St James Restaurant

In an area not exactly inundated with top class restaurants, St James comes as a refreshing breath of quality, with clean cut décor, offering a 2-course daily changing menu, backed up by a full a la carte.

For the daily menu warm chicken and parma ham salad with oyster mushrooms, or grilled halomi with antipasto salad could be one of the four starters, followed by fish cakes with cream leeks, tomato butter sauce and asparagus spears, or strips of beef with crack pepper and mushroom jus, French beans and dauphinoise potatoes amongst the main courses.

From amongst 12 or so starters expect to find smoked salmon and asparagus salad with a caper and shallot dressing, or seared foie gras and chicken liver salad with lardons of bacon and balsamic berries.

Moving into heavier territory cast an eye for the roasted loin of pork, seasoned with apricot and pine nut, fondant potato, and a Stilton and apple parcel with light pork jus. Fish is by no means overlooked in this excellent restaurant, and a favourite dish is the fillet of seabass with vermicelli noodles in a crab, lime and coriander cream sauce.

However, if you wish for a fish course more simply prepared than listed they will do it for you, a distinct advantage for those who are a mere one stage removed from the sushi approach.

Days can be hot or cold and with puddings this can be tricky. For the former the menu provides a jam sponge pudding with vanilla anglaise, but for summer days a raspberry brûlée with a strawberry ice cream and raspberry compote keeps the heat under control.

The balance of quality is maintained at all points, even the cellar, where the list starts with five good champagnes to suit all pockets, followed by some specials headed by a Chateau Lafite '83. In general though prices hover between the £50 - £20 mark with Italian house wine at £11.95.

Aged malt whisky will bring more than a sparkle to the connoisseur's eye, and the value amongst the fine cognac and Calvados is exceptional, with '78 Calvados at a mere £7.50 a glass and a '91 Ardbeg malt at a modest £3.80.

Their clearly compiled Website will give further information on menu changes, events, business entertaining and location. It is worth noting that they will happily cater for private parties for from forty to ninety guests at Sunday lunchtime, and also in late 2006 they opened a new lounge bar and party reception area.