fairtrade products too. Value for money just a bit sticky.

Sidwell Fish & Chips – (Revisited 4.0)

I love revisiting previous reviews, it makes me feel happy that owners are either improving or new owners are coming in and revitalising businesses in neglect, very much like Sidwell Fish and Chips.

Thanks to sweetpea1602 and her comment on the last post about this as I was quite unaware that Sidwell Fish and Chips was under new ownership, so on this I decided to take the oppurtunity to experience what the fuss was all about.

Sweetpea is right, they are friendly and the chips are really nice.  They are not the nicest I have had but as chip shop chips go they are nearly as good if not better then Premier Fish and Chips in Budleigh, which I gave a massive ‘big up’ on this blog.  They are cooked in vegetable oil, and although the selection doesn’t seem to have changed since the last owner, there are changes afoot which I will update you on when I get back there and have more chips.

They have put in a new ceiling and a new extractor fan, which makes the whole shop more inviting.  The salad in my Veggie burger was fresh and it was hot and the chips had that satisfying crunch which makes you want to come back, which I shall be doing very soon!

Streets Cafe, Fore St. Arcade (4.0)

Fore Street or the ‘West Quarter’ as the council have tried to brand it, is immensely underated.  If you don’t know Exeter that well, then Fore St. is the part of Exeter where you find real shops, lots of independent ventures and cooky establishments full of intrigue and interest.  Foodeaze is down this end of town and so is Streets Cafe.

Set back from Fore St. deep within the Fore St. arcade, Streets occupies a dominant position with large windows and a stunning view of a car park.  The decor is a cross between eighties-Cafe-seen-on-The-Firm and the set of Grease, wood vaneer with bold blue.  But regardless, step in through those doors and you are greeted with a big smile and really friendly service.

The menu is not immensely diverse but there are quite a few options which take a few sides of A4 to convey, there is a vegetarian breakfast option and also various other veggie options too.  As it is a small establishment, there seems to be a degree of flexibility in what you can have.

I had the Veggie burger, averagely priced at £2.50.  Although it would be nice with some salad or garnishings apart from Ketchup or Branstons Relish, the bun was soft  and fresh and the burger was beyond my expectations.  Crispy yet moist inside, and it was hot too!

The only drawbacks as I could see was the sticky table that seemed covered in an ominous sticky substance which seemed to cement the mats to the table, the price was a bit much for something that didn’t have any garnishing or salad.  Although it was simple and delicious, the meal seemed to lack something…Chips? Salad?

Streets Cafe is something that needs supporting, in this age of Starbucks/Nero and over priced Panini factories, caf’s like this and Expresso (see previous reviews) in Queen St. seem to be a bit of a rarity.  For vegetarians, it might seem a bit irrelevant, but remember the little guy.

Starz, Lower North Street, Exeter (TBA)

Unusually I have decided to withdraw my review about Starz and their unveggie friendly menu on the basis that they have introduced a few new veggie options and although still limited, it is worth another visit.  Although the interior hasn’t changed, it’d be good to get some objective comments from people who have been there recently.

Chris

Puccino’s Oxford (2.0)

I am going to be relatively brief with this one, as I have repressed the memory enough so that I can walk past the cafe without collapsing from anger. I had to make sure that this was an isolated incident but alas it wasn’t, I found other instances where people had been blown away by the bad service, especially this one.
Walking in to Puccino’s is a little like walking in to a medical episode, something non terminal but still pretty horrific like diarrohea or projectile vomiting. The decor is minimal with slightly pointless writing one the wall makes you wonder what the real goal is, apart from confusing you totally. The floor and the tables is ‘old world’ fused with varnish over every thing including the service.

So after sliding in, you can’t really walk in because it’s too small, you get to a nice table by the window overlooking the cobbled courtyard. The menu’s are thrust at you, and looking through the slightly average amount of vegetarian options starts to make you wonder why people even bother. I looked through but noticed a lot more options that were vegetarian, but without V. When asked why the waitress looked baffled, not at why there were vegetarian options not marked, but because we had dared to ask.

First impressions slid downhill very quickly, and after changing my mind about eating we decided to have tea instead. You can’t go wrong with tea can you.

Well so I thought…

After the waitress who obviously did not speak any English whatsoever brought over the tea, we looked at the coffee mugs we had been given (huge basins, not nice little tea cups) and then realised that my friend Meg had been given Breakfast tea instead. Meg pointed this out to the waitress but was quickly rebuttled by an argument that it was ‘all the same’. Two different types of tea, two different prices, but one argument. It’s all the same.

Assam tea is grown in estates in India, Breakfast Tea is a blend of several different teas, simple difference.

I was amazed that the waitress was arguing with us, and not only that was I amazed too by the attitude of the waitress that bought it over “I was only trying to save you money, everyone who askes for Assam I give them Breakfast tea because it’s all the same”.

So the conclusion after that was that, if you go to Puccino’s you will not be given Assam but breakfast tea.

Places like this seem to thrive on reluctant tourists who are too scared to say anything about that horrific service. But I obviously know nothing because Assam and Breakfast Tea are the same, acccording to Puccino’s.

The veggie menu is average but you won’t get what you ordered because you will be wrong. All of you.

Spice Lounge, Banbury Road, Oxford (4.5)

Curry, what does that word conjure up?  Smell? Taste? Experiences related to Curry?  I always always think of a place when I think of the word Curry and normally it involves a rancid watery takeaway with overcooked vegetables and some aggressively spiced paste that looks like it has been regurgitated by a cat.

So as you can imagine, my thought of ‘going out for a curry’ was quiet dread and a small hint of fear as we walked in to one of the nicest restaurants I have ever had the pleasure of walking in to.  The first thing you notice about the decor is the warmth that it gives.  The hues and the tones make you feel vaguely romantic, even if you were coming in with a client or your boss, I could imagine pouring some wine and eyeing them seductively just thanks to the mood lighting.

Maybe not, but the first thing that they had nailed was the surroundings and the initial service, the first impressions had sold me already.  Second was the menu which is available from here which I hunted through to find a relatively generous vegetarian section lavished with a lot of other vegetarian dishes peppered through the menu, not just confined to the veggie section.  Thirdly was the free poppadoms with sections of dip as an appetiser, the taste really helped get your buds ready for the meal which ultimately helped everything go down well.

My Motta Paneer was amazing, and although the portion was a bit on the small side, I felt the taste made up for this.  I could have eaten more, much more but diets as they are we both sat there feeling suitably stuffed and as quickly as he appeared the waiter presented us with a nice little bill.

I would have slapped a nice 5 on the Spice Lounge but I did come away feeling that the portion was just a bit too stingly.  It didn’t make me question the thought about whether I could eat all of it, nor was I really bowled over by the food itself.  It was tasty and really well cooked but it didn’t stand out.

Joi Buffet, Percy St. London (Special Dispatch)

I have been recently adventuring around seeing friends and going to meetings, so I thought I would take time out to write a bit about the better places that I visited whilst I was for at least a few days being a jetsetting cosmopolitan.  OK, so no jets were involved and the most exotic I got was a toilet in Tottenham Court Road that smelled like Mango’s.  But I digress.

Joi Buffet is a really good concept, and as really good concepts go this little novelty has received mixed reviews.  It is first and foremost a chinese restaurant, but secondly it’s a veggie restaurant.

As you loiter at the door, you get beckoned in by two very friendly oriental ladies who find you a seat and then interrogate you for drinks.  The service is, like many chinese restaurants, pretty quick and very friendly.  After a slight bemusement at the array of different foods all laid out with fresh fruit and vegetables in a colourful gastronomic orgy, spilling over the sides with sauces and noodles of many different varieties, you do realise that much of the food is not as warm as it could be.

After piling your plate as high as it could possibly go, you waddle back to your seat feeling self concious that other diners might think you to be a glutton.  So as you sit down you say audibly “I can’t eat all of this! I am so greedy!”.

The cooked food isn’t excellent, but the variety of prepared fresh fruits and vegetables makes up for it.  The decor has a modern yet slightly neglected feel to it, it feels like it needs to be loved a bit more, possibly cleaned?  Just a thought.  The price is quite good too not going over £6.50 for a dinner service and just under that at £5 for a lunch service, really good prices for the location too.

Giraffe (5.0) – Princesshay, Exeter.

I am tempted to go to a place that I know will be bad just so I can get some slightly more negative reviews, maybe I should go and see how bad the bad ones really are as this is going to be a stunning review for Giraffe.

When it’s raining and everything looks very grey, the sun seems to come out as soon as you see Giraffe. Its bright orange decor beaming across to you as you walk past Hotel Chocolat and the Carphone Warehouse, it seems to entice you in with some sort of assumed promise of exuding happiness when you walk in and it is only when you walk in that you come face to face with a large piece of corporate graffiti about smiling.

As you are seated by the friendly waitress, the first thing that really strikes you is the ceiling and the fact the whole front of the restaurant is glass – perfect people watching territory. The second thing you notice is the menu and that everything on it is healthy in one way or another, and that the little V sign is next to over half of everything on the menu.  The menu is available here (opens new window) and after having a look at a stunning breakfast menu too, I had been sold.

So lets get down to the nitty gritty.

This place is clearly as veggie friendly as you are going to get in a restaurant. Everything is marked clearly and they don’t use any GM products, it’s all good and fresh. The website gives you more information about the Giraffe philosophy and the idea of making eating ‘fun’. I have to say, however, that as this is in Princesshay, the prices are pretty steep.

For a Falafel “deluxe” burger and chips and a muesli smoothie (I chose it because it was a half rhyme) cost £12.95. This is a place that seems to charge restaurant prices for ‘casual dining’, but then you have concentrate on what actually arrived on the plate.  A nice big perfectly cooked burger with a careful array of peppers and mozzarella garnished with beetroot and rocket sandwiched between two freshly cooked seed baps, a small pot of perfectly cooked chips and a small ramekin of harissa. You also get a vast array of sauces and dips to choose from, perfect for varied chip dipping.
I had to sit and contemplate whether this was a major flaw, or whether this was justified for what it was. I have paid more for less, and enjoyed it less too, so I could see this as being a hidden part of their philosophy, fresh food and great taste (but you have to pay for it).

So I wasn’t happy with the price, but then I have been known to go to huge lengths to save money and I am not exactly renowned for my generosity either. Take away the price and you really do have a veggie friendly restaurant worth visiting.

The atmosphere was helped by the exotic selection of music, not loud or distracting but enough for you to take it in and realise that something was playing. The man that came in to the restaurant and continued a loud conversation on his mobile, serenading me with his nasal, ageing yuppy overtones right next to my table, was aggravating and even worse, after he’d finished his conversation his wife sat down and he buggered off.

The service was nice and friendly, and I got slipped a 2 for 1 offer for various meals for complementing the food! So really, one felt satisfied physically and within too. I left smiling.

Foodeaze, 4.9 (based in the former St George’s Market)

After the response that I received after my last post about Foodeaze, I decided to visit Foodeaze ‘Mk2′. It opened last year and since then it has quietly carried on the noble philosophy of the previous management, and this time it is succeeding. So, as I sat there feeling immensely satisfied after my 4 Cheese pizza I decided that the words I needed to describe it were hard to find, but in terms of price and taste, method cooked and just generally the whole experience really made me feel quite ashamed of my skepticism that I had brought with me.

The building is divided in to two distinct sections. Retail on one side in the food hall, and the restaurant on the other. You know exactly where you are.
My initial criticisms of Foodeaze under old management before were the inability for the customer to navigate the shop without either running in to a poorly placed food area or something else confusing. This time, I stepped in and knew exactly where I had to pay, where I would be served food and where I could buy authentic Italian and local goods. There was signing which told you exactly where you had to be, and one menu for the whole shop unlike before where there seemed to be different menu’s for different sections.

I am really enthusiastic about the philosophy of Foodeaze because Exeter has been screaming out for something like this for years. Effings did it for a bit but sadly folded when they realised that they couldn’t attract people simply by existing in a prominent place, Foodeaze ‘Mk2′ has learnt from the failings of the past and needs to be experienced to be appreciated.

So for the discerning vegetarian, what has it got? What makes this special is the quality of the food, prepared and cooked in full view of the diners the pizza’s are cooked in the traditional woodburning oven and taste simply amazing. The value is also something that impressed me too, £5.95 gets you a huge dustbin lid pizza that you can share amongst friends (think about Pizza Hut or Pizza Express for comparison). The veggie options for the pizza’s outweigh the other options which cheered me up, and not only that but they do panini’s too with everything being baked fresh on the premises made from scratch.
With a varied selection of take away’s and pasta’s all ready to eat in, the options are good compared to many places.
So we have possibly the best value pizza’s/nicest pizza’s (Sorry, On The Waterfront) in Exeter, but what else is there? There is a fish stall, a pasta bar and a huge selection of beers and wines and a staggering amount of locally produced goods. Not only do they keep it ethical, but there is a huge emphasis on promoting and supporting local produce. They are the only place that I have come across serving Buckfastleigh produced Luscombes Strawberry lemonade which is mind bogglingly nice.

The service was friendly and the girl at the till made the experience ‘personal’ by commenting about one of my products, the lady who took my change at the till for pizza was calm and pleasant, and the pizza chef who brought over my pizza was polite and even went and fetched some cutlery for me. It’s the small things that count, and although the prices are good, you don’t pay extra for good service so when you get it free it makes it that much more special.  And talk about value, I managed to eat out for well under a tenner which is a rarity when quality cooking is involved.

Foodeaze is a good cause which needs to be supported, they stand for good food and in my humble opinion seem to be the best place in Exeter to get high end quality produce at a good price. Although the scale is nothing compared to the sprawling pretentiousness of Darts Farm just outside of Topsham, they do seem to have connected with the people of Exeter better then the first time around.

http://www.foodeaze.co.uk