A Cozinha

Those who enjoyed A Cozinha (the kitchen) when it was in the city centre are likely to enjoy it even more now that it is relocated in new premises in Alfred Place, Kingsdown. The elegant and charismatic Yvonne MacFarlane continues to produce the only real Portuguese food in Bristol, a cuisine that is lamentably undervalued in the view of this writer, though it is clear the inhabitants of Bristol know a good thing when they see it.

To ease customers into the mood a selection of bread and olives is served with the drinks as you pore over a menu and enjoy the unhurried pace. For those who like to keep an eye on the action, Yvonne encourages the feeling of informality by working in a cozinha that gives ample viewing from the restaurant area, a nice touch that may not be unique but in this location has a genuine feel to it. And that word, genuine, somehow seems to sum up the whole ethos of A Cozinha.

A straightforward price set-up offers one course at £15.25, two at £18.50 and the full house of three at £21.75, which when you come to think about it, never mind taste it, is very good value. Thoroughly recommended from a menu that embraces seafood in a big way is a starter of salt cod and chickpea salad, a wonderful combination served on crispbread. Yvonne's piece de resistance is the Portuguese classic cataplana, a fish stew served in the generous copper pot in which it has been cooked and full of a wide variety of seafood, ample for two people. The choice of desserts is not wide but one suspects many may be out of the running by that stage anyway. Spoken well of is the almond roulade served with a caramel sauce, though something lighter might not come amiss.

A Portuguese weighted wine list produces some good examples of country noted more for its fine ports. A Cozinha is truly a place for connoisseurs of all that is worthy in good eating. That it may never rise to dizzy starred heights is more a matter for relief - just carry on as you are, Yvonne and Ian.