Adjacent to (and part of) The Old Ground Hotel, this lovely café-bistro has a separate street entrance and, despite the historic setting, it has a contemporary feel.
The old town hall has been well restored and this high-ceilinged room makes an impressive restaurant with sensitively spare decor - large art works provide a dramatic backdrop, especially in when candlelit at night - and big plant pots and simple table settings allow the room to speak for itself.
Daytime menus offer a mixture of modern bistro-style dishes and delicious café/ tea-room fare which is laid out temptingly just inside the entrance. You can have something as simple as a cup of coffee and a freshly baked scone or a slice of delicious cake - or choose from an appealing range of savoury dishes.
You'll find light dishes (such as a crabmeat and salmon paté with a granny smith salad and lime mayonnaise), healthy salads (pan fried lambs livers on a beetroot, red onion & parsnip salad perhaps), old favourites (like chargrilled pork cutlet on the bone, with Clonakilty sweet potato, mushroom & thyme ragout and bearnaise sauce) and hearty sandwiches (typically tomato bread with brie, Parma ham & rocket leaves). Imaginative, wholesome and well-priced, this is just the kind of food people need to re-charge during a day's shopping. Desserts, from a daily selection, are always tempting.
Sundays bring a completely different menu, with an emphasis on seafood, steaks and roasts.
In the evening, this characterful room is transformed into an atmospheric restaurant, with candlelit tables set up to create a wonderful ambience for dinner, when an appealing à la carte menu is offered
Fish features heavily, perhaps with five on the starters list - including the popular Town Hall seafood crumble with fennel purée and spinach – and four on the mains. However, carnivores need not worry as there’s a choice between sirloin steak with onion rings and fries and crusted pan-fried Clare lamb cutlets with rosti potato and ratatouille tomato.
The food is tasty and portions are generous, so dessert lovers may need to think about this when ordering main courses.
Offering reliably good food in an atmospheric setting - and good service from pleasant staff - this should be an enjoyable experience all round.
