| "I
read Manchester Restaurants review of the River Restaurant with
great interest as my partner and I had already made a reservation
there with some friends. The review was spot on. It's a very
expensive restaurant that doesn't necessarily compare
favourably to similar, often cheaper, restaurants in town.
Downpoints - the bar staff offered us a drink before going into the
restaurant whilst we waited for our friends to arrive. A waitress
came over and offered to take our coats. She took my boyfriend's jacket
and walked off before I even had one arm out of my own sleeves. This
left me angry however a nicer waitress later showed us to our table
in the restaurant although, again, no one offered to take my coat
and scarf. Like your review, we also never received bread despite
being presented with bread knives and plates. The decor, presentation
and the meal itself was very nice, but considering the price
paid in comparison with other celebrated restaurants in town, it
was extremely expensive for what you got. The waitress and
waiter were both very nice and the waitress took time out to speak
to me about where I was from, which was nice. All in all it was a
very nice but expensive experience."
- miriam offersgaard , manchester 20/12/07 (visited on a tuesday evening) |
"To be fair To The Lowry, we visited
The River Restaurant the night after returning from our staff Christmas
trip - an annual festive tour of Europe - during which we'd spent
a week eating in some of the top restaurants in Switzerland, Austria
and Germany, including
an amazing 16 point Gault Millau restaurant in Liechtenstein the
day earlier. And
whilst it may not be an equal playing field comparing all our Gault
Millau and Michelin starred meals to The River Room's 2 AA Rossette's,
we were able to compare like-for-like and pound-for-pound with Choice,
The Modern and The French, three similar Manchester restaurants
we'd visited the week earlier.
Ignoring the fact the
staff had seemingly forgotten us shortly after giving us the menu
during pre-prandials in the bar, the first thing you notice about
The River Restaurant is the amazing modern decor and the light colours,
a wonderful array of white's and creams. Beautiful - there can't
be many better rooms to eat in Manchester!
It should be pointed
out that prices at the River Restaurant are amongst the highest
in the city, starters range from £7.50 for soup to £12.50
for Terrine of Game and Main's from £14.50 for Risotto to
£32.50 for a 16 oz T-Bone steak. Whilst this is slightly cheaper
than the Midland's French Restaurant, sadly the quality doesn't
compare despite the Lowry Hotel's extra star advantage. The two
restaurants shouldn't really be compared though - The French is
a lavish dining affair, one in which the diner is made to feel special,
whilst The River Restaurant is less stuffy, more modern and less
complicated. Perhaps it's just the prices that made us compare like
for like.
And that is our only
grumble at The Lowry - the wine list is exhaustive and the food
is good, if not worthy of the price tag. The Cured Salmon with Buttermilk
Panna Cotta and Capers starter looked and tasted beautiful, a real
work of art but at £10.50 you had to ask if you were paying
for the chef's superb design work rather than the quantity of the
ingredients. My Lobster and Sweet Corn Chowder (£8.50) was
also excellent but would have been better complimented with bread
- I'm not sure if the waiters just forget to provide us with any
or if they'd simply ran out as side plates had been provided. The
main courses were a similar story. The chef is certainly capable
of creating amazing artistic servings and tasty too boot, but pound
for pound there's better to be found elsewhere in town. The Gressingham
Chicken Breast (£19.50) was good but nowhere near the quality
I experienced at The Modern, where an amazing Goosnagh Chicken Breast
cost £9 less, and my partner complained her Cheshire Beef
Fillet was far too small and not worthy of the £26.50 price
tag, especially when compared to that on offer at the celebrated
Harvey Nichol's 2nd Floor Restaurant, available £5 cheaper.
For desserts I
opted for Rice Pudding with Poached Damsons from the Lake District
(£7.50). It was slightly too stodgy for my liking and not
in the same league as the one I had experienced at The French (45p
more) nor the one I had at Grado a week earlier (£2 cheaper).
The Lancashire Buttermilk Pancake with Roasted Fig and Almond Ice
Cream (£7.50) on the other hand was out of this world and
highly recommended!
We couldn't fault the
service; our waitress, from the Dordogne, was friendly, informative
and efficient, although the business party on the table next to
us had complained quite loudly about having to request their bill
three times to various members of staff. Interestingly, we overheard
the other table next to us complaining that the food wasn't worth
the price. I wonder how many other diners were having the same thoughts?
The saving grace for The River Restaurant is that most of the diners
seem to be hotel guests who charge their meal to expenses. And that
sums up the River Restaurant best, if cost isn't an issue - give
it ago - you certainly won't find many better locations to have
a good meal in Manchester, or should that be Salford? But
if you're ever in Liechtenstein
on the other hand..."
-
neil, Manchester Restaurants, 18/12/07 (visited on a Monday evening)
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