The Hole in the Wall

Posted on 2003/01/27 14:25:07 (January 2003) by john.

Majestic Bath's finest gastronomic asset...(?)

Having seen the Hole in the Wall featured in a documentary about one of my favourite TV chefs, Keith Floyd, I was keen to try it out at some point. The documentary gave the impression that it was this restaurant that first provided the flamboyant gastronome with the kind of extravagant and inspirational food that he later went on to make for himself. On a whim, I phoned up in the afternoon, the Saturday before last, on the off chance there might be a table for two that same evening. To my surprise, I was lucky and there was one, albeit quite early on in the evening, so I snapped it up.

The Hole in the Wall lives up to its name in terms of its location - the bulk of the restaurant is quite literally a hole in the wall, residing at the road level beneath a raised pavement. The interior, however, is very pleasant. It has been very elegantly decorated, and I particularly appreciated the large open fire, especially as it was pretty cold and miserable outside. It was fairly quiet for the large part of the time we were there, as it was quite early on in the evening. Towards the end of our meal a large-ish group turned up at the table next to ours. At all times though, whether almost empty or bustling, the atmosphere was really good. The staff were friendly and the place had an undefinably nice feeling about it.

OK so as for the food. To start with I had parsnip and cumin soup, and Chie had a plate goat's cheese crostini. We also shared a basket of their own bread, made on the premises. Apparently they just throw in whatever comes to hand on the day, so it's always different. I can't quite define what was in it. One of the breads tasted almost minty, and I had a fair suspicion the other contained walnuts. Both however were good.

For the main course, Chie had guinea fowl, and I went for the vegetarian option. There were technically two vegetarian options, however the other, a mushroom risotto, was made with parmesan which is never vegetarian (the vegetarian version can't be called parmesan for legal reasons), and often restaurants use chicken stock in risotto, so I avoided it. I chose "Sweetcorn Fritters with a Chilli and Caper Vinaigrette". We also had a serving of Potatoes Dauphinois on the side. I was impressed by the idea of the fritters, quite an unconventional vegetarian option. However, to be honest, they were a bit uninteresting - for some reason they forgot the chilli/capers altogether and so the overall taste was a bit bland. Unfortunately I didn't realise that there should have been some kind of dressing until we looked at the menu a second time for desserts, by which time I thought it too late to complain. Perhaps I have myself to blame for that then. Chie enjoyed her main course apparently, and said the sauce especially (something red wine based it seemed) was very good. The potatoes were very nice.

For dessert, we shared a ginger pudding, which was very well made, and very enjoyable. I finished off with an espresso. I'm not a great wine connoisseur, so I can't make any particularly intelligent comments about the wine list. We had a bottle of white whose name (and even country) I don't recall, but it was good. A bit over priced, but then wine in restaurants always is.



So overall, my main course was a bit of a disappointment, but everything else was good. It was, as I'd expected, pretty expensive. I suppose you are paying for the reputation, although in a sense I'm not sure why it has attained that level of fame, as none of the food I had was utterly outstanding. On the other hand, it may be unfair to judge that based on just the one meal. Perhaps the problem was simply that I had the vegetarian option, and I suppose it is traditionally a very meaty sort of place. I'm sure some would say I ought to be grateful there was anything vegetarian there at all. Chie also is not particularly fond of meat dishes, tending usually to go for something fishy - I don't recall there being much in the way of fish on the menu. The atmosphere, however, is something quite unique, a kind of undefinable quality, and for that at least I'm glad to say I've paid a visit.






The Hole in the Wall is on George Street in Bath. If you're interested, you can find out more about it here.

I went to this restaurant on Saturday night. It was my third visit ... and will definitley be my last! The menu was very limited (particularly for vegetarians). My friend ordered the salmon but without the dressing (which was chorizo). It arrived with the dressing. We had a glass of wine each at the beginning of our meal. We weren't asked if we would like another drink. The portions were tiny. Food very average. Not worth the money. The worst thing of all though was the service.

This restaurant is living off its name - and is not to be recommended.

Posted by The Coven at 2004/08/02 13:25:12.

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