Olivo, Ryde
16th June 2009 45
What glorious weather the Isle of Wight enjoyed in early June! Good job too, as otherwise the music festival would have been a wash-out and Seaclose Park remodelled as a quagmire to rival last year’s Bestival mudbath. Making the most of the sunshine, M and C put on their... Read more
Springvale Hotel and Restaurant, Springvale
17th May 2009 3
Matt and Cat have made several false-starts when attempting to review the food at the Springvale Hotel and Restaurant. Being in their manor, the venue often came up on their radar when thinking about places to eat. However, when poised on the hotel’s doorstep, there had always been something... Read more
Busy Bee, Ryde
20th December 2008 2
Remember the days when garden centres used to sell just seeds and compost? No, neither do Matt and Cat. Like farms, garden centres have to diversify and as well as horticultural essentials, one can often find clay gnomes, coconut-shell bird houses with raffia roofs and singing reindeer like this... Read more
Spice Express, Ryde
30th November 2008 12
Cat and Matt have been off the scene for a week or so; confined to barracks with, respectively, a cold and Man Flu. Without any sense of taste and likely to be felled by fits of coughing, M and C decided that they were not in any condition to... Read more
Lakeside Park Hotel, Wootton Bridge
Uncategorised 6th November 2008 54
The heroes swaggered through the huge glass doors and entered the gleaming, modernist palace. Spectacular lamps – several feet long – hung over the polished bar. Smartly dressed flunkies shimmered into view and escorted the reviewers to a table with views over the shallow lake, reflecting the twinkle from a... Read more
Puckpool Tea Gardens
2nd October 2008 2
Even on the most unprepossessing of days, visitors to the English seaside will seek out crazy golf and a nice cup of tea. The Island is well-provided with venues for both of these past-times, and it happened one brisk autumnal afternoon that Matt and Cat set off for one... Read more
Archive review: Alexanders, John Street, Ryde
Reviews 8th August 2008
Alexanders is now closed. This is an archive review. What’s the way to find good fish and chips on the Isle of Wight? It’s simple – follow Matt and Cat’s easy guide. Are you right next to the sea? No good chips here – and no good prices either.... 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
Bizzy Wok, Ryde
Uncategorised 3rd April 2008 6
The heavens opened as Matt and junior reviewers Bill and Jack dashed home after a busy day out. Grabbing the nearest takeaway menu that had fluttered through the letterbox, Matt rang the Bizzy Wok, a takeaway in central Ryde that Matt and Cat had never previously tried. A polite... Read more
Copper Kettle, Seaview
24th March 2008 11
According to the blurb in the Copper Kettle’s menu, “Seaview once boasted three banks, a large number of butchers, bakers and grocers, antiques and curiosity shops and was once a bustling centre of commerce”. This is hard to imagine, particularly in winter when the population of the village dwindles.... Read more
