food / drink
URBAN DINER ***
175 Kings Road, Cardiff. 029 2034 1013 / www. urbandiner. com Step inside your local“ American-styled diner” and it’ s more than likely that you’ ll face an unapologetically clichéd interior design complete with awkward 50s throwback plastic seating and an uneventful menu packed with underwhelming chilli dogs and tasteless chicken wings. Or maybe I’ m just unlucky. Urban Diner manages to offer something a little more nuanced, with a comfortable and contemporary interior which takes a step back from the endless enthusiasm for hackneyed American knick-knacks. Urban Diner’ s menu is certainly American in stature and their weighty main courses and excellent selection of sides provide plenty of temptation. We were soon loosening our belts in anticipation. With a sweet strawberry shake ordered to get us in the mood, we kicked off our meal with a delicious cobb salad. Perfect for sharing and reasonably priced when split, the moist chicken pieces found comfort in the arms of avocado, smoked bacon, Roquefort cheese and a Dijon mustard dressing. We followed this with an Urban Juicy Lucy, which consisted of two 6oz burger patties stuffed with Monterey cheese, salad and gerkhin. The burger, although simple, was ample in size and a struggle to finish completely. We also opted for a T-bone steak which came with a large Asian-style salad. With its complementary garlic and chilli butter, the steak was moist and nicely cooked to order, but again a challenge to finish completely. Sweet potato fries, onion rings and appleslaw completed our sizeable meal, and although our eyes were undoubtedly too big for our bellies, we opted for a simple New York cheesecake and Mississippi mud pie to round off the meal. Uncomplicated, no-nonsense, and simply well executed throughout, Urban Diner’ s American-styled menu delivers on value, taste and quality. GARETH LUDKIN
AMICI’ S BAR & RISTORANTE ****
24 Churchill Way, Cardiff, 029 2034 3424 Toni Venditto has been a fixture in the Welsh food scene for the last 20 years. Having owned and run several very successful restaurants – Il Padrino, Topo Gigio, Da Venditto’ s – and awarded two AA Rosettes, several accolades and a couple of clubs in between, following a few years’ break he’ s back in the capital with his latest venture, Amici’ s. A cosy basement restaurant with rustic decor and simple furnishings, the emphasis here is on the food. The menu boasts a vast selection, made easier to navigate with the enthusiastic help from the head chef, who makes a point of explaining the dishes and takes the orders. For Antipasti we had polpette, homemade beef and pork meatballs cooked in tomato sauce, with fresh basil and parmesan cheese; and the homemade salsiccia con fagliolini, grilled pork chilli sausage cooked in cherry tomato sauce with fine green beans. Mains comprised tagliatelle spezzatino and pepperoni( tagliatelle with fillet steak in an onion, tomato and pepper sauce), and one of the chef’ s favourites, Chief Risotto – arborio rice with crabmeat, courgette, fresh clams and calamari. There is also a lobster version, Bob’ s Lobster – enquire about the name’ s origins when you go. A mango cheesecake was our chosen, shared dessert, with pear and honey tart coming in a close second. Herbs are grown in the restaurant and sauces are made to order: if you’ re in a rush, this isn’ t for you. However, if you love your food, want genuine hospitality, savour good Italian wines,( sidenote: the Granito Casavecchia here comes from their family vineyard outside of Naples) and salivate at the thought of trying authentic home dishes from Southern Italy, Amici is for you. This isn’ t cheap, but you pay for, and receive, quality. ANTONIA LEVAY
THE GALLERY ****
2 Broad Street, Barry. 01446 735300 / www. the-gallery-restaurant. co. uk Having opened for a couple of years back in the early 2000s, The Gallery is now in its second phase. At that time, the vision and dining experience was perhaps a little too ambitious for Barry, but now it’ s reopened with a fresh look, a stunning bar area and a carefully thought-out menu. The emphasis still lies on quality ingredients, fresh local produce and dishes cooked and made on the premises. Homemade breads, sauces and dishes all feature heavily, as do a list of suppliers based in the Vale. Seasonal produce is a big thing at The Gallery and the menu changes weekly to reflect this. We dined in mid-June when some of the choices included broccoli and Perl Las soup and rabbit and pigeon terrine with pickled mushrooms. We went for the asparagus and crab cakes and the smoked mackerel with a trio of beetroot. For mains we plumped for Trealy Farm Cassoulet Castlenaudry with a crisp salad, and a herb-crusted pollack with panzanella salad – a salad of bread, tomatoes, sometimes onions and basil, dressed with olive oil and vinegar. Other options include braised lamb shank, samphire and broad beans and sorrel gnocchi with broccoli and sea spinach; all very tempting. The desserts are homemade, and although the Merlin bread and butter pudding evaded us as we were very full, we did share a cherry pavlova which hit the spot perfectly. For the quality and inventiveness of dishes, the genuine care and attention that goes into all the prep, the price is more than worth it – two courses cost £ 18.50pp and three courses came in at £ 23.50. With a passion for good food, a series of wine tastings, guest celebrity chef evenings and at some point a microbrewery in the pipeline, The Gallery deserves to be supported. ANTONIA LEVAY
BUZZ 28