Eating out

Like I'm sure loads of other people have, I've been over-indulging with lots of meals out over the Christmas period and through January. I think it's something really nice to do with friends or family when its cold outside and you're tired from a day of walking around shopping or being at work or college. I love going out for meals because I think it's one of the best ways to socialise, to have a chance to just sit down and have a long catch-up with someone without interruptions from whatever else might be going on, plus you're not likely to be using your phone when there's food around, so it really does give you a chance to shut out the cyber world for a good old-fashioned conversation. Plus loads of restaurants have had January food deals with up to 50% off, so it doesn't have to be as expensive as you think! I've eaten out so often the last few weeks that I thought I'd give you a list of my top 6 restaurants in Nottingham, and tell you a little bit about why I like them so much.
 
 
6. Pizza Hut
 

 

 
I think Pizza Hut is a classic, and I'm yet to meet a person who doesn't like pizza (and even if they don't, there's always pasta dishes and chicken and potato wedges etc.). I think its a good place to eat either at lunchtime or in the evening because it's nothing too fancy and there's plenty of choice. It's also in a good location because when you've been shopping round Vic centre, you can just walk up the hill through trinity square and you're there! It's good value for money aswell because if you go Monday-Thursday and have either an NUS extra card (yet another reason to get one) or a cornerhouse card (which I would definitely recommend getting, especially if like me you eat out a lot, because they're free and you get discounts in so many places!) then you get 20% off your main course, most of the soft drinks are unlimited so you don't end up spending loads on drinks, and you get free unlimited salad with any pizza, which includes things like pasta, nachos and fruit. Whenever I go, I just get a main course (pizza obviously) and then go to the salad bar for a starter, which saves me spending money on an extra course. The service is really good in there too and the atmosphere is relaxed and comfortable so I think its a good all-round restaurant for any ages.
 
 
5. The slug and lettuce
 

 

 
What amazed me the most about this restaurant was how cheap my meal ended up being! They're quite reasonably priced to start off with, and I'd normally get 15% off food with my cornerhouse card anyway (it really is worth having one), but they had a special January offer for a whole 50% off food. I had a really nice meal aswell; I ordered their BBQ chicken, cheese and bacon ciabatta melt with criss-cross fries (which were to die for, I could've literally eaten a bucket full of them) and the service was amazing! Our food came about 10 minutes after we ordered it and the staff were really friendly and accommodating. Again, the restaurant is in a really good place because it's so near to all the shops I go in regularly, aswell as being near to all the bus stops, which is important because the last thing you want after a big meal is to have to walk miles to get the bus home. It's not really a place to go as a family, especially a family with young kids because it's half bar-half restaurant, but that suits me well because I don't really like kids so I enjoy going to more adult-orientated places.
 
 
4. Red Hot World Buffet
 

 

 
I absolutely love this place! I think its the perfect place to eat out on an impulse because its just a set price and you can eat whatever you want. It's also perfect for me and my friends who all have really different tastes in food. I absolutely hate Indian food, which one of my friends loves, and I love Chinese food which she isn't as keen on, and another of my friends loves sushi, which I always wish I liked but can never force myself to actually like the taste of, so this restaurant is perfect for when we all want to eat out together. It's also a good place to take picky eaters as you can guide them towards the chips, pizza and carvery and then wander off to get your own plate of food from around the world. They also have the most amazing dessert stands, which for someone with a serious sweet tooth like me is just the best thing. I also can't help but be impressed by the restaurant itself whenever I go in, its such a huge building and the around-the-world theme of the restaurant really shows through the decoration. There are loads of great things about buffets like the fact that you can go up as many times as you want and you can try loads of different foods instead of having to pick one dish (great for people like one of my friends who is so indecisive it can sometimes take her half an hour to order) but there are downsides to buffets like the fact you have to leave your bag unattended at the table to go and get your food, and in general I think I prefer table service rather than going up and telling someone I want to pay, but I think that's just a personal thing!
 
 
3. Soulville Steakhouse

 

 

 

I don't think you can quite beat a good steak dinner when it's done as well as it is here. Again, its a themed restaurant so all the décor is very 1960s with old-fashioned jukeboxes and black and white photos of music icons dotted around the walls, and they play lots of motown and soul music so it's a really chilled out atmosphere. It is in a more awkward part of Nottingham (next to gate crasher), as its not really on the route I normally walk when I go shopping, plus it's not really that obvious that it's there so you could easily miss it if you don't know about it. The food is amazing though; it's the kind of place you have a proper 3 course meal rather than a casual lunch but it's surprisingly good value still. They offer a lunch menu from 12-5 Monday-Friday, either 2 courses for 7.95 or 3 courses for 9.95, which is perfect for people like me who have free time in the week due to my college timetable, but very little free time at the weekend due to my job. If you don't order off the set menu though but still go at lunchtime, they automatically give you 20% off your main course, which I didn't even realise until the bill came (it was a nice little surprise), making it even more worthwhile to go at lunchtime if you can. When I went I had breaded camembert to start, the soulville combo of steak (cooked medium of course, I don't think there's anything worse than undercooked meat), chicken and scampi as my main and then the toffee crunch pie for dessert. As you can see in the photo aswell, they are not small meals! I was so stuffed by the time I'd eaten that I could barely move and I'm pretty sure I could've gone about 3 days afterwards without eating!
 
 
2. Bella Italia

 

 
I think the best part of this restaurant is the atmosphere by far. Its always warm and welcoming when you walk in and the staff are always friendly. I absolutely love Italian food and this place just does it so well. Again, it's in the cornerhouse so it's in a good location and my cornerhouse card came in handy yet again and got me 20% off the food bill (although it does exclude Fridays and Saturdays, which isn't too much of a problem for me as I normally eat out in the week but it would probably be annoying for those wanting to go out for the weekend). I had the nicest starter I've probably ever had; calamari. It's something I'd never really tried until I went to Red Hot buffet one time, because I never ordered it in restaurants in case I didn't like it and I think the idea of eating squid can be a bit off-putting, but once I'd tried it there and really enjoyed it, I decided to order it at Bella Italia. I was amazed at how good it was, about a million times nicer than at the buffet because they used the smaller more tender part of the squid and cooked it to perfection! There was loads of it too so I was a bit worried about whether or not I'd manage another 2 courses after it, but I had a chicken and pepperoni pizza for my main and then a banana and fudge ice cream sundae for my dessert and I just about managed to finish it all. I think I got so full because of the carb-overload that was my main course and although I could barely move by the end of my meal it was so worth it! It's also a really good all-round restaurant I think because its a nice friendly atmosphere for families, its good for friends or groups and a nice Italian restaurant will always be a good choice for date night.


1. La Tasca

 

 

I was really torn between Bella Italia and La Tasca for the number 1 spot but in the end I just had to give it to La Tasca. Its a tapas restaurant so there's plenty of choice, and even if people don't particularly like Spanish food, there are things like fish and chicken to suit everyone. The location of the restaurant isn't ideal (it's near yo sushi) as it's kind of set back from all the shops and shopping centres but it's definitely worth the extra walk. It's almost like the perfect in-between of a buffet and a sit-down meal as you get the relaxation and the good table-service of a sit-down meal but you get the choice and variety of a buffet. The first time I went I was a bit unsure of how big the dishes would be and therefore how many I should order but the staff are so nice and ready-to-help that I just asked them and they gave me advice. Typically when me and my friend go, we get 4 dishes each (we got an extra one on this occasion but we couldn't finish it so we needn't of ordered it). I love how social it feels to eat tapas aswell, to share out all the different dishes and plan it when you order so everyone gets a bit of everything. Between the two of us, we had bread and oils to start and then patatas bravas, calamari, salsa chicken wings, battered fish, chorizo, chicken croquettes, Spanish omelette, paella and beef meatballs and everything was amazing! We couldn't manage dessert afterwards but we didn't really need it. I love the atmosphere and décor aswell because the Spanish music that plays in the background makes you feel like your on holiday. Its good value for money aswell as they offer a set menu where you get a starter and 3 main dishes for £9.95, and then you can buy any extra dishes just off the main menu, which is what we did. I do think the drinks are quite expensive compared to other restaurants but the food is really good value and through January they've been offering 40% off food if you have a loyalty card (they're free to get, so just ask for a form to fill out) which makes it even better. I think I might have to go there again before January is over to take full advantage of the offer!

So there are 6 of my favourites, although I think I need to start eating out a bit less now as I'm not sure how many more meals out my bank account or waistline can take! I need to start saving my money for my summer holidays and when I go in July, I definitely don't want to be in a bikini and have been eating out every other day on the run-up to it so maybe it's time for me to swap to soups and salads at home for a while!