As we took our seats at the sunny dining table, we remarked on what a beautiful evening it was. The sun was making its slow descent to herald the end of another glorious spring day and we were still feeling the warmth of its sinking rays. Our dinner was... Read more
It won’t come as any surprise to find out that we don’t cook much. We could, if we had to – but why bother when there are so many great chefs on the Isle of Wight prepared to take our money in exchange for food? Also, we have some... Read more
Cautious diners may worry that Nomad is going to be too challenging. They might rather have something simpler, quieter and yes, maybe cheaper. These people are wrong, and we’re about to explain how. The previous restaurant under the Nomad brand was open in Newport for just a short time... Read more
Another day goes by, another vegan restaurant opens. If plant-based dining in this country has spent the last few centuries cowering in the shadow of the all-conquering meat and two veg, its time has surely now come. Vegan food is out of the powdery cupboard, into your streetfood, and... Read more
Some venues still think serving chips in a tiny metal pail is the acme of food trendiness. Other restaurants continue to puff out their chests, imagining that their knife-grating, gravy-liberating slates are the last word in food delivery (if only they were the last!). But food fashion, like any... Read more
Once upon a time Italian restaurants were ubiquitous on every high street. You know the sort of thing: generic pasta and pizza, checked tablecloths, raffia-wrapped wine bottles and textured artex walls. Desperate to set themselves apart from the competition in a sea of look-alike venues, some took to oversized... Read more
It has to be one of the most idyllic inland locations for a restaurant on the Island. Nestled in a valley just outside Newport, the ancient stones of Staplehurst Grange warm in the evening sun. A long drive down a gravel track past fields of sheep, flowery hedgerows, beehives... Read more
On our morning commute we often go through Wootton High Street. Going through is the thing most people do with that road, and we’re no different. Since an unfortunate encounter with The Sloop a few years ago we’ve not had many reasons to change that. But recently, our interest... Read more
Like the rest of you, we drove around the Island at the tail end of May with our car windows wound down. Mostly because the air conditioning in Cat’s Citroën is broken, but also that we might breathe in the heady aroma of wild garlic. The Isle of Wight’s... Read more
You must have heard us blather on about how folks on the Isle of Wight orientate themselves by where the post office used to be. One of Cat’s first experiences of being given directions followed a trail of landmarks that were no longer there; “Past where that old copper... Read more
