Pasha, City Road, Cardiff shawarma bar review

Ministry of Sound. Amnesia. Fabric. Space. Pasha.

It seems unlikely that I’d write about any of these places on this blog. 

Fortunately, I’m not about to branch out into reviewing superclubs. And considering my bedtime is usually 10pm, I don’t think any of them would even be open before my head hits the pillow.

No, it turns out that Pasha is a shawarma bar on Cardiff’s City Road. 

We’ve previously visited once before when they first opened at the start of 2023 and enjoyed a very tasty lamb shawarma wrap, which currently costs a mere £4.99.

This time we were back for a sit-down meal, and it was good to see Pasha had a constant flow of people on a grey Saturday lunchtime. 

As well as a handsome pair of shawarmas and charcoal-grilled kebabs, Pasha has a delicious looking selection of dishes on offer from their hot counter, including lamb and chicken quozy, which are served with okra, beans and aubergine sauce. 

Whilst we waited for our order, we were brought complimentary bowls of lentil soup, which had a nice level of savouriness and seasoning. 

To start, a plate of silky hummus (£4) was rich with tahini and oil. 

It was lovely served with a freshly baked blistered naan, which was both crisp and soft in equal measure. 

A mixed shawarma plate (£10.50) was generous in size and I was a big fan of the tender chicken shawarma with its crisp edges and good spicing. However, this time I didn't enjoy the lamb shawarma so much as I found it a little bit chewy and slightly too intensely lamby. 

The sides were all bang on – fluffy and buttery rice; a super fresh selection of salad with richness balancing, lightly pickled red cabbage; crisp chips; and bottles of creamy garlic sauce and fresh and fruity chilli sauce.

But, the highlight of the meal was a beautifully grilled seabass (£12.99), which was clearly prepared with a lot of love and attention. The butterflied fish had a delicious mildly spiced marinade, crisped edges with a good smoky note from the grill, and gorgeously tender flesh. More of that fluffy rice and fresh salad completed the dish. 

Another pair of those excellent naans also accompanied the meal. 

We had a cracking value lunch at Pasha with really friendly service. I didn’t expect to go to a City Road shawarma bar and find one of the best bits of fish cookery I’ve had in Cardiff recently. It was certainly a more euphoric experience than any nightclub I’ve ever visited. 

The Details:

Address - Pasha, 96 City Rd, Cardiff CF24 3DQ
Telephone - 029 2132 1760

The Shed, Swansea Marina restaurant review

I can't tell you the last time I was this excited about a new restaurant opening in Wales.

It's because Jonathan Woolway, the former chef director of St John, one of the UK's most iconic restaurants, has just opened his own gaff in Swansea.

Repeat, this is not a drill - the former chef director of St John, the Michelin-starred restaurant which pioneered ‘nose to tail’ cooking and was a favourite of Anthony Bourdain, has opened a restaurant just an hour down the road from my house.

Woolway, who originally hails from Gorseinon had worked at St John since 2008, becoming their head chef in 2014 and chef director in 2021.

Now, he’s returned home to Swansea and opened The Shed in Swansea's Marina.

Located in a former grain warehouse that dates back to the 19th century, The Shed’s large industrial space impressively manages to retain an intimate feel. On one side of the dining room there’s an open kitchen where Jonathan oversees the pass and on the other side a bar area with a chalkboard offering negronis as well as local Beer Riff beers.

The menu is straight out of the St John playbook, focusing on first class produce, prepared with precision technique, yet at the same time appearing entirely unfussy.

It's no understatement to say I wanted to order everything and that's before I even got onto the specials board, which included a sharing beef pie for two, steamed marmalade pudding with custard, and giant chocolate and honey choux bun.

Whilst there’s a good selection of sparkling wines by the glass, rather weirdly there's only one white, red and rose on offer. Fortunately, I enjoyed the deliciously fruity and smashable Patagonian Sauvignon Blanc Chardonnay (£6.95) whilst Mrs G tucked away a couple of glasses of Tatty G champagne (£13).

Cockle croquettes (£8) summed up the whole experience. A hyper crisp crumb gave way to a light yet decadent bechamel studded with salty and meaty cockles. But it was a drizzle of malt vinegar that gave it a distinctly British twang, transforming the snack into high end chip shop filth.

A salad of earthy beetroot (£11), creamy and tangy goats cheese, crunchy walnuts, peppery watercress, and a dressing of well-judged acidity, was an example of the simple executed with exactness.

A quenelle of whipped chicken livers (£12.50) was quite simply the finest chicken liver pate I've ever eaten. Silky, light and creamy, the rich pate had a good meatiness and iron rich finish without an off-putting dominating offaliness. Lightly charred sourdough toasts and a sweet and delicately acidic pear and ginger chutney were the ideal accompaniments.

Mrs G's braised rabbit main course (£24) was so good that she described it as Watership Up. Stupidly tender fall of the bone bunny, coarse and creamy celeriac mash with a soft accent of aniseed, silky yet potent aioli, and meaty cooking juices, were all excellent. It wasn’t a looker but every component combined to form a Megazord of deliciousness.

Mackerel (£24) is one of my favourite fish in the world. But, getting it off the bone can be a right faff. Impressively, the Shed's whopping butterflied version didn't have a single bone in it. Lightly charred and smoky skin gave way to beautifully oily flesh that was delicious accompanied by a potently salty and savoury anchovy cream and soft rainbow chard with an almost meaty twang.

Welsh rarebit (£8) was a klaxon of savouriness. The crisp toast, topped with an ooze of poky cheese, warming mustard, and beer, was dialled up in intensity even further by the addition of a few blobs of Worcestershire Sauce.

For dessert, Mrs G took on The Shed's equivalent of St John's eccles cake and Lancashire cheese. Warm bara brith (£9), with a light fruit bread vibe, was topped with a slick of melting salty butter and accompanied by the funky savouriness of Teifi cheese. It was a belter of a sweet-savoury combination.

My pavlova (£9.50) was very good too. The light and crisp meringue (I must admit I did hope for a slightly chewy centre) was topped with shocking pink sweet, tart and fragrant rhubarb and vanilla scented whipped cream.

We had an outstanding meal at the Shed and I could go back every week for their brilliantly accomplished yet understated cooking.

I’m rather jealous that they’re located in Swansea rather than Cardiff. But, most importantly, I’m happy that Wales has a chef of Jonathan Woolway’s calibre cooking in his home country.

The Details:

Address - The Shed, Unit 1-2, J Shed Arcade, Kings Rd, Swansea SA1 8PL

Web - https://theshedsa1.com/

Telephone - 01792 712120

The Flora, Cathays, Cardiff pub review

Stepping into the Flora on the night of a Six Nations match was pretty similar to walking into my students’ union around a quarter of a century ago.

Standing room only, everyone seemed to be wearing a combination of baggy jumpers, snow pants, flared jeans, puffy jackets and logo t-shirts. And, a poster in the toilet advertised three Jagerbombs for a keenly priced £8.50.

Add to that the fact I’ve already reviewed the Flora around seven years ago (by which time my blog was already six years old) and you’ll realise that I’m very much an OAP when it comes to this blogging lark.

The reason we were back visiting the Flora in 2024 is because Steve Bennett, former head chef at the brilliant Heaney’s in Pontcanna, took over cooking responsibilities last year.

If someone with that level of ability is turning their hand to pub grub, then it’s definitely going to be worth checking out.

The Flora’s menu features an internationally influenced menu of dishes, which all sound like ideal accompaniments for a few pints. There’s grilled chicken thigh satay, Algerian style merguez sausages, quorn keema naans, and pumpkin and onion bhajis.

Having elbowed my way to the bar, we settled down to a couple of halves of the always reliable Beavertown Neck Oil.

My first mouthful was a strong indicator of what was to follow. A deeply beefy and fat-rich ex-dairy cow beef burger (£11) was topped with super savoury soy ketchup, a tumble of tender AF slow-cooked shredded brisket, and slices of funky, cleansing kimchi. A soft yet sturdy nori-seasoned bun was an impressive piece of handiwork in comparison to the ubiquitously bought-in brioche bun.

Even better was a lamb barbacoa kebab (£10), which saw a beautifully soft flatbread topped with generous hunks of fall-apart tender lamb in a rich, meaty, and warming-spiced mole sauce. Xni pec, a fresh salsa that was reminiscent of pico de gallo, sour cream and jalapenos were top drawer toppings to go with that decadent meat.

Crisp fries (+£2) were seasoned with salt and pepper, but the kicker was a pot of fried egg mayonnaise, which impressively delivered on its savoury eggy intensity.

Mrs G’s pick of the night was a pair of short-crusted samosas (£8) filled with impeccably tender and comfortingly spiced beef shin rendang. A tumble of pickled onions, crispy onions and a curried mayonnaise all added extra layers of flavour and texture.

In a token nod towards health, we ordered tenderstem broccoli (£5). Little did we realise it was deep-fried. But how well fried it was, with a beautifully light grease free batter, and then topped with a sweet and fiery gochujang-based sauce and nutty sesame seeds.

A further blow to my svelte physique was dealt with the arrival of a portion of buttermilk chicken tenders (£8), which had been accidentally mixed up with the tenderstem broccoli. We were very kindly given them, and I ended up with two more deep-fried dishes than I’d planned.

I’m pleased to report that they were epic – the impeccably juicy boneless chicken pieces were coated in the crispest of grease-free crumbs with a savoury seasoning which did a fine imitation of the Colonel’s. They were topped off with a rather good Thai green curry mayonnaise.

We had a corker of a meal at The Flora. If you’re looking for high class pub grub and a couple of pints in Cardiff, then it’s most definitely the place to head. 

The Details:

Address - The Flora, 136 Cathays Terrace, Cardiff CF24 4HY

Web - https://www.instagram.com/thefloracardiff/

Telephone - 029 2009 0525

Llanerch Vineyard, Hensol, Vale of Glamorgan restaurant review

I’m sat in a stylish dining room glugging a glass of wine, taking in panoramic views of the vines made to produce it, and all the while enjoying a meal of technically accomplished, classic French cooking.

Surely this sounds like I’m about to write a review of a restaurant in Burgundy, Bordeaux or the Languedoc?

No, as it happens, I’m at Llanerch Vineyard in Hensol, a hotel located just a fifteen-minute drive from the edge of Cardiff.

It’s been a good few years since our last visit, which was a bit of a mixed bag.

But, in the intervening period, they’ve opened a gorgeous new 100 cover dining room, with a tree feature sprouting out of the middle of the space.

More excitingly, Grady Atkins took over as executive head chef in October 2023. If you’re a keen collector of Cardiff chef Top Trumps like me, then you’ll know that Grady is a huge talent who was formerly head chef at Bacareto and Le Gallois in Cardiff as well as running his own successful Paysan pop-up.

However, Grady isn’t the only talent in the kitchen at Llanerch Vineyard. Tom Martin, a two-time runner-up of Junior Chef of Wales who has worked for multiple Michelin-starred restaurants in London, is head chef too.

All in all, it’s a pretty dynamic duo.

It’s demonstrated in the menu of classical French cooking made using Welsh ingredients, which includes captivating sounding dishes like terrine of Welsh beef with ravigote sauce and oxtail croquant as well as confit Welsh pork belly with trotter sauce and caramelised apple. With the standard of ingredients on show, a two-course lunch for £30 and three-course dinner (including sides) for £45 seems like decent value for money to me.

It’s clearly popular as the dining room was full on the Saturday lunchtime we visited and the only table we could bag the week before was at 12.15pm.

With Llanerch’s own wines on offer, it would have been churlish not to give them a go. Glasses of Cariad sparkling wine (£9) were different yet fairly enjoyable – it reminded us all of a sparkling perry such was the forwardness of the fruit.

Snacks arrived nice and promptly to go with our pre-dinner drinks. Thin slices of quality salami (£4.50) were more of a semi-crisp than the crisp they were billed as. Dusted with smoky paprika, they were excellent dredged through a bowl of thick and super caramel-y onion chutney.

Gargantuan marinated Gordal olives (£4) were top drawer; they were a fine example of excellent ingredient sourcing.

A trio of langoustine quenelles (£2 supplement) were enjoyably light-textured but arguably a little too subtle when it came to their headline ingredient. But, the other components on the plate more than made up for it, a trio of tender, sweet langoustines, meaty borlotti beans with a nice amount of bite, and a sauce Natua (a creamy bechamel boosted by the intensity of shellfish).

Pressed confit of leeks was described by my mother-in-law as posh egg and chips based on its accompaniments. The pretty as a picture dish saw soft and sweet leeks topped with a beautifully runny egg, a tumble of crispy shoestring potatoes, and a well-balanced dressing with a compelling warmth of wholegrain mustard.

I opted for the meatiest of starters. A golden puck of caramelised-edged shredded pork shoulder had a killer core of earthy black pudding. Sweet, buttered carrots were a nice accompaniment, but it was slices of fragrant and palate warming ginger and a ginger scented carrot puree which provided the necessary top note to balance the richness of the meat.

Having ordered a rib-sticker of a starter, I of course followed it up with one for main course too.

A leaning tower of braised shin of beef was a real trencherman’s portion. Nudge apart tender and super rich in flavour, it was topped with squidgy and sweet confit garlic cloves and intense caramelised garlic crisps. A vibrant spinach puree and a rich, glossy and meaty bordelaise sauce provided were both excellent, but such was the portion of the meat that it would have benefited from a little extra jug of sauce on the side.

If my main was an exercise in richness the other was beautifully light, yet no less flavoursome. A precisely steamed fillet of trout was sat on a bed of salty samphire, briny cockles and vibrant sea vegetables. A jug shellfish broth, which had the compelling savoury hit of mussel liquor, was an excellent dressing for the dish.

Accompaniments, all included in the price of the meal, were very good. Decadent cabbage flecked with salty bacon and drenched in cream was a meal in itself.

Finely layered confit potato terrine had good crisp edges to balance their soft and tender interiors.

Buttered carrots, the most basic of the sides, had a pleasing bite and nice sweetness.

Dessert was my standout dish of the meal and that’s no slight on the quality of the rest of the food. It was simply one of the best puds I’ve eaten in a while. A gloriously rich, dense and silky-smooth chocolate delice (£10) was coated in a fine crisp chocolate coating and topped with whipped cream with a boozy hit of whisky. Crisp honeycomb shaped biscuits, chocolate sails and a malty chocolate crumb completed the deliciously indulgent dessert.

A moist yet not too dense fruit cake (£9) was laden with booze-soaked fruit. Salty, creamy and slightly funky Gorwydd Caerphilly should have been the ideal accompaniment, but the piece of cheese which was initially delivered was sadly almost entirely rind. When this was pointed out, it was immediately supplemented with two additional generous pieces.

We had a corking lunch of big flavoured, technique-packed cooking at Llanerch Vineyard and it’s a testament to the talented team in the kitchen. If you’re looking to get away from it all whilst only being a fifteen minute hop from Cardiff, then Llanerch Vineyard should firmly be on your map.

The Details:

Address - Llanerch Vineyard Hotel, Hensol, Vale of Glamorgan CF72 8GG

Web - https://llanerch.co.uk/

Telephone - 01443 222 716