Parm NYC

248 Mulberry Street, New York City, NY 10012  

Soon after we arrived at our Airbnb base in Nolita, New York City, we knew we had to have some genuine Italian-American cooking before we hit the hay to sleep off our jet lag. We were quite lucky to get a table as it was a Saturday night and the place was full. The front-of-house managed to rustle us up a table in the back, after some gentle persuasion, having initially said it would be a 45 minute wait.

The menu at Parm is minimal, and it soon became apparent we needed try the Parm signature sandwiches.

The veggie side dishes we ordered came served as a starter, rather than with the main course. Before ordering too many dishes, we checked ourselves, remembering American portions are usually huge. This was not the case, but the quality was superb, so we weren't left disappointed. 

The B&G Poppers are deep fried and stuffed peppers with rice and provolone. It's a delicious gooey, spicy dream served with a cheesy dip. The 'smashed & crispy' potatoes came with herbs, spring onions and two dips.

I had the 'Meatball Parmigiana Hero', served with baked ziti and meat gravy. The meat patty came served topped with beautifully fresh mozzarella and torn basil. It’s quite simply the best meatball sub I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating.

My friends enjoyed the eggplant sub, sausage and pepper sub and the Chicken Francese (white wine and lemon sauce).

The wine and beers were great too. It came to about $130 (including drinks) for the 4 of us, which was great value for such good food. Highly recommended!

Chorlton Green Brasserie

137 Beech Road, Chorlton, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, M21 9EQ

This place has a relaxed shabby chic about it. Lots of wood and exposed floor boards.

Sadly the Sunday Roast I had was not to my liking. Maybe the chef was having a bad day? The beef was good - a generous slab of meat cooked perfectly. We were asked how we wanted it cooked and I went medium. I know, I know, I should have gone rare. Always go rare.

The "twice roasted potatoes" looked the part but were dry, oily and lacking fluffiness. What’s wrong with once roasted? The roasted carrot and parsnip were fine, but where were the greens? A bit of broccoli, cabbage, peas or beans wouldn't go amiss. If not on each plate, then a bowl for the table to share. Stingy.

The Yorkshire pudding was a great size and shape, but overcooked and burnt in places. It was lacking any bounce and was dry, possibly due to being kept under a heat lamp for too long.

I was pleased to see the gravy was in your own personal jug, but it was too thin for my liking and lacking any real flavour. Bisto would have been an improvement.

My parents enjoyed their poached fish main course. I should have followed suit, but I find it impossible not to choose a Sunday roast.

The staff were friendly and helpful throughout, no complaints there. I’m sure their regular menu is good, but I just wasn't impressed with my meal.

Tampopo

16 Albert Square, Manchester M2 5PF

We went here after seeing they had a 'buy one get one free' offer on the back of our cinema ticket. We were seated on long benches the same as in Wagamamas. If you’re on a first date you may want to avoid, as you may be sat very close to other humans. The interior felt more intimate than Wagamamas, with drapes on the ceiling and Asian artwork on the wall.

The concept here is for several Asian cuisines to be spread across the menu - Japanese, Thai, Malaysian, Vietnamese and others are represented here.

To start we had the BBQ Platter to Share. Chicken satay (no introduction needed), Bulgogi (grilled beef, served with Kimchi pickled cabbage), Ga Nuong (chicken skewers wrapped in citrus-scented kaffir lime leaves), Chao Tom (minced prawn wrapped in sugar cane). This was served with various dips and it was very tasty. As this was our first visit, this was a perfect introduction to the starters.

To follow I had the Prawn Panang Curry (Thai) and my girlfriend had the Khao Soi noodles - chicken breast and yellow noodles in a red curry sauce. Both were cooked to perfection, the ingredients feel really fresh and the portions were generous. All of this was washed down with refreshing Asahi beer.

The service was great - I think we were served by 5 different members of staff, all as helpful as each other.

Keep an eye out for their special offers, as if you’re a greedy get like me you can eat your way through their menu.

Roberto's

8 Queens Square Rayrigg Road, Bowness-on-Windermere LA23 3BY

After reading some good reviews on Trip Advisor, we decided to try this place out shortly after it opened on a Sunday evening. I was “hangry “(irritable as a result of feeling hungry) so made the call to get in early, this being a Sunday before a Bank Holiday. As there were only two of us we managed to get a table without a reservation.

The decor was nothing special - inoffensive and far from shabby, but could do with some modernisation.

After a day of climbing hills we were hungry so skipped starters and decided against wine.

I had the pan fried chicken breast, wrapped in bacon on a bed of butter beans and roast veg in a “Mediterranean style” sauce. My girlfriend had the Red Mullet with seafood paella, which was served with a huge prawn and mussels in a tomato sauce. Both dishes were served with broccoli and were around £15, which was overpriced but this is Lake District for christ’s sake, what do you expect?!

The restaurant soon filled up and we saw group after group of people turned away. We had a look at the dessert menu, but decided it was quite pricey at £6 a pop. So we grabbed an ice cream from a nearby shop and sat on some steps, basking in the evening sun before heading to the pub.

The service and atmosphere was good. Overall impression was - good food but overpriced- booking essential.

Jack Spratt (now closed)

John Dalton Street, St James Square, Manchester M2 6WH

My girlfriend had been here with her book club, who enjoyed their visit. To start we shared the home made bread with a selection of butters and oils. The waitress kindly brought enough warm bread for 2 people. There was rosemary butter, balsamic and olive oil, pesto oil and one other butter (I forget what type).

For the main course, I had the 6oz Cote de Boeuf (rib eye on the bone), potato dauphinoise and café de Paris butter. With the early bird offer of 35% off, the cost was a reasonable £15 (usually £23). The steak was huge, the potatoes were delicious, but the sauce was not for me as it was made with anchovies and capers, and, not being a big seafood fan, I had to scrape this off into a napkin. It’s my own sodding fault - I should have asked what “café de Paris" was.

My girlfriend enjoyed the pan fried chicken breast served with fondant potato and a creamy mushroom and tarragon. 

The name of the house wine escapes me now (hic!) but it was good quality and priced reasonably. We were too full to sample the desserts this time. I can never manage a three course meal. It’s either starter or dessert. Such frustration!

Overall the service was superb, the staff friendly, and there was a great atmosphere helped by a live band playing acoustic covers of popular hits. The decor was classy but nothing special.

For me, without the early bird discount, the food would have been overpriced. I told myself I must come back to try the Sunday roast (my favourite meal of all).

The Albert Square Chop House

The Memorial Hall,14 Albert Square, Manchester M2 5PF

Having been to Sam’s and Tom’s Chop Houses (staples of Manchester dining and champions of English cuisine), I took my parents to their newest incarnation on Albert Square. The beautiful building dates back to 1886, with a bar upstairs and their usual menu (the always excellent corned beef hash), with a new, fancier restaurant downstairs where we dined.

My parents don't really drink, unfortunately, but as with the other chop houses, their wine menu is impressive.

I plumped for Loin of venison with a venison faggot with mashed potatoes and spiced red cabbage. The big flavour of the meat stood out, and it was served pink in the middle. The cabbage was seasoned fantastically and the mash buttery. It’s a testament to the chef to allow the meat to be the star of the dish, rather than concocting an elaborate ‘jus’ or trendy flavour combination. 

The choice to skip starters proved to be a good one as mum has a sweet tooth and bloody loves a pudding. I decided on Steamed orange marmalade sponge, which was moist, juice and delicious.

The “a la carte” menu does not come cheap - the meal came to a little over £110 for four people, with only soft drinks. But considering the quality of food, it puts the price into perspective. 

The service was excellent throughout, and the decor looked great, with portraits of Manchester idols adorning the walls from a photographer whose name escapes me.

Unfortunately the place always seems empty whenever I walk past, seemingly still living in the shadow of it’s older siblings.