Restaurant-Guide.com
hand picked restaurants

Blackpool is enjoying something of a renaissance more recently, and whilst the reputation for bright and breezy is never too far away - and why should it not be - there is now a wider spread of expectations from those who come to enjoy this icon of British seaside entertainment.

ToasT Cafe Bar and Grill Restaurant sets out to meet these head on, offering something for everybody, with a Taste Lancashire Quality Assured award to demonstrate their success in so doing. Located in Corporation Street Toast is not far from the Grand Theatre, Blackpool's famous Tower and the Winter Gardens, and close enough to the city centre nightlife if it's the clubs and bars you are after later in the evening.

As with most things in Blackpool, there's nothing particularly formal about ToasT. Most people are there to enjoy and relax, and escaping from formality is high on the list. So too is the freshly cooked food, the ingredients for which are sourced locally wherever possible.

One of the delights of being away from home on holiday is the relaxed breakfast prepared for you by somebody else and at ToasT it's on offer all day, so no risk of feeling deprived if you're a late riser. A Lancashire rarebit to start the day is made from Bowland Cheddar cheese and bacon, and baked beans are the product of Mr Heinz, so have that extra zing factor.

Later in the day the speciality sandwiches such as chicken Club triple decker do more than just fill a gap, and different types of more conventional sandwich keep all tastes happy. Toast is a place where imagination is positively encouraged amongst both customers and staff. More substantial dishes might include the highly popular beer battered haddock and chips, with fresh fish from nearby Fleetwood, chilli con carne and a delightful steak and ale pie, the meat slow-cooked for full flavour and tenderness.

Amongst the burgers look out for the Blue and Black version, a 6oz steak seasoned with Cajun spices and topped with blue cheese. Plenty of pasta dishes have salmon and prawn, tomato and basil or tuna and sweetcorn amongst their constituents, and light bites of loaded potato skins, prawn cocktail and lamb koftas are also popular.

Every day from 5pm ToasT shifts mode, with the emphasis on an à la carte menu that offers more elaborate dishes such as blackened salmon, apricot pork, Bowland lamb shoulder and a nice range of tapas, fast becoming one of Britain's established must-haves.

A well annotated wine list offers a good range by the glass and a French house selection that gives full value for money. The net is well cast with Argentina, South Africa, Italy and California all included. Service is of the sort given by staff who are clearly valued and trained, and as a result enjoy their work, hence well-pleased customers.

Do check on their Website for special events, menu changes and other details.

Bella Italia is a restaurant that pulsates with Italian style and fashion, where the day starts with breakfast, not least the Inglese, the familiar bacon, sausage, mushroom, tomato and fried or scrambled eggs and sauté potatoes with ciabatta toast so beloved of hearty eaters seeking a good start to the day, particularly when they don't have to prepare it. A vegetarian option is available, along with the bambini of sausages, tomato and scrambled egg, or a strapazzata, scrambled eggs on ciabatta toast. A cappuccino or hot chocolate offers a more gentle awakening and croissant or pastries are welcome at almost any time.

It is always worth remembering that eating Italian is a great opportunity to work away through something rather more liberating than the conventional 3 course English meal. Little and often seems to be the motto but move on to the antipasti and it's immediately obvious this is no easy task, confronted with well over a dozen dishes, not one of which you really have the heart to turn down. The selezione classica assembles a few of the favourite starters; oven baked lemon and rosemary chicken wings, spiced meatballs, calamari, mini garlic butter-filled calzoni and lightly battered courgettes served with flamed pepper and lemon herb dips.

A speck e rucola pizza, added to a traditional margherita brings together two traditions with Italian speck ham providing the second, but it is within the pasta and risotto dishes that you can adapt almost any main ingredient, as well enjoy some of Italy's most traditional treats. Who can deny a well formed spaghetti Bolognese or penne Marco Polo? And not for nothing is a nicely prepared spaghetti carbonara the preferred dish of many.

From a selection of five choices amongst the secondi many will head unerringly for controfiletto ai ferri, a 7oz sirloin steak char-grilled to preference and served with garlic butter, roast field mushrooms, fries and rocket, or the fritto misto, lightly battered prawns, cod fillet, calamari and courgette with fries and a herb lemon and caper dip.

Could anything be more appropriate than The Godfather, for 1 or 2 naturally, with nutty chocolate fudge brownies, vanilla and toffee ice cream with chocolate sauce, fresh cream and wafer curls, and rest assured the coffee will do justice to the meal.

With a wine list that makes few concessions to other countries - and why should it - good Italian food can receive an equally national baptism by wine. For further enlightenment, news about their on-line shop and special deals, a click on their lively Website will reveal all.

The Beefeater Grill range of restaurants, owned by the well established firm of Whitbread has transformed over time into what is now predominantly a cooking platform for chargrill. The restaurants are warm, modern and stylish, with low lighting and contemporary artwork. A comfortable, cosy, mainly booth layout offers guests their own space with no feeling of being hurried at any point. Staff are friendly and helpful if need be - what a difference that can make to a good evening out.

Be it the wide open spaces of Argentina, the intimate setting of a French restaurant, or a busy grill in London's West End, there's no denying the popularity of chargrill. As the production of quality beef, chicken, fish and lamb has grown, prices have come down by comparison, and the simple and traditional art of minimally cooking dishes by chargrill, sealing in the flavours and tastes by intense heat has caught the public imagination.

All the steaks at Beefeater Grill are matured for a minimum of 28 days before being seasoned. Whether it be juicy rib eye, the classic sirloin, that emblem of the Sunday lunch, a tender fillet, or a delicious 7oz rump, all grilled to your own specification, you're never far away from perfection. Even beefburgers have shaken off their dubious image and the highly popular Beefeater burgers are made from 100% beef.

The popular sirloin with giant prawns offers a treat to those for whom an alliance between sea and pasture is a natural attraction, whilst a 16oz steak platter links rump, fillet, sirloin and rib eye into one mouth-watering dish served with chips, battered onion rings, grilled tomato, a flat mushroom and peppercorn and brandy sauce.

Many of us love rib meat, and the rack of ribs at a Beefeater Grill has a meaty rack smoky flavour; maple ribs of pork with a choice of three sauces, mojito, smoked caramel and apple glaze, or Bourbon and black BBQ. And if all else fails and you are totally baffled by the wealth of choices, ask to have a word with the Steakmaster who will help find what is right for you, together with the best cooking method. These guys leave nothing to chance.

On a menu that is a delight to read, let alone choose a meal from, expect to find smaller dishes such as traditional prawn cocktail, whitebait, chicken liver pâté and baked Camembert, or juicy lamb koftas served with yoghurt and mint dip. There's something about a good steak meal that always leaves a gap for a little temptation to sweeten up the scene and from amongst twelve options look for Belgian chocolate cheesecake, treacle sponge pudding or a caramel apple crumble pie.

Throughout the day a wide range of more general dishes are yours for the ordering, sandwiches, jackets, classic favourites like fish and chips, pasta, salads, and sharing dishes of nachos, potato shells and a Beefeater Grill combo. Next door to many of the restaurants are Premier Inns, so staying the night whatever the circumstances need not be a problem.

And what about wine? Endorsed by Matthew Jukes, wine writer in the Daily Mail and bon viveur in his own right, a wine list that marches with the menu completes an impressive and compelling invitation to enjoy whatever takes your fancy at the nearest Beefeater Grill.

Click on their Website for menu updates and special offers.

Bella Italia is a restaurant that pulsates with Italian style and fashion, where the day starts with breakfast, not least the Inglese, the familiar bacon, sausage, mushroom, tomato and fried or scrambled eggs and sauté potatoes with ciabatta toast so beloved of hearty eaters seeking a good start to the day, particularly when they don't have to prepare it. A vegetarian option is available, along with the bambini of sausages, tomato and scrambled egg, or a strapazzata, scrambled eggs on ciabatta toast. A cappuccino or hot chocolate offers a more gentle awakening and croissant or pastries are welcome at almost any time.

It is always worth remembering that eating Italian is a great opportunity to work away through something rather more liberating than the conventional 3 course English meal. Little and often seems to be the motto but move on to the antipasti and it's immediately obvious this is no easy task, confronted with well over a dozen dishes, not one of which you really have the heart to turn down. The selezione classica assembles a few of the favourite starters; oven baked lemon and rosemary chicken wings, spiced meatballs, calamari, mini garlic butter-filled calzoni and lightly battered courgettes served with flamed pepper and lemon herb dips.

A speck e rucola pizza, added to a traditional margherita brings together two traditions with Italian speck ham providing the second, but it is within the pasta and risotto dishes that you can adapt almost any main ingredient, as well enjoy some of Italy's most traditional treats. Who can deny a well formed spaghetti Bolognese or penne Marco Polo? And not for nothing is a nicely prepared spaghetti carbonara the preferred dish of many.

From a selection of five choices amongst the secondi many will head unerringly for controfiletto ai ferri, a 7oz sirloin steak char-grilled to preference and served with garlic butter, roast field mushrooms, fries and rocket, or the fritto misto, lightly battered prawns, cod fillet, calamari and courgette with fries and a herb lemon and caper dip.

Could anything be more appropriate than The Godfather, for 1 or 2 naturally, with nutty chocolate fudge brownies, vanilla and toffee ice cream with chocolate sauce, fresh cream and wafer curls, and rest assured the coffee will do justice to the meal.

With a wine list that makes few concessions to other countries - and why should it - good Italian food can receive an equally national baptism by wine. For further enlightenment, news about their on-line shop and special deals, a click on their lively Website will reveal all.

Brewer's Fayre restaurants offer a warm welcome to those who want a reliably tasty meal in pleasant surroundings, with plenty of choice, minimal fuss and friendly service. With a reputation going back 25 years they should have a fair chance of doing that, but don't take our word for it. Give them a try and see if you agree that this is how good quality pub food should be served.

Whether it's snacks, grills, pub classics, fish, Sunday roasts or side dishes they think their way through the options, talk to their guests, and then come up with the goods. Not everybody wants a full meal so they've considered the needs of those who want to keep the gap filled and the children contented, perhaps on a journey or a day out.

Hot filled baguettes are always popular be it sausage and red onion or a classic chicken club sandwich. Jacket potatoes are good on their own but filled with mature cheddar cheese and beans they take on a new dimension.

More paced occasions demand a wide menu, perhaps with starters of breaded butterfly prawns, chicken goujons or breaded camembert bites. Grills are there for the hungry and whole rack of meaty BBQ pork ribs served with extra sauce, chips and coleslaw can be very welcome. The days of the mixed grill are back - or did they ever go away - a 4oz rump steak, two pork sausages, and a gammon steak topped with a fried egg served with all the trimmings will remind you if they did.

Salmon and prawn fishcakes are served with buttered new potatoes, tartare sauce and a lightly dressed salad. A combination of sea and land comes with a rump steak, whole grilled chicken breast and breaded breaded butterfly prawns, served with chips and a side salad or garden peas.

The rise of eating out in pubs has brought into our daily lives a whole legion of what might be termed 'pub classics'. Many of them have their roots in what used to be called 'good home cooking' and include such dishes as sausage, egg and chips, beef and ale pie, chicken and mushroom pie and for the very daring a beef lasagne. Well, all of them and many more are on the menu at Brewer's Fayre, supplemented by such new regulars as vegetable Goan chicken curry, pork chop, chilli con carne and grilled chicken and bacon salad.

It has often been said that chicken tikka masala is now the most popular dish in Britain. Some may not really want to believe that, much as they love curry, but travel, population movement and other factors have widened our scope and they are probably pretty keen on fish and chips in Timbuktu.

What is certain is that the great British Sunday roast is exclusive to these islands, though copied maybe elsewhere or in ex-pat outposts. No surprise therefore that it's on the Brewer's Fayre menu. A trade of three roasts with an opportunity to trade up to a mega roast for a modest sum. With it come two Yorkshire puddings, roast potatoes, fresh seasonal vegetables and that important element - gravy.

A fine list of immensely tempting desserts may well bring the most ardent weight-watcher to their knees. A short but well thought out wine list offers all choices, except champagne, by the glass. Staying the night - check to see if there's a Premier Inn next door - chances are you'll be lucky.

A quick click on their Website is always worth while. The only thing that stays still permanently is the quality which is helped by a changing menu, and some very special offers.

Frankie and Benny's combine classic American and Italian in both style and cuisine. They specialise in home style cooking 'just like Mamma used to make it'. This is a great place to take the entire family and represents excellent value for money. The restaurant and bar is suitable for any occasion, whether it's a leisurely lunch, a family meal or a fantastic evening with friends - they make sure you have a wonderful time.

Walking into the restaurant is like stepping back into 1950s New York, from the clatter and chatter of the open kitchen to the bottle lined bar. Walls with black and white family photographs showing life in Brooklyn's 'Little Italy' surround cosy booth seating and tables. Combined with the classic music of the fifties, a mix of American swing and beat, they definitely provide a fun and friendly atmosphere for all to enjoy.

Frankie and Benny's offers starters, main courses and delicious desserts, and favourites include char-grilled burgers, pizzas, pastas, steaks and house specialities such as chicken parmigiana, BBQ ribs, lamb shank and much more. The bar serves a wide range of beers, wines, spirits, cocktails and soft drinks.

Start with sticky wings, crispy coated chicken strips, tiger prawn skewer or Frankie's fried calamari and if you are dining in a group choose the giant sampler platter. The pastas, calzone and pizzas are all made freshly on order. An interesting dish on the menu is a the Boston 7 speciality pizza fully loaded with slices of pork meatballs, spicy pepperoni, ham, crispy bacon, chicken, peppers and red onion, served on a BBQ sauce base. They also serve a variety of sandwiches and burgers throughout the day.

A good value lunch menu is available on weekdays from 11am until 5pm offering a range of popular dishes from the main carte with one course at £5.95, two courses at £7.95 and three courses at £8.95.

For children up to the age of eleven, an all-inclusive menu features a selection of main courses, desserts and drinks starting at £3.95. As an added treat, they'll also receive an activity pack to entertain them whilst you eat.

Enjoy an American Italian meal at Frankie and Benny's with freshly prepared food and warm hospitality that makes you feel right at home.