Category: Bembridge and St Helens
Windmill Inn, Bembridge
Back in 2007, Matt and Cat had an unforgettable meal at The Windmill Inn in Bembridge.

It was memorable for all the wrong reasons, and it has taken them five years to venture back into the wide doors of the Windmill to see if things have improved. Thankfully, they have; although in all honesty it might have been hard not to.
It would be a cliché to suggest that Bembridge is populated by the legions of the grey. Certainly on the weekday lunchtime that Matt and Cat visited, they did see a disproportionate number of oldies, but the children would have been at school and anyone of working age would have been - well, at work. However, there are still a conspicuous few who mount their mobility scooters or fire up the 1992 Nissan Micra (5,000 miles since new, one careful owner with backless gloves and a Motability grant) and journeying down Bembridge’s gentle decline, end up at the Windmill Inn.
3144 views
Categories: We like, Restaurants, Pub Grub, Bembridge and St Helens
Lockslane, Bembridge
Matt and Cat pride themselves on not having a clue. No, really, it’s important.

They’ve never worked in the catering industry and can’t cook anything more complicated than a casserole, and they know little about wine, meat or famous restaurants. Not watching the television much means they don’t know what celebrity chefs are up to - nor do they care. What they do care about is good food well served. Every time Matt and Cat walk into a new venue, they assess it, insofar as they can, based on what happens there and then. Because that’s what matters, isn’t it? It’s the experience that is delivered on the night - preconceptions have to be left at the door.
A pleasing side-effect of this policy of wilful ignorance is that Matt and Cat are often surprised by a restaurant. Sometimes they find a great venue unexpectedly and get to praise it highly. Less often they find a terrible one and have the mixed pleasure of telling their readers about it. Either way it keeps them entertained.
Matt and Cat certainly had fun the night they visited a little café in Bembridge with some chums. Lockslane, which opened in early 2012 in the former Café Maya, is described as ‘Lockslane Contemporary Bistro’. Wondering if it would be like the much-vaunted Dan's Kitchen in nearby St Helens or maybe keep to the previous incumbent's wholesome and modest approach to catering, Matt and Cat knew there was really only one way to find out.
3932 views
Categories: Restaurants, We love!, Bembridge and St Helens, Local produce
Dan's Kitchen, St Helens
Back in the day it was pro-celebrity golf and Superstars that satiated our desire to see famous people undertaking feats of endurance.

These days the TV spews out task-based fodder such as I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here, and if you’re a fan you’ll know that half - if not all - of the pleasure is anticipating the cast. Will your favourite soap star be compelled to dangle from a zip-wire? Will the producers manage to persuade a minor royal, an international movie legend and disgraced MP to throw dignity to the wind?
The razzmatazz surrounding such shows ensures that, almost always, the anticipation is better than the results. Sometimes, a visit to a restaurant is the same. Having heard so many rave comments about Dan’s Kitchen in St Helen’s, Matt and Cat were keen to see if it lived up to the hype. After several attempts to secure a booking, they finally made their way through this new restaurant’s door. So, was their experience an anti-climax, like the presence of teen haircut Frankie Coccozza on Channel Five’s Celebrity Big Brother, or was it a rollicking good night - the equivalent of Prince Harry on BBC1's Strictly Come Dancing?
4102 views
Categories: We like, Restaurants, Bembridge and St Helens, Local produce
Priory Bay Hotel, Seaview
Matt and Cat aren’t paid to review eateries; they don’t get their meals for free and never announce their arrival to a venue prior to sitting down to eat.

Having chosen this hobby they are happy to bear the brunt of any expense that occurs. But some places are more expensive than others, and usually - although not always - these are the really nice ones. Matt and Cat have to ration themselves, so they were pleased when they had amassed enough dough to review another top-rank place.
Having eviscerated the Matt and Cat piggy bank, your reviewers booked a table at that exclusive celebrity retreat the Priory Bay Hotel to round off what had been a fabulous Bank Holiday weekend. This historic venue had been on Matt and Cat’s ‘must do’ list for simply ages and they were delighted to finally make their way up the long drive to the impressive hotel in its glorious setting.
Visit the website: http://www.priorybay.com/
4826 views
Categories: We like, Restaurants, Bembridge and St Helens, Local produce, Hotels
Baywatch on the Beach
You don't need Matt and Cat to tell you, but they will anyway - the Isle of Wight is a really great place.

They love living here and particularly enjoy the varied scenery and disparate local cultures. From the chalky downs and county set to the twiddly coastline with its yachties there's something for everyone - unless you like miles of "boring landscape", in which case you can go to Hull.
One of the pleasures of eating out for a hobby on the Island is that whatever mood you are in, and whatever location you fancy, there'll be an eatery that ticks those particular boxes. Whether or not it's actually a good place to eat can depend on a host of factors, some of which may have naff all to do with the restaurant itself. Such as if, like Cat, you'd unexpectedly had a plate of irresistible food and then gone out to dinner with a full stomach. Noob mistake.
In a month that had seen them eat in a variety of seaside places: indulging at one of the Island's poshest venues; enjoying a sunset dinner with pals and nibbling seafood at the Old Gaffers, Matt and Cat thought they'd round it all off with a revisit to the Baywatch on the Beach. First reviewed in 2006, this third trip was prompted by a succession of increasingly negative comments from visitors to the venue who had chosen to express their disappointment on this website. With so many seemingly disgruntled customers Matt and Cat decided to give the place another go.
6552 views
Categories: We don't like, Restaurants, Cafes, Take aways, Family friendly, Bembridge and St Helens



Recent comments