Crispy Dosa, Cardiff city centre restaurant review

Why do people read food blogs?

Is it to be entertained with witty anecdotes and clever turns of phrase?

Perhaps it’s to gawp at beautiful food photography or to find out about cuisines that aren't covered by mainstream media?

Or maybe it’s simply to find out from a trustworthy source whether a restaurant is worth visiting or not?

Whilst all of the above play their part, I’d argue that it's the latter which is the most important.

When it comes to trustworthy blogs, they don’t come more highly regarded than Andy Hayler’s Restaurant Guide. With a knowledgeable yet unflowery approach to restaurant writing, Andy has self-funded reviews of over 1,000 restaurants in London and until the pandemic had visited every three Michelin-starred restaurant in the world.

You can be assured that if Andy says a restaurant is worth visiting then it really will be.

Which brings me to Crispy Dosa on Cardiff’s High Street.

With twelve branches across the south of the UK in locations including Watford, Windsor, Croydon and Bristol, Andy reviewed the Hounslow branch in November 2024 and scored it 13/20 (good cooking, showing sound technical skills and using quality ingredients) with a top rating for value for money.

The Cardiff branch of Crispy Dosa opened a few weeks ago, and much like its sibling establishments, focuses on southern Indian vegetarian cooking.

On the menu, dishes include chilli paneer (£8.99), onion chilli uthappam (£9.49), a mini tiffin (£11.99) and a variety of dosas, including cheese masala (£9.99) and ghee paper roast (£10.99).

Whilst Crispy Dosa serves booze, I opted for a mango lassi (£3.99) as it was the middle of the working day. Creamy and tangy with a good hit of tropical fruit, it was served in a whopping milkshake glass. However, it could have done with being a bit colder.

To start, gobi Manchurian (£8.99) was excellent. A mountain of lightly battered and tender cauliflower florets and stir-fried shredded cabbage were coated in a fiery savoury, sweet and tangy sauce. It was as good as an example of the dish that I’ve eaten and would have been a meal in itself alongside a bowl of rice.

With a name like Crispy Dosa, I of course had to order a dosa for main course.

The behemothic masala dosa covered a good proportion of the table. Light, crisp and pliable, it was well-filled in the middle with warming spiced mashed potato flecked with sweet onions, mixed beans and seeds. At £7.99 it was a generous and delicious lunch.

Accompanying chutneys and sauces were good but could arguably have packed a bigger punch. They included fragrant coriander, creamy coconut, and sweet tomato chutneys as well as a thin vegetable studded sambar.

I was very impressed by both dishes I ordered from Crispy Dosa and their dosas are most definitely worth checking out if you’re on the hunt for a good value meal in Cardiff city centre - this is of course no surprise as Andy Hayler said it was worth a visit.

The Details:

Address - Crispy Dosa  30 St Mary Street, Cardiff CF10 1AB

Web - https://www.crispydosa.com/

Telephone - 029 2297 2849

Fluffy Fluffy, Cardiff soufflé pancake cafe review

There are two things that put me off visiting a new hospitality opening quicker than you can say "undisclosed freebie":

a) Places that hand out free meals to every influencer under the sun - I know, I get it, social media eyeballs drive footfall. But I like to follow my own agenda and not someone else’s.

b) Places with massive queues – as far as I’m concerned, almost no food businesses are worth queueing for when there are plenty of good places where you can sit down immediately. 

So, despite the fact that I’ve been keen to try Japanese soufflé pancakes for many years, there was no way that I was going to stand outside Fluffy Fluffy in the bitter cold for an hour and a half in the weeks after they opened in October 2024. Especially after I’d been advised to run don’t walk down there by numerous people who’d walked straight in and had a free meal.

However, on a Sunday morning in March at 10.30am, after the hype had subsided, Fluffy Fluffy’s minimalist and modern dining space was pretty much deserted.

With twelve branches across the UK, and three more openings planned soon, Fluffy Fluffy originally opened in Canada in 2018 before expanding across the world. Their menu features a range of desserts and savouries, including cheesecakes and croffles, which seem to be a cross between a waffle and a croissant.

But, I was here for one thing, to try Fluffy Fluffy’s soufflé pancakes. Made with whipped egg whites, they’re known for their light and fluffy texture. There are a variety of flavours on offer, including tiramisu, crème brûlée and Oreo.

Fluffy Fluffy’s pancakes are cooked fresh, and they take around 20 minutes to prepare. Fortunately, a batch had just been taken off the griddle as we arrived. So, our order arrived at the table within a few minutes of sitting down.

Both our sets of pancakes certainly lived up to their billing – beautifully light and airy with toasty brown tops and bottoms, I think they’re an upgrade on the American pancake.

The Signature (£8.70) was the clear winner. Topped with thick vanilla-scented whipped cream, strawberries, blueberries and banana slices, it was light, fresh and not too sweet. I could easily have eaten two platefuls.

In contrast, the Biscoff (£9) was exactly how I expected. Drizzled with Biscoff spread and scattered with biscuit crumbs, it was spicy, toasty and seriously sugary. If you’ve got a sweet tooth, then this’ll be right up your street, but it was a little bit much even for me.

We were in and out from Fluffy Fluffy within twenty minutes and I was very impressed. I’d definitely recommend a visit... that is of course on the condition that you don’t have to queue.

The details:

Address - Fluffy Fluffy, 109 Queen St, Cardiff CF10 2BH

Web - https://fluffyfluffy.co.uk/menu/

Mesen, Rhiwbina, Cardiff Sunday lunch review

I don’t think I’ve ever opened a review by talking about a restaurant’s cocktail selection.

But, then not every restaurant has a mixologist of the calibre of Matthew “Welly” Jones like Rhiwbina’s Mesen. The former general manager of Cardiff’s Lab 22 was part of the team when it was named best in the UK in the Top 50 Cocktail Bars in 2022 and won Best Cocktail Menu in The World’s 50 Best Bars in 2021. Not a bad CV then.

Welly has firmly put his stamp on Mesen’s cocktail menu with understated sounding creations like WKD Spritz, Old Fashioned, and Lowball. But, you can be assured that each one has its own twist, using ingredients like ash baked beetroot juice, pickled peach and toasted honey.

A stellar raspberry daiquiri (£11) was far removed from the saccharine red fruit slushy most places serve up. Combining rum, sweet and creamy cacao blanc, the sharp fragrance of raspberry and the added complexity of white miso, it was so good that Mrs G’s mum had one for starter and one for dessert. 

A fresh and fragrant gimlet (£11) was equally impressive. Combining gin and Lillet Blanc with the clever aroma of apricot and grape, it was extremely well balanced and dangerously gluggable.

But, enough about the cocktails… I should probably talk about Mesen’s food.

Since opening in 2023, Mesen (which means Acorn in Welsh) has built a strong reputation for its globally influenced flame cooking. Sharing dishes on their weekly changing blackboard include sweetbreads with turnip and prosciutto; prawn dumplings with rib broth; and padron peppers with blue cheese and panko crumb.

Their Mariachi band soundtrack, live fire cooking and Palace streetwear inspired merch, certainly brings something hip to the traditional suburb of Rhiwbina.

On a Sunday lunchtime, Mesen serves a compact menu of one starter, four mains and three desserts. When we visited, there was a choice of three meats for main, a T-bone steak for two to share (£70), pork belly (£35) and chicken (£27), all of which included the usual Sunday roast trimmings. 

A minor frustration, but it shouldn’t be impossible to track down a restaurant’s menu in advance of visiting. Whether it’s on the website or social media, it’s one of the main things that prospective customers are looking for… still at least I’m going to get some good blog traffic for people googling “Mesen Sunday lunch menu”.

We passed on starters in anticipation of hefty main course portions.

A T-bone steak was a handsome beast. We weren’t asked how we’d like it cooked but thankfully there was absolutely no need. 

Served a beautiful medium rare with a uniform pinkness throughout and a good salty crust, it was nicely beefy with a good tenderness. This was an excellent piece of meat and thankfully Mrs G and her mum had a few spare slices that I could pilfer. 

Two pieces of pork belly appeared generous, had excellent shatteringly crisp skin and deliciously juicy and tender flesh. But, around half of each piece of meat was comprised of fat, meaning that its value for money was certainly questionable in comparison to the whopping steak.

Sharing sides were very good, with a few real standouts.

Sweet roast carrots had a bang on amount of bite and were topped with a savoury flurry of cheese and sat in a pool of vivid pesto. They were excellent.

 A heaped plateful of roasties were commendably crisp and light and fluffy on the inside.

A large jug of steaming thick and meaty gravy ensured that there was no rationing required.

Cabbage had a nice lick of smoke; it was a good reminder that we were in a flame cookery restaurant.

Yorkshire puddings were crisp and soft, but I must admit that I rather craved their giant sharing version that I’ve seen doing the rounds online.

We washed it all down with glasses of a red fruit and liquorice twanged Negroamaro and Malvasia blend (£11 for 250ml) and coupes of prosecco (£8) before moving onto a pair of honeyed Cerons (£6.50) and Tokaji dessert wines (£9) to accompany dessert.

Oaty, salty and sweet hobnobs (£8) were lovely paired with creamy brie and a drizzle of truffle honey. It was a corking combination that I’ll certainly emulate at home.

Toasty, smooth and creamy Basque cheesecake (£8) was lush too. But it didn't need the accompanying dollop of creamy crème fraiche as it was better on its own.

We had a delicious and generous roast dinner at Mesen with very good service. However, whilst it’s hard to fault the value for money of such an excellent steak with sides for two for £70, I’m really not so sure about the pork.

Judging by the full house on a Sunday lunch, Mesen has clearly been embraced by the local community, and for good reason. I’d be very keen to go back for dinner to work my way through some of their more exciting dishes. Of course, I’ll be going ordering a clutch of their cocktails too.

The Details:

Address - Mesen, Heol-Y-Deri, Rhiwbina, Cardiff CF14 6HF

Web - https://www.mesenrestaurant.com/

Ginger & Clove, Whitchurch Road, Cardiff Indian restaurant review

I’ve reviewed so many restaurants on Whitchurch Road lately that I should probably consider renaming my blog Gourmet Gabalfa.

Usually, after a few beers at the excellent Pop ‘n’ Hops, we’re craving a bite to eat and as a result we’ve recently visited Shiraz Grill, Stella Italia and now Ginger & Clove.

Ginger & Clove opened in January 2025 and it occupies the former site of Wildflower Kitchen and the Aegean Greek Taverna. It’s a lovely space with a colourful mural covering one wall and a third of the venue turned over to bar seating to try and encourage people to pop in for a drink.

The restaurant’s menu draws influences from across India but is mostly focused on southern India as that’s where the expertise of the chefs lies. With nine starters, and eight mains, Ginger & Clove’s menu is compact as far as Indian restaurants go. It’s a much more reassuring sight than 100 curries, all of which are made from the same base sauce.

Complimentary poppadum shards, chutneys and glasses of iced water were brought out as soon as we arrived. It’s the little touches like this which always endear a restaurant to me. Both the chutneys hit the mark - a sweet chilli number and a fragrant mint variety that also had a good oomph of chilli.

To start, gobi manchurian (£5.95) saw lightly battered florets of cauliflower coated in a sticky, spicy, sweet and savoury sauce flecked with garlic and onion. This was very good example of this dish, with the sizeable pieces of cauliflower still having plenty of texture.

It was a very good contrast to a Kerala beef fry (£6.95) with its earthy dry spicing and notes of toasted coconut. The impeccably tender nuggets of beef were lifted by a scattering of fragrant curry leaves and the zip of pickled onions.

For mains we showed a bit of restraint, relatively speaking, by ordering a main, side and bread to share.

A nadan chicken curry (£10.95) was billed on the menu as “included by popular demand”. Made to the owner Matthew’s recipe, I of course had to give such a hyped-up dish a go. Super tender bits of boneless chicken thigh were coated in a medium spiced thick and luxurious gravy with layers of spice, coconut and curry leaf. This was an excellent curry.

Its excess sauce was delicious drizzled over a vegetable thoran (£3.95) made with a fine dice of toothsome carrot and radish that was seasoned with mustard, coconut, curry leaf and crispy onion.

A table-topping triangular masala dosa (£7.99) was commendably thin and crisp and filled with comforting spiced potato. A bevy of accompaniments really made it sing. Fresh coconut chutney, a sweet and creamy tomato and onion chutney, and a velvety sambar flecked with carrot and stringy moringa beans, were all excellent.

We had a delicious and cracking value meal from Ginger & Clove with really friendly service. Despite strong competition in the local area, I hope this a restaurant that finds its niche. 

The Details:

Address - Ginger & Clove, 72-74 Whitchurch Road, Cardiff CF14 3LX

Website - https://www.instagram.com/gingerandclovecardiff/

Telephone - 029 2063 0708

Ember, Pontcanna, Cardiff restaurant review

I couldn’t ask for a better eating companion than Mrs G.

She’s normally up for trying any type of restaurant. She has no dietary requirements. I often get to finish her food when she’s admitted defeat. And she knows when I’ve got my sights set on visiting a new restaurant.

I’ve been pestering Mrs G to visit Ember ever since it opened in December 2024 but there hasn’t been a suitable time. And then she only went and arranged to visit without me in the middle of March.

Knowing that I’d have extreme FOMO if she went before me, Mrs G graciously agreed to visit Ember with me the week preceding her reservation. What a legend.

Located in the heart of Pontcanna’s Tom(my) Triangle, Ember is the new restaurant from Dave Killick, the long serving former head chef of The Heathcock, and Tommy Heaney.

If you’re a fan of The Heathcock then you’ll be familiar with Dave Killick’s big flavoured and refined takes on rustic Welsh cooking with the occasional Italian influence thrown in for good measure. It’s exactly this style of cookery which he’s brought over to Ember.

Located on the former site of Bully’s, the space has been given a stylish contemporary makeover with a hulking bar area and shelves dotted with jars of pickles and ferments.

Ember’s menu is a little tricky to navigate with sections dedicated to snacks, small plates, pasta, larger plates, and sides. Fortunately, there’s a chef’s selection available for £45 a head if it’s all a bit much and during weekday lunchtimes there's an excellent value three course set menu for £25. However, there were a bunch of dishes that I had my eye on, so we constructed our own feast.

A compact selection of wines by the glass were all very good. Mrs G kicked off with a glass of Charles Heidsieck champagne (£16.50) and I had a glass of super smashable Vinho Verde (£6.50). We then moved onto their reds by the glass, including a light and fruity Sicilian Merlot (£6.50) and big boi Tempranillo (£7.50) from Castilla y León.

A heaped plateful of warm, crusty and soft crumbed focaccia (£5) was a very good start indeed. It was accompanied by silky smooth whipped smoked cod’s roe pooled with a vibrant green herb oil.

We ordered a couple of small plates. A daily special of lamb meatballs (£10) delivered a big wallop of flavour and texture. Coarsely ground and deeply lamby mini meatballs were coated in a thick red wine sauce and paired with golden crumbed nuggets of polenta and a velvety Jerusalem artichoke puree. Zingy salsa verde provided welcome contrast to all that richness.

A whole Dover sole (£15) was a very good-sized bit of fish. Beautifully cooked so that it nudged off the bone with ease, it was topped with headily fragranced diced fresh oregano, crispy Jerusalem artichoke slices and a drizzle of olive oil.

Next up was the standout dish of the meal and it’s one that bore a striking resemblance to Killick’s signature rabbit pappardelle at the Heathcock. A generous pile of al dente fettuccine (£19) was tangled with stupidly tender shreds of milk braised pork shoulder that were twanged with a compelling hit of fennel. Toasted breadcrumbs provided lovely crunch whilst a tipi-esque garnish of pork scratchings were nice but a little too much hard work for my tooth fillings. It’s fair to say that I’d gladly visit Ember any day of the week just to try this dish and I hope it's a regular fixture on their menu.

Our large dish maintained the decadence that ran throughout the whole meal. Spoonably soft ox cheek (£24) coated in a thick meaty sauce was sat in a super savoury saffron fragranced risotto with just the right consistency and amount of bite to each grain of rice. A zesty gremolata brought some welcome levity to proceedings. Mrs G thought the seasoning was a touch high on this dish, but I thought it raised my blood pressure an acceptable amount.

On the side, was an absolute corker of a vegetable dish. Al dente tenderstem broccoli (£7) sat in a pool of warm and creamy ajo blanco and was topped with the crunch of toasted walnuts and fragrant and cleansing cubes of pear.

There’s no way I’m ever passing up rhubarb and custard (£10) if I see it on a restaurant menu and this was far more successful than the iteration I ate a few weeks ago. Beautifully poached batons of sharp, bright pink rhubarb were balanced by thick, vanilla scented custard and a wafer-thin toasty gingersnap biscuit.

Our last dish summed up the meal with its combination of excellent technique, big flavours and confident restraint. Dave Killick is undoubtedly one of Cardiff’s best chefs, but he quietly goes about his business so is far less of a household name than others. Therefore, it's great to see him take centre stage in this joint venture with Tommy Heaney.

Ember is another brilliant addition to Cardiff’s restaurant scene and it’s exactly the kind of place that I’d happily visit for a plate of pasta and a glass of wine any day of the week. Once again, I find myself saying that I’m jealous of Pontcanna’s wealth of top drawer dining options.

The Details:

Address - Ember, 5 Romilly Crescent, Pontcanna, Cardiff CF11 9NP

Web - https://www.embercardiff.co.uk/

Telephone - 029 2297 2274