Jimmy4321's Qype profile

This is a very disappointing bar to go to, especially when there is football On the TV which the Bar promotes quite enthusiastically, that is where it fails if you’re looking for a dining experience.
I and some friend called in on Sunday 28th August looking for something to eat and the Place was packed out with guys watching the football.
There was people eating food in the same area where there were guys watching the soccer that had the effect that if you were eating you were essentially looking at some blokes backside, it was so densely packed. There was no separation of eating area or public area at all. Coupled with that was there was only a few tables in the Bar, most were taken by people who were eating or just finished or were taken by guys watching the football and not eating so you could not find a table to eat. I can’t see why the Bar staff could not reserve the tables for diners.
I asked the bar staff if there was any chance of a table and he said it’s just a matter of grabbing one if it became available. Needless to say we left without eating.
This was the worst mix of eating and drinking experience I ever had, this Bar really needs to do something about this mix. I found the experience humiliating and offensive. The Garrick is obviously looking for maximum profit on football days with drinkers, but if they are going to serve food at the same time at least they could give diners a little privacy and respect.
The owners of the Garrick really need to get their act together on this one; it’s either a Sports bar or a Public bar that serves food. If it wants both then provide for both.

Myself wife and two friends called into the Morning Star at around 4.50pm on a Sunday. The Bar and Restaurant was half empty so I expected a Quick service but was very Disapointed.
About 5 minutes after sitting down we were asked for our drinks about 10 Minutes after that we were ready to order, from order until the food was on the Table was a full Hour, that was an extraordinary time to wait for food and it wasnt busy at the time. We did not have a starter or dessert as we thought as It is a Pub we would get a decent sized feed.
The food was good and cooked properly, but were it fails miserably is in Portion size, I would consider it suitable for a small child. The sides of Chips were in a miniscule bowl.
I had Champ and Sausages that was in a soup Bowl, and the plates had a lot of empty space on them, The emphasis was on decoration and presentation rather than quantity, Mashed Potatoes on one side of a large plate with Chicken on the other and nothing in between, we all finished in record time as there wasnt much off it. When I got home I made a few sandwiches to fill me up.
The Morning star has always had a good reputation but I think it has changed from a pub to a bistro style Gastro Pub feel that locals just dont like.
The Irony was that 15 minutes before we left another group of people ordered food and got it served within 10 minutes.
The Bar is trying to be a little bit more professional and upmarket than the others, staff are dressed formally and are courteous.
Its good food but as I said, fails terribly on the portion sizes.

I went there when it reopened and first impressions were Positive, I think whoever redesigned it got a little carried away with all that use of empty space Although I am not a fan of Radical Modern architecture, perhaps I would go as far to say it was a little Kitsch. There was only one exhibit that was hidden by another, but everything was well laid out and easy to follow around the Museum.
The Top floor is solely dedicated to modern art, which I feel the space could have been used for a better purpose, huge great monstrosities of black and white squares and such on canvass It may be someones artistic interpretations of art but its just not Art. I don’t know the genre name of it but it appeared to me elitist and only those absorbed in the Arts World could make something of it, I will use that word again, Kitsch it’s a ‘public’ building after all.
It’s a great place for kids, there’s lots of interactivity for them, the staff are ready to explain anything about the exhibits and it’s still free.

This is a great place if you want cheap and plentiful, decent, chinese food. All you can eat buffets are a new thing to us Northern Irish, normally we get small portions of food for a high price, the phenomenon of an all you can eat means you seriously pig out each time you go, I did anyway, lol.
After a few visits you realise that the food in itself is decent enough but pretty bland for Chinese cuisine, after eating bad quality chinese takeaway food for years we have come to expect what we are given, if you have a more advanced tastebuds and have tried authentic Chinese food, you know that the mass produced chinese food in China China is not all that great, but at the price im not complaining. Like everything you can get too much of a good thing, you would'nt make a visit a regular thing, but for special occasions its first class. The Restaurant is clean, staff are friendly enough, although they being chinese you dont get much interaction with them until its time to pay the bill. So for a cheap and tasty night out I would recommend it.

Dunluce Castle is a wonderful spot to visit, and its even better on a clear and sunny day, the Views are spectacular and its always a great photo opportunity.
The only thing that annoys be about it, is that it insists on opening and closing at buisness hours, I think the closing time is 5.30 in the summer when it does not get Dark until 10.30 at some evenings. Northern Ireland does have a pretty Doer 9-5 attitude when it come to tourism and is a little behind the times than our southern cousins. I took the issue up with the castle staff and had said to them 'tourists dont stop touring or wanting to see things at 5.30 as well', the response was lame excuses about staff levels etc, come on Department of Culture Heritage and leisure get your act Together. If we want people to come here we have to make sure things are open for them.

I usually go on first impressions when I go to a Pub that dictates if I would go there again, and the Deers head gets a well deserved thumbs up.
I and the wife went in on a weekday for lunch so we got one of the nice victorian style booths beside the window, the barman asked us what we wanted a Pint of Guinness for me and a coke for the wife, which was brought to the table and the pint of Guinness was perfect.
The waitress took our order from a substantial menu of proper Pub food, I hate bars that sell poncy restraunt gourmet stuff, We waited about 20-25 minutes for the food, seeing that the bar wasnt too busy I thought It was a bit too long, but we were not overly put off about it.
So when the food came it was hearty, a lot of it and well worth the price which was very reasonable for a city center pub for under £20. Have to mention the chips as a chip lover, there were a lot of them and they had a lovely buttery flavour, there not fresh but the next best thing to it. all in all I would definatley go here again and would recommend it to anyone. Its not noisy, does not have the baseball cap wearing brigade in it and has a decent middle aged clientelle without that awfull boom boom music.The fruit machine is a bit of a nuisance, but its a bar after all.
First class pub.

I and the wife decided to check this bar out one Saturday afternoon a few weeks back on the recommendations of some friends; needless to say I won’t be taking any more advice for them.

My initial expectations were, that as a nice country pub it would serve proper pub food, however the menu was restaurant style not that it mattered but the prices were substantially higher than most pubs I have eaten at, Granted it did have the usual Pub burger that we both ordered, cheapest thing on the menu but still pricey. The waitress was very attentive and well mannered and drinks came on time, a Pint for me and a coke for the wife. The Burger was substantial and a good sized meat pate fairly well dressed, it came with a portion of Onion rings and chunky chips and this is where the let down began, there was no doubt in my mind that they were refried and recycled chips as were the Onion rings, over cooked and well blackened and tasting only of hot oil, they may have been sitting there for a while before they were cooked and were certainly not fresh it had the effect that we both had upset stomachs until the next day and again we paid perhaps a third more for a burger meal than any other establishment we have been at.

We did get the impression that Bob Stewarts seems to cater for locals from the more wealthy suburbs of South West Belfast, Drumbo Upper Malone and the Lisburn area due to its prices and Restaurant feel, only a dedicated local clientele and those that know it well and could afford frequent dining would use this bar and restarant.Bob Stewarts appears to like it that way.

Depending on your opinion it has a no children policy due to its particular liquor licence I would agree with it but it’s certainly not a place for families. It’s a beautiful wee bar overlooking the lagan in a nice area, you could drive past it very easily and you would have to make a point in going to it due to its seclusion. The bar does not appear to seek any publicity I think too many people would ruin its character.

So if you want moderate to high priced restaurant meals it’s the place for you, if you want pub grub at a reasonable price either go to Lisburn or Belfast.