Off the Rails, Yarmouth
Uncategorised 7th September 2014 6
The question that Matt and Cat most often hear is “Are you guys really fat?”. Well, aside from the fact that Cat is not a ‘guy’, the answer is well – no, maybe yes, in places (mostly restaurants). While Matt is content to lean back in his chair and... Read more
Adgestone Vineyard
Uncategorised 6th September 2014 2
People on the Isle of Wight have long, long memories – and unforgiving ones. Matt and Cat have heard tales of folks who have vowed never to revisit a particular establishment after a single disappointing experience – and cling to that simple principle for so long that generations later... Read more
Elderflower, Lymington
Uncategorised 26th August 2014 0
Matt and Cat recently twanged their umbilicus enough to take a trip to the delightful town of Lymington – Hampshires answer to Cowes, with its quaint thoroughfares, yachticulture and quayside amenities. They popped over to have lunch in the towns newest fine dining venue, the Elderflower restaurant, invited by... Read more
Tony’s, Ryde
Uncategorised 6th August 2014 7
It’s not the rarest of occasions, the opening of a new fish and chip outlet in a seaside town. Frankly, it happens pretty regularly. Some chippies stay the course for decades – or in the case of Stotesbury’s, Newport, over a century. But whenever new hands take up the... Read more
Tramezzini at the Wellington Hotel
Uncategorised 5th August 2014 2
Anyone who has been to Ventnor recently will have been impressed with how the town has picked itself out of economic malaise. Where once were junk shops and empty windows, now there are coffee bars, emporia and restaurants. And even though 2012s Arts Festival-goers heard a particularly impassioned discourse... Read more
Archive review: Urban Diner, Newport
Uncategorised 14th July 2014
This is an archive review. Urban Diner is now closed. Ah bless the Isle of Wight, so steadfastly stuck in the middle ages. Or at least the middle of the twentieth century, if you believe the laziest of stereotypes. No, you dont need a passport. Yes, there is a... Read more
Smokehouse Burger Company
Uncategorised 7th July 2014 5
2014 will go down in history as the year the Isle of Wight was served its last bender in a bun. Local businessman and franchisee Wayne Whittle removed the final Wimpy sign at his beachside burger bar, and rebranded the venue The Big Kahuna. And thus all things pass.... Read more
Wildwood Pizza
Uncategorised 26th May 2014 4
As your grandmother will tell you, people have been selling nosh from barrows since before the war. In fact, since before the war before that, and the war before that. So all those bearded hipsters who try to tell you that the street food revolution started with some sockless... Read more
The Royal China, Sandown
Uncategorised 13th May 2014 1
It’s something that Matt and Cat have sometimes pondered – what gives a place the name ‘Royal’? It seems to imply some sort of royal presence or patronage, but is this title actually something that anywhere could adopt without censure? Apparently not in the case of the short-lived rebranding... Read more
Archive: Malcolm Alder-Smith returns to The Hambrough
Uncategorised 29th April 2014 2
By Malcolm Alder-Smith, Island chef and author and guest contributor to Matt and Cat’s Isle of Wight Eating Out Guide. Classically trained as a chef by French, Italian and Swiss master chefs, Malcy trains UKSA Marine Hospitality students in the kitchens of The Isle of Wight College; and is... Read more
