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hand picked restaurants

Mujib of Ellesmere Port serves food from Bangladesh and India, in a comfortable and pleasing restaurant. The location is ideal to take the family, friends or even that special someone for a meal.
 
The well-executed menu features authentic Bangladeshi staples with a global touch, alongside regional classics for the less adventurous and organic vegetarian options. Diners might find it hard to choose from their extensive list of mouth-watering dishes, but it all makes sense once the food arrives at the table.

'Unashamedly bourgeois, eccentric, original and quintessentially English', that's Frogg Manor, an enjoyable Englishman's home in south western Cheshire. A human-size frog, one of several hundred, and wearing a polka dot tie leads visitors to the hotel. Don't worry if you dislike frogs; the lovely surroundings, lavish Georgian and Victorian furniture, and musical recordings from the thirties and forties should put you in a great mood.

The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner, seven days a week, but only by prior reservation. The restaurant conservatory affords stunning views of the garden and at night, when floodlit with the table lights dimmed, makes the mood very romantic indeed.

When it comes to the food, an exciting gourmet menu offers dishes such as potted brown shrimps, smoked halibut; steamed black pudding topped with a lightly poached egg, hearty beef stroganoff or fillet, and roasted chicken breast with cabbage, bacon, creamed potato and sage jus. The puddings could include baked apple, sticky toffee and bread and butter.

Consider spending time in the lounge bar or party room after dinner.

It's bright, it's vivacious and it epitomises Italy perfectly, bringing you a lovely and continental setting, right here in the UK. Chic and modern elements fuse seamlessly with traditional charm and classic brasserie feel, and what you get is an ambience that resonates with a vibrant and contemporary buzz. The food is simply some of the best you can have outside Italy, and the fresh and superb quality ingredients along with the Neapolitan wood stone oven, makes sure that every dish is turned out authentically.

The fritto misto with fried squid, king prawn, asparagus and roasted garlic mayonnaise is a great way to begin, and crispy duck with honey roasted apples and Valpolicella red wine sauce makes a delicious main course. Pasta options are plentiful with favourites such as spaghetti carbonara and tagliatelle alla Bolognese; dessert includes the refreshing baked vanilla cheesecake with citrus blueberries.

Predominantly Italian, the wine list at Piccolino offers a number of choices alongside spirits and liqueurs.

Pizza Express remains a hugely popular bedrock of casual eating. Its popularity is testimony to the fact that across the country, they have restaurants where you will always be guaranteed a good nosh, with children's tastes being well catered for.

Pizza Express has gone even more Roman, and following the success of that particular example of listening to their public have introduced Romana pizzas, including the scorching Etna and the hearty Siciliana.

These pizzas are now thinner, bigger and crispier, and if that sounds like a marketing line, it is. However, unlike many such lines, this one is true, and their quality is always consistent, though cleverly they have still managed to retain a homemade feel to their pizzas.

As an alternative to pizza, try their pollo pesto - cavatappi pasta with torn chicken breast, mushrooms, red onions and mozzarella in a creamy gruyere, parmesan and pesto sauce and finished with grana padano - or the niçoise salad with mixed leaves, yellowfin tuna, free range egg, green beans, potatoes and tomatoes with olives, anchovies, capers and house dressing.

Many of the big chains have come a long way, and Pizza Express is certainly amongst them. One of the first to be quoted on the Stock Exchange - in 1993 - Pizza Express is not a franchise operation and retains tight control through its own staff.

Their wine list - though short - contains some surprisingly good offerings, especially their intense Australian Chardonnay, and a big, full-bodied Merlot from Cusumano, Sicilia.

Slug and Lettuce has a chain of almost a hundred bars spread across the country sharing a common love of serving down to earth, undemanding food and drink.

The group prides itself on offering dishes prepared using quality ingredients, and you should be attended on by attentive staff in a safe, welcoming and cheerful environment. The Slugs have something for anyone - breakfast for a lively start to the day, lunch for busy people, family meals or even a relaxing glass of wine to bring a tiring day to an end - all in a variety of modern and stylish settings.

The menu features old time English favourites such as Gloucestershire Old Spot sausages in buttered mash or fish pie made with Dartmouth smokehouse haddock, in a Devon cream and leek sauce, although dishes look to Europe and further afield to Asia for inspiration. A good way to start the enjoyment is by sharing platters of Southern fried chicken breast pieces, crispy potato wedges, garlic ciabatta strips, half a rack of BBQ pork ribs, wasabi vegetables with onion rings or some Greek mezze

Hearty steak pies, Thai curry with sticky jasmine rice or butternut squash with goats' cheese lasagne are amongst the more popular main dishes. Sandwiches or wraps - warm tortilla with chicken and Parmesan or aromatic duck in plum sauce - provide for those who prefer something lighter. They also serve burgers as well as tempting salads like salmon, asparagus or tomato and mozzarella. For children they have good old British standby sausage and mash, or pepper pasta and ketchup among other choices, all of which never fail to delight, particularly as some of them seem to have come out of a certain celebrity chef's Book of Forbidden Dishes.

Desserts appear in the form of raspberry biscotti, hot chocolate pudding or a creamy strawberry cheesesake. The wine list is well compiled and substantial. There are not less than seven French, three from Italy and some from Spain, Chile, Australia as well as New Zealand. Slug and Lettuce can cater for events including birthday parties, fashion shows, hen nights, wedding parties or just an enjoyable night out with a few friends.