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.

Lunchtime Pizza at The Elephant

Last week I had a long overdue meet up with my Auntie Sue we decided to have a catch up lunch and The Elephant on St Nicholas Street was decided on. The Elephant has gone through a number of reincarnations since I first moved to Bristol currently it is a wood bedecked light and airy bar open for lunch and dinner.  It was extremely quiet when we went in so once we were handed our menus we went to sit down and ponder them. They pride themselves on using local produce, their menu is fairly small they have focused mainly on pizzas but they also do a burger with customisable toppings and a sandwich or two. I decided to go for the demi pepperoni pizza with salad. 

The base was a lovely texture nice and fluffy but also light, the flavour of the base was also really good. The best bit for me was how creamy the mozzarella tasted with the saltiness of the pepperoni it worked beautifully and was rather moreish. The pepperoni itself was thickly cut and full of flavour, this is definitely a pizza I want in my life again. It was nice to have a smaller portion for lunch as I think I would have been wiped out by a full size one this was just right and rather surprisingly good.

A short and sweet post on the delicious pizzas at The Elephant, head on down for a little bargain for £6 it is worth it. plus the barman was really friendly and helpful. To check out what other toppings The Elephant  have to offer check out their website.