Posts by: Joff

Finding the best steak restaurant in Peterborough

This blog post comes with a meat warning.  Not suitable for Vegetarians!

Lets face it, ordering a steak in a restaurant can sometimes seem a bit of a cop-out.  You’ve gone over the menu three times and there’s nothing you really want, so with a sigh you choose the steak and as soon as the waitress brings you a razor-sharp serrated steak knife, you know the meat is going to be as tough as old boots.  I’m a fan of great steak, but it’s very rarely I’ll order it from a restaurant because I can pretty much guarantee it will disappoint.

So why is it so difficult to get a good steak in Peterborough?  Is there a local restaurant worthy of being called a steakhouse?

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Christmas Card for 2011

Truth be told, I don’t have much time for traditional paper based Christmas cards.  I appreciate the sentiment, but lets be honest with ourselves, cards are expensive, as is the postage and come the New Year all the cards go into the recycling bin at best.

As someone that offers web development services, it only seemed fitting that I send a digital e-card to my clients.  Not one of those dancing elf monstrosities, or a cobbled-together-in-5-minutes-because-we-forgot-to-get-cards-in-the-post type affair, but a bona-fide bespoke Christmas card.  Then for good measure and a warm feeling inside, a hand-picked charity donation to a cause I’ve supported for a few years – Cats Protection

Last year I got in touch with local designer Liz Elcoate from Capriccio Design who produced a great art-deco “chat noir” style design.

This year I gave Liz the brief of something 50′s inspired, Christmassey and with the obligatory cat (in case you wondered, my company is called Gattonero – Italian for “black cat”).  Here’s the finished design which I’m really pleased with:

Gattonero black cat christmas card

Review of Clarkes Restaurant

Taking advantage of a recent Groupon promotion, my wife and I headed to the new Clarkes Restaurant in Peterborough for a spot of lunch whilst out Christmas shopping.

Located on North Street on the edge of Westgate in the city centre, the smart front entrance to Clarkes faces onto Lincoln Road.  It’s a shame there isn’t a menu on the outside of the building as passers-by would be interested to discover the food on offer.

Dining on a Groupon voucher is always a little awkward for the customer as it suggests you love a bargain you’re a bit of a cheapskate.  It’s a great opportunity for restaurants (especially new ones like Clarkes) to show off to new customers, ensuring they go home and tell their friends about how good the experience was.  Unfortunately our experience wasn’t as perfect as hoped… Read More…

Carluccios restaurant planned for Peterborough

After what seems like years of hints and rumours by organisations like Peterborough’s Growborough, the Evening Telegraph revealed this week that talks were well and truly under way to bring Carluccios Italian restaurant to Peterborough.  According to reports, the restaurant chain will be occupying one of the exterior Queensgate units along Long Causeway (which is probably why Peterborough City Council want to re-landscape Long Causeway) which so far has been virtually untouched by the cafe culture sweeping the Peterborough.

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Review of The Queens Head, Nassington

Following up on Ben’s review last year of the Queens Head Inn in Nassington, my wife and I decided to pay the restaurant a visit for ourselves.  Due to my own mistake, I managed to book our reservation for the wrong night but thanks to understanding staff we were able to get the reservation amended at short notice.

For a business slightly off the beaten track, the Queens Head seems to be doing a roaring trade with both locals and ‘outsiders’ (my term, not theirs) alike.  Judging by the menu the chef is clearly keen to attract discerning diners from all over the region with a good selection of dishes all using great produce. Read More…

Review of Clarkes Restaurant, Peterborough

Update: Click here to read my personal review of Clarkes restaurant

Well the title of this post is a bit misleading, as at the time of writing I’ve yet to eat at the new Clarkes restaurant in Peterborough.  Instead, this is a bit of a pre-review and comment based on a recent review by the Evening Telegraph’s Nigel Thornton.

Headed up by chef-patron Lee Clarke, Clarkes certainly has the potential to be one of the best restaurants in Peterborough.  We’ve seen the likes of Jim’s Beehive go from strength to strength (albeit with the closure of Jim’s Bistro) so there is hopefully a market in Peterborough for diners willing to pay a little bit more for a freshly cooked menu.

I’ve been following the progress of Clarkes on twitter and have been hearing nothing but good so far. In his review of Clarkes, Nigel rated the restaurant top marks of 10 out of 10 so there should be no question about the standard being set.  My only issue with a top scoring review is that it doesn’t leave any room for improvement – where do you go from here?  Read More…

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