Restaurant-Guide.com
hand picked restaurants

Queans was taken over in 2005 by Laura Hamilton, who was formerly a chef-manager in Warwick, she offers a selection of dishes that are both inventive and tempting to a pleasing degree, and as a result she is now enjoying well-deserved popularity in Leamington Spa. Laura has been a chef locally for the best part of 20 years during much of which she was Head Chef at The Grand Union Restaurant, before her three years at Robbie's in Warwick.

As might be expected her menus are pleasantly challenging with starters such as crab and spring onion fishcake served with a lemon and lime dressing; artichoke and asparagus tart with a toasted almond salad, or broccoli and smoked brie soup.

Main courses move along with the likes of pan-fried wild duck breast served on a bed of wilted spinach and baked Portobello mushroom, served with a whiskey and ginger gravy; medallion of pork served on a bed of chive and lemon rice, finished with a yellow pepper cream, or supreme of chicken stuffed with a basil and mascarpone mousse, poached in a creamy garlic sauce.

For those of a seaward inclination there may be grilled whole black bream glazed with orange and sweet mustard and finished with a watercress dressing. Vegetarians will surely rejoice in the delicious tarragon pastry basket filled with a layer of chickpea mousse, braised courgette and leeks, topped with roasted beetroot.

Laura's homemade ice creams are legendary and arrive at the table with fresh baked cookies. Wildly popular is the peach and raspberry suet pudding served with custard, cream, or ice cream, and sometimes, we are told, all three. The rich chocolate and orange cheesecake is a clever blend of flavours, but for many the simple sharp tang of a fresh fruit cocktail, well laced with cointreau has familiar appeal. To play safe go for the banoffee pie, an international favourite that never fails to please.

From all of which it will be obvious that Laura is certainly no slouch in the kitchen and explains why those with an eye for food that has been prepared with care and imagination are beating a path to her door.

The wine list is equally full of character with some nice Burgundy and really daring reds from South Africa, Chile, Spain and Italy. Two dessert wines are listed, including an intriguing rich Black Muscat from California.

As one might expect the general layout and presentation is cool and elegant, in keeping with the service. This is a restaurant that would hold its own well in London, and in Leamington Spa it is indeed a gift sent from on high. They were the proud winners at the Coventry and Warwickshire Food and Drink Awards 2006 for Best Restaurant and Excellence in Quality and Customer Service.

If you want to know more about this superb restaurant, then their Website should prove to be a mine of information.

Leamington Spa may strike you as one of those places that are full of eastern promise - well, if not eastern, at least promise. As far as the restaurant business is concerned some very interesting enterprises have taken off there, and another has been added with the arrival of Peter and Antje Knibb. Both have worked in Michelin starred restaurants under such culinary notables as Simon Haigh at Mallory Court and Jun Tanaka at Pearl Restaurant, London.

A restyling by designer Emma McIvor has resulted in nicely understated feelings of luxury, comfort and style, creating an immediate sense of confidence and relaxation.

Peter's relatively short career shows signs of meteoric progress, and at the end of this review the urge to place Restaurant 23 on your 'One to Watch' list will be stronger. The serious stuff was a spell at Chez Nico preceded by time well spent at Claridge's under John Williams. The fun bit was six months on a luxury yacht before jumping ship for the Gucci private family yacht. Some very relevant experience in London has proved of real value in establishing himself in the Midlands.

Well located in the centre of town the restaurant draws an egalitarian customer base who, attracted by a combination of excellent food and competitive prices tend to treat Restaurant 23 as their neighbourhood hideout. Peter's international travels have moulded a broad approach to the cuisine, with some interesting little quirks that betray a sense of culinary genius.

For dinner expect to find organic salmon and Cornish crab ravioli with a bisque and lemon grass velouté, and seared hand dived scallops, capers, parsley, cauliflower, crispy bacon and red veined sorrel. Wild mushroom consommé is accompanied by truffle gnocchi, parmesan crisp and poached quail?s egg. Seafood is a speciality; keep a lookout for pan-fried wild sea bass with coriander cress, curried mussel and coconut broth. Roasted loin of venison arrives with butternut squash gratin, braised red cabbage, chestnuts and port sauce.

Set nutmeg duck egg custard is served with marinated Agen prunes, green apple sorbet, almond and orange tuile, and a wonderful combination comes in the form of ginger bread with banana parfait, crispy filo pastry and crème fraîche sorbet.

Leamington Spa still seems to be one of those places where people really do lunch. Restaurant 23 has been quick to respond to this admirable practice with a 1, 2 or 3 course lunch at £13.50, £16.50 and £19 respectively. A choice of three starters might include roasted parsnip and apple soup with curry oil, followed by braised venison bourguignon, potato puree, salsify and baby carrots, with the great cleanser in the form of marinated prunes, cinnamon ice cream and apple sponge.

Yes, there is little doubt about it - an entry in your little black book is warmly recommended. The menu responds well to the seasons and changes are posted on their Website, which is only a click away.

Café Rouge has over one hundred branches throughout Britain all offering a wide range of dishes drawn from the French cuisine. Slightly less than half their branches are in or close to London. Almost inevitably the décor and design of each restaurant differs from the others, but there is a general curtsy towards La France.

Many restaurants do an excellent breakfast, or shall we say petit dejeuner, at which such delights as scrambled eggs and smoked salmon on toasted brioche, croque Madame, croissants and pain au chocolat make welcome appearances, and to their credit the English traditional gets top billing.

An array of small dishes takes in pulled pork pâté with French bread, and spicy beef and lamb sausage with harissa mayonnaise. Salads and pasta feature largely, as do baguettes and croques. Quick dishes, ideal for lunch, include slices of saucisson and cured pork loin with French bread.

Moving on to more serious stuff we find steaks, an 8oz bavette and thin cut rib eye, with a choice of béarnaise or peppercorn sauce. No French menu would be complete without the poulet jaune grille, pan-roasted breast of corn-fed chicken served on a warm taboulé of bulgar wheat and a medley of roasted vegetables with minted crème fraîche, or a steak frites before moving on to the crème brûlée, or the tart tatin. Almost invariably the coffee tastes like coffee should, something that sadly can all too often still not be said of our English restaurants, who depend too much upon technology and too little on the acquisition of a certain flair for this important conclusion to a meal.

By now we all know that the French, despite their distinctive habits when it comes to matters of satisfying the inner man, maintain a miraculous longevity of life. This is generally attributed to a number of causes, of which a measured consumption of decent wine is foremost. Café Rouge, you may be pleased to hear, encourages this with a well-chosen selection of French wines. Their prix fixe lunch and meals for children, both at a very reasonable figure, also offer excellent value.

Their Website will keep you updated on menu changes, news and other competitions and offers from the Café Society.

Strada describes itself as 'a group of stylish, contemporary Italian restaurants, serving good quality, simple and freshly prepared dishes'. The statement sums up what this group of around seventy restaurants offers to people looking for good Italian food. The first outlet opened in Battersea in 1999 and their clientele has been increasing steadily ever since.

Though Strada has grown into a fair sized group, each outlet retains the feel of being a local neighbourhood Italian restaurant. The menu includes pastas, risottos, salads, and fish dishes, but they are best known for their quality pizzas.

They present authentic Italian dishes in contemporary surroundings and aim to use only the freshest and finest ingredients, such as Luganica sausages, Parma ham and buffalo mozzarella, imported from Italy to provide exactly the kind of rustic, traditional dishes one would expect to find travelling around its regions.

A meal could kick off with zuppa vongole e fregola, a traditional clam soup with Sardinian fregola pasta grains, wine, chilli and parsley, served with bread, or the delicious sautéed king prawns with garlic, white wine, chilli, and lemon butter served with your choice of bread.

Move on to their creamy risotto verdure, freshly grilled asparagus, broad beans, peas, spring onions, zucchini, green beans, white wine and mint, finished with baby spinach leaves. Or you could opt for the healthier, tagliolini nero granchio, black cuttlefish ink pasta with crab, courgette, red and yellow peppers, spring onion, and a hint of chilli and parsley. A real treat for the taste buds comes in the form of the bistecca manzo, a 10oz rosemary-marinated char-grilled, rib-eye steak with fries and fresh rocket.

A range of pizzas, all spun by hand, is an integral feature of each restaurant. They include the rossa, with spicy southern Italian salami, roasted red peppers, chilli, caramelised onion, garlic, fresh oregano, tomato and mozzarella. Nor are vegetarians are overlooked, and can be found tucking into dishes such as fiorentina, made of spinach cooked with garlic, nutmeg and black pepper with mozzarella, parmesan, tomato and an egg.

For those wanting to satisfy their sweet tooth, there is torroncino affogato, an iced nougat semi freddo with a shot of espresso to pour over, or a classic Italian tiramisu and, as you might expect coffee to round off the meal.

A wine list consisting of purely regional Italian wines, beers and liqueurs, all carefully chosen to complement the menu comes as no surprise and in addition, every table receives a complimentary bottle of purified water.

For further details including their latest news, menus and deals, and to find a Strada nearest to you, their Website certainly warrants a visit.

Offering a welcome haven at the heart of the Parade, Zizzi Leamington Spa serves contemporary Italian cuisine in a warm, relaxing setting. Serving a range of delicious pizza and pasta dishes, the restaurant's convenient location, close to both the Royal and the Apollo Cinemas, makes it an ideal spot for a quick meal before or after a film.

Zizzi is also just a short walk from the popular Leamington Pump Rooms while the Loft Theatre is just a little further.

The restaurant's bustling open kitchen turns out a wide range of freshly prepared, tasty fare. The extensive à la carte offers traditional antipasti, pizza, pasta and salads, as well as seasonally changing meat and fish dishes with a variety of tempting desserts to finish.

Zizzi's special antipasti platter has mixed Italian meats with buffalo milk mozzarella, marinated sun-dried tomatoes, mixed olives and red onion focaccia bread. There's also choice of arancini, crispy risotto balls stuffed with mozzarella and peas and served with a tomato chilli sauce as well as gnocchi gorgonzola, potato dumplings in a creamy gorgonzola and spinach sauce seasoned with nutmeg and black pepper, setting the tone for a hearty meal.

For a delicious pasta or risotto choose between penne vodka, king prawns, chilli, peas and Grana Padano in a creamy tomato and vodka sauce; ravioli di capra, goat's cheese and spinach ravioli served with tomato sauce and topped with pesto and pine nuts; zucca e pancetta, pumpkin, pancetta, spinach, sage and Grana Padano topped with mascarpone and rigatoni con pollo e funghi, chicken in a tomato, onion, rosemary and mushroom sauce. Gluten-free pasta is also available on request.

If you prefer a pizza, then you could try Zizzi's speciality pizza rustica, which couples extra thin and crispy bases with a range of toppings such as bufala, buffalo mozzarella with sunblush tomatoes, basil, rocket and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil or mare e monti, one half topped with tiger prawn, courgette and mozzarella and the other with spicy sausage, tomato sauce and chilli, all finished off with a rocket and crème fraîche. The carne piccante calzone has marinated chicken, meatballs, Bolognese sauce, mushrooms, chillies, tomato and mozzarella while the clarissa version, has aubergine, and red pepper caponata, olives, goats' cheese, rocket, pine nuts, tomato and mozzarella. Zizzi's calzon'pizzas, half calzone and half pizza, add an interesting twist to the meal.
 
Sumptuous mains include agnello con peperonata, roasted lamb shank served with basil, roasted vegetables and a little pot of potatoes with tomato, red onion and Grana Padano; duck arrosto, slow roasted whole duck leg in a balsamic, olive and pancetta reduction served with Tuscan potatoes and green beans; and sea bass al vino, sea bass pan fried with wine, garlic and baby plum tomatoes and served with herby potatoes.

The scrumptious dessert list offers torta cioccolata with its thick hazelnut chocolate base topped with rich chocolate torte and served with vanilla mascarpone; homemade tiramisu; creamy vanilla pannacotta with fruit compote and torta Zizzi, an almond-based plum and fig tart topped with pistachios and icing sugar and served with gelato.

The wine list is dominated by a range of Italian wines from regions such as Veneto, Lazio, Sicily, Tuscany and Lombardy. Also on offer is an assortment of beers, and spirits as well as a range of soft and hot drinks.

More information can be found on their Website.

You can find The Newbold tucked away on Newbold Street, conveniently located for the historic Pump Rooms, Jephson Gardens and the Spa Centre and only a short stroll away from the hustle and bustle of Royal Leamington Spa. Already recognised as a well established and highly regarded pub and restaurant, the new owners, Anton and Gaynor Thorpe have introduced a fresh approach to The Newbold - following on from their success at The Plough Inn at Eathorpe.

The focus of this gastropub lies in providing quality home cooked food which is sourced locally and priced sensibly. From the à la carte, starters could include deep fried breaded whitebait with homemade tartare sauce followed by a hearty smothered rump 8 oz steak topped with mushrooms and onions sautéed in garlic butter and topped with melted Stilton. The whole Newbold experience is complemented by a carefully chosen drinks list, comprising of both New and Old World wines, while they also serve a selection of well kept traditional ales as well as modern beers and lagers.