Brothers Fish and Chips, Brading
9th June 2008 6
Brothers fish and chip shop, in Brading, is a novelty on the Island: a chip shop which is not on the beach – or even near it. Hence, like Brading itself, it has much of the charm of a quiet rural town, and is rarely overtaken by hordes of... Read more
Archive review: the Tollgate is now renamed and under new management Even when driving on the Island’s quiet rural roads, it is easy to be overwhelmed with highways signage and, in the towns this pervasive blight is so ubiquitous that the messages merge and homogenise, ceasing to be of... Read more
Caffè Isola, Newport
7th June 2008 1
It sometimes seems that the installation of the eating classes on pavements is the solution to all society’s ills. With tedious regularity politicians and commentators can be heard praising the ‘café culture’ of the continent – where young couples sit at tables scattered casually around the piazzas, generating economic... Read more
The Square, Newport
11th May 2008 1
What a continental sight; Newport’s St Thomas Square on a hot day. The farmer’s market was in full swing, lunchtime drinkers – and smokers – were crowding the tables outside the Wheatsheaf, and Matt and Cat had plonked themselves down at a jammy table outside a little pasty shop... Read more
Archive review: The Countryman, Limerstone
Uncategorised 8th May 2008
This is an archive review. The Countryman is now closed. Matt and Cat’s home town of Ryde is positively bursting with places to eat and they’ve tried an awful lot of them. The advantage of such a densely resourced place is that if you don’t like the look of... Read more
Baan Thai, Cowes
5th May 2008 7
There seems to be a formula to calculate the number of oriental restaurants in any given area – if you know the number of Indian restaurants, you can assume a similar number of Chinese ones, and, aggregating these two, once you reach a certain number, sure enough there will... Read more
Mottistone Manor Tea Garden
4th May 2008 1
The Isle of Wight is a wonderful place to live and a Bank Holiday weekend is a great excuse to mess about doing touristy things like visiting a National Trust property and having tea in its sumptuous gardens. Fortunately, there is no shortage of pretty villages and tea shops... Read more
Town Choice, Newport
4th May 2008 2
Newport is stuffed to bursting with eateries. Sit down venues, vertical eating places, chip shops, coffee shops, pubs, clubs, doughnut bars and pizza parlours. And, judging by the longevity of some of these places, there is obviously good business to be had feeding the hungry of the Island’s capital.... Read more
Boathouse, Springvale
1st May 2008 34
This is an archive review of a previous incarnation of The Boathouse. For the current review go here. The Boathouse – and Matt and Cat’s previous remarks about it – has proven to be one of the talking points of this website. See the bottom of the page for... Read more
Archive review: China China, Bembridge
Uncategorised 17th April 2008
This is an archive review. China China has now closed down and is replaced by the Lu Shan. Somebody once said that the average age of the Isle of Wight’s population could be significantly altered by the flooding of the east and west yar rivers; making the county the... Read more