Reviews

Top Table January 2008

"Canteen on Clifton Street in Cardiff is a fun and lively restaurant with fresh and inspiring fare. The down-to-earth dining room, with tiled floors and wood-panelled walls, is well-known for its vegetarian-based menu, and is the perfect place for dinners and parties with friends who are vegans, vegetarians and/or omnivores. The kitchen at Canteen on Clifton Street takes inspiration from Mexican and Mediterranean traditions, and the menu changes every fortnight. Favourite dishes include the Arabian spiced lamb with cardamom, pistachio and apricot rice; curried parsnip and mango soup; Lebanese spinach parcels with carrot and beetroot salad; and their famous vegan sticky toffee pudding. The chefs at Canteen are also happy to create bespoke meals"

buzz February 2008

"Canteen on Clifton Street has only been open a few months, but a quick scout around the internet suggests it's already been welcomed with a sloppy kiss by the Cardiff vegetarian, er, community. Meat-free establishments have never exactly been in abundance in these parts, and the options that are out there tend to be more in the casual, cafe-ish vein than a restaurant per se. [Canteen] straddles the nebulous gap between the two: it's homely by design and the proprietors are very friendly and attentive...

The menu, which changes fortnightly, is small but interesting, and feature one meat option, mirroring the single veggie choice offered in a great many (larger) places. My dining partner started with a meze assortment - pita, hummus, baba ganouj and imam bayeldi. I selected the vegetable tom yum soup, which had just the right level of heat and proportion of veg in the bottom of the bowl. Braised oxtail with potato gnocchi was deemed a robust and gloriously rich main, to the point where a dessert was no longer an option for the person eating it. I wasn't that person though: coconut curried tofu with jasmine rice was my choice, and it was an effevescent meal, even if sweetcorn in curry is a combo I can't quite get in the zone with.

Banana pancakes with caramel banana syrup was a splendid and unfussy dessert choice... Tomos Watkins beer, as offered here, is always worthy of a big-up, as are the complimentary homemade vodka infusions: a man could do terrible things to himself if left alone with the blackberry one... The Canteen is a worthy pin on Cardiff's map, one which appears to operate on strong and worthy principles"

Noel Gardner

Restaurant-Guide February 2008

"This is a relatively new place which is quickly getting a good reputation among locals. We have been taken there twice by two different groups of friends and both times have been a pleasure. The food is very tasty and portion sizes just right. We especially valued the fact that meals could often be prepared as veggie, vegan and even sometimes dairy or gluten free. In an age where intolerances are high, this is a very welcome change. The falafel with chilli sauce as a starter was absolutely divine. Well cooked, not at all greasy and moist. The beef curry that I had on my first visit was absolutely gorgeous - the meat was tender and the spicy sauce was enough to warm you up on a cold night but not too much for an unseasoned palate to survive. Finally, the desserts are to die for - Wayne, the chef, really has a talent for these. My particular favourite was his sticky toffee pudding which was the first time I've had such a rich sponge that was still light enough to not be overly sickly and wish we could have sampled his gluten free version as my partner hasn't tasted a pudding like that since she became gluten intolerant. At the end of the night, Wayne often comes out and speaks with all his guests. He likes to hear feedback about his meals which I take as a very good sign that he really cares about the food. Overall, I'd say it was an excellent choice for an evening eating out in Cardiff."

Jon

VeggieHeaven March 2008

We ate at the 'Canteen on Clifton Street' last night and had a wonderful meal. I'm loathe to tell anyone about this place in case it becomes too popular and getting a table may be impossible, however, it would be a travesty to keep this good cooking and egalitarian (vegan, vegetarian and omnivore) restaurant under wraps. The evening menu is small (three starters, three mains, three desserts) and changes every two weeks or so. The deal is two courses for £10.00 or three courses for £13.50. What a deal!! Each menu includes one main meat choice, and vegan versions are either already on the menu or available upon request. It's great to be able to go out with meat eating friends and find a menu which gives everyone choice. The food is full of variety (not just your typical and supremely boring vegetarian lasagne) with flavours from all over the world. Last night I had a delicious paneer, pea and endamame balti beautifully spiced served with a corriander roti, followed by a mushroom loaf with a tomato/chipotle sauce (delicious) and my dining companion had the wild garlic soup, followed by braised beef and guinness pie; both mains were served with hearty portions of braised red cabbage (slightly too vinegary for my companion) and champ (or colcannon since it was mash with cabbage or kale?). All yummy and good sized portions. The restaurant was busy, with a variety of patrons from older retired people, professional looking couples, families and student types, and there was genial buzz about the place. It's not veggie trippy at all and we really liked this about the place. It calls itself a canteen and the decor is not fancy, but the food is definitely the best Cardiff has to offer for vegetarians and I'd say there is some mighty fine dining available here!

Jules (Cardiff)

40 Clifton Street,

Cardiff, CF24 1LR

Tel: 029 20454999

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