Monday Lunch at The Christmas Steps

Last Monday, in between hospital appointments, Rich and I decided to grab a long lunch and meet up with Bud.  I thought that the newly opened Christmas Steps pub, formerly The Three Sugar Loaves, might be a great place to try out as it was pretty close by.  We walked in just after 1pm and it was deserted I wondered if I had made a mistake thinking it was open on a Monday, but after walking up to the second bar I spotted a lone barmaid. 

They really have done a number on this pub, much lighter, smarter interior with more exposed brick work makes it the place a lot more welcoming.  As all the tables were empty we chose one near the bar and peeped at the menu, which gives the impression that it changes daily which is somewhat uncommon but pleasing for a pub.

Rich and I decided to go for one of their enticing sounding sandwiches, who can resist Mark's Bread? I chose the roasted pork loin whilst Rich picked the roast beef rib and Bud, the lamb burger.  We also ordered a portion of chips each because no one really wants to share chips do they? Like I said previously there was no one else in the pub, yet we waited over half an hour for our food to arrive which was very strange. Once it arrived however we were ravenous so dived on it immediately. I have to say I was pretty impressed.

pork loin sour dough stack

pork loin

huge bowl of chips

My sandwich was pretty delicious the pork had a nice flavour and it was good to have some crackling in there to add an extra porky hit. My only gripe was that I don't think it needed apple sauce and raw slices of apple as it made it a little too overpowering but over all it was a tasty sandwich, excellent quality for £5. The side salad was however a bit slimy and needs work to make it a bit fresher.  Chips were chunky and triple cooked, as is the in vogue way, I couldn't quite finish all mine, luckily there were willing recipients of the leftovers.  Rich was rather pleased with the beef as it was fairly pink still and there was plenty over it, plus can you really go wrong with the marriage of beef and mustard?

In conclusion The Christmas Steps does some pretty tasty food for the money, just needed a little attention to detail with the atmosphere, we heard the same Radiohead playlist three times for example, and service, but it was a Monday lunch time so this could have been a time we caught them off guard. I would recommend the food though because for the price you would get a good quality and tasty lunch.  If you fancy trying somewhere different check out what The Christmas Steps has to offer on their website.

Chinese Roasties from Fresh

The other week Jamie and Boz had heartily recommended Fresh on St Michael's Hill especially for their Cantonese style roast meats. My curiosity was piqued and so last week Rich and I browsed the menu for possible order choices. Jamie had recommended the honey roast pork so that was immediately on our list, along with sweet and sour Cantonese style chicken, roast duck, beef and fresh ginger fried rice. I will point out now that this place is very popular so have some back up dishes in mind when you order because we originally wanted to try the crispy chili beef but this was either sold out or not being cooked on this particular day. After placing our order over the phone we waited ten or so minutes before heading off on the short walk to St Michael's Hill for collection, as no delivery option is available and we lived pretty close.

A tiny door way housing two little bench areas where you can eat in greeted us when we entered, this was pretty busy, full of students stocking up on tastes of home, plus they know a good deal when they see one. You can order the daily special and rice combo from £4 and the portions here are pretty generous you'd be crazy not to take them up on it, mind you it's not exactly expensive on the whole, no dish goes about £5.80.   Also Fresh is cash only but there is a cash point by the Co-Op on St Michael's Hill if you forget. Anyway we headed home with our delicious bag of food and salivated all the way there.

beef and ginger fried rice

honey roast pork slices on egg fried rice

My oh my, sweet heaven. This place knows good Chinese food, everything was superbly cooked and tasted amazing. The beef and ginger fried rice had huge chunks of tasty beef in it and the sweet and sour was easily the best I've ever had, you could detect fresh little hints of zingy orange flavour in it and it really emphasised the home made quality of this dish.  The honey roasted pork was probably my favourite although with the sweet and sour it was a tough battle between the two. The pork was juicy with an incredible flavour I should have just ordered double amounts.

So should you try Fresh? Absolutely, prices are great, food is even better, a great little discovery that I am rather excited about trying again. Probably my new favourite Chinese takeaway, even though you can quickly refuel inside if you are in a need of a fix,  in Bristol, although if you need more choice, head to Aroma, my other top pick.  To check out what Fresh has to offer check out their website.