My parents were visiting for the day so I thought we’d all go out for something to eat. It was a Sunday and none of us particularly fancied a roast dinner so I had a look online and found The Westwood. I should point out that online it was called The Westwood Bar & Grill, which actually played some part in our decision to go there. However, upon arriving, there seemed to be an ominous lack of Grill. There was a Bar though so they were half right.

The place is very impressive to look at. Set in what looks to be an old stately home of some kind it has a very regal feel to it. Also, no complaints can be made about the décor on the inside as everything was stylish and well laid out. I was however, starting to have my reservations about the choice of restaurant. Without trying to sound like a philistine – they don’t serve pints! Bar & Grill? My arse.

Bear in mind I was with my parents. They like wholesome food like steak & ale pie and mince & dumplings. I knew I’d made a bad choice of eatery but we’d been seated by that point so I felt like I’d already committed myself to this particular meal.

The choice of food was quite limited with only 7 or 8 dishes on the menu (not one of them going near a grill I might add!) although it did sound delicious even if it was one of those places that made up food descriptions – a crevice of pate, a cheb of grated aubergine or something like that.

I opted for the lamb burger with beetroot relish (it was called something fancier than this but essentially it was beetroot jam) and thick cut chips. My Dad went for toad in the hole and my Mother went for the fish of the day, which happened to be plaice and came with crushed potato, not mashed – lets be perfectly clear about that point, it was crushed.

When the food arrived I was slightly concerned with the fact that my plate was about the size of my hand and I could still see a fair amount of plate around my food. The food was reasonably nice though, although I thought my burger was quite dry. My Dad’s toad in the whole looked great and he was very vocal about how nice it was. My mother on the other hand loves a good whinge - “This potato thing tastes a bit funny” was one her first remarks. Her fish was “ok” and we’d all pretty much finished eating in five minutes. I must admit that I did feel quite full though. 

Then the bill came. It was expensive. Fish of the day was £14, toad in the hole was £9, as was my burger.

The actual quality of the food was quite good but if I’m going to eat somewhere that have the confidence to serve food in that way and to charge that much then I want the food to be magnificent. It sadly was not. It was just err.. quite good. I’ve had better at what would be considered by some as downmarket eating establishments. I know £9 is not too bad for a main meal but I only had a burger. If I’m spending £9 on a burger then I’d like it to be one of the best burgers I’ve ever eaten!

If you are going to go to an upmarket restaurant and are willing to spend a bit of cash then there are better places to go than this. The food was far from bad but it does not live up to the setting or the price.  Oh, and its not a bar & grill…