Aqua-vitus

Ian Fulstow (23 October 2009)

We visited Chester in August 2009 and found the Aqua-Vitus by chance. What a wonderful experience it was. The atmosphere and ambience was superb, the food was even better. We will be returning to Chester for New Year and we will definitely be eating there again.

Nathan (7 April 2009)

Aqua-Vitus, the name above the door itself is Aqua Vit, is rather secretively nestled-in between its neighbours on Watergate Street. No acquaintance of mine has been aware of its presence: that such a lovely restaurant should be so obscure is baffling. The décor is lovely - wooden flooring and white tablecloths, and scotch bottles reflecting the candle glow. Apparently the food served here is French cuisine with a Swedish twist. How accurate this premise is, I have no idea. I thought the Swedish just ate meatballs. One is given a choice of two menus. To eat a la carte will cost you a minimum of twenty pounds for two courses. This sounds fairly steep until you've tried the food. The first time I ate here I opted for a rabbit rilette with orange salsa, purely because I wanted to say I'd eaten rabbit. My partner opted for half a lobster, which it literally was - not being experienced in fine cuisine, we had not known what to expect. I had to help her extract the meat. Rilette turned out to be a pancake-type thing. In case you're wondering, rabbit tastes not unlike chicken. My main was grilled sea bream on a bed of risotto, topped with scallops and sauce vierge. The fish was cooked to perfection, pure and simple. The skin was delightfully crisp, the flesh flaky and delicious. The risotto was similarly well-made. My partner had the seafood linguine, which contained lovely prawns, scallops and mussels. After our quality coffee afterwards, we knew we'd be back. The first thing to strike one when the meals arrive, which doesn't take long at all, is how immaculately presented they are. It really is a shame to have to deconstruct the chef's efforts. The night of writing this, I had duck rilette as a starter. The three little pastry things are propped against one another in a wigwam shape, with diagonally-sliced cucumbers protruding from the bottom as if to form an occult shape. Shredded spring onion adorns the top. They're like little sculptures.

Unlike many places, however, the actual taste of the food doesn't fall short of the standards of presentation. The flavours are matched superbly, the meat cooked carefully, the vegetables flavoursome and crunchy, but not too much so. Tonight, on my third visit, I had my first, tiny, disappointment. My pheasant was a little dry, perhaps a fraction overdone. The provencal potatoes it came with were, however, wonderful. The after work menu is incredible value. My duck rilette and pheasant were both off it, and matched the quality of the a la carte. That this place can offer such beautiful food at £8.95 for two courses is fantastic. It seems only the house wine is available by the glass, and while the white is dry and subtle, the red is a little acidic. The coffee we have afterwards is lovely though, and well-priced. I cannot recommend Aqua Vit highly enough. In a city full to the brim of character -less chains, it's a real breath of fresh air, and you'd have to travel some way to beat it on either food or value. The menu is intriguing - pheasant, steaks, salmon pudding - tonight I saw bouillabaisse on the specials board, made with local-market fish. Do visit, it's a special place.

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