Now that David Bowie has shuffled off this mortal coil, the memory of him will surely eventually fade away. But for old codgers like us, there is no greater shorthand for reinvention than the conceiver of the Thin White Duke and Ziggy Stardust. And, just as the erstwhile David... Read more
Has Newport reached ‘peak coffee shop’? Back in 2015 we wondered this in our review of the then brand-new Coffee Room at Skintrade. People probably asked the same question when the venerable God’s Providence House opened its doors back in the last century – yet seemingly the demand for... Read more
Social media coverage has been blamed for a lot of things – election results, disgraced politicians, a decline in educational standards – but one thing that the coming of Instagram can most certainly take credit for is the the advent of beautiful food. Yes chefs, if your dishes look... Read more
This is an archive review. Courtside Cafe is currently closed. Anyone who keeps an eye on the Isle of Wight County Press will note that, following our favourable review of the Woodman’s Arms, Gordon Pollard from Sandown was compelled to put pen to paper. He complained about our analogy... Read more
We often reminisce about Brading Waxworks. This much-loved tourist attraction closed in 2010, after 45 years. Tantalisingly, if it had hung on just a few more seasons, we reckon it might have seen its fortunes turn. After all, these days post-ironic tourism is big business, and goodness knows the... Read more
ARCHIVE REVIEW: Original Phil’s is now closed. We’ve got the idea that at some point, way back, we actually met the original Original Phil. Or maybe we dreamt it. Anyway, he’s long gone, but the diner that bears his name has been doing the Island’s best impression of an... Read more
The Island’s tourism organisation Visit Isle of Wight never misses a trick. Going large in its inaugural year it capitalised on the enduring popularity of ‘terrible lizards’ with a Walking with Dinosaurs tie-in, based around interactive augmented reality meteorites. This was followed up with a Transformers: Age of Extinction... Read more
We were pretty much on the doorstep the day the Garlic Farm Cafe opened in 2009 and had a lovely lunch. Our one gripe way back then was “The menu unexpectedly made no mention of local produce – other than the farm’s own chutney – and hardly any of... Read more
We’ve long wondered about the mysterious circumflex at Shêd, in Bembridge. Does it indicate some exotic influence? Or imply some strange pronunciation that only those in the know could deliver correctly? Well, don’t get your hopes up because we still don’t know. In fact, by the time we got... Read more
For a county surrounded by water there are surprisingly few beach-side eateries on the Isle of Wight. Those venues lucky enough to be within a nostril’s length of salty air generally capitalise on their sea view – and why wouldn’t they? A refreshing cool beverage on a sunny terrace... Read more
