Clare Road, Cardiff. 029 2023 5555 / www.tramshedcardiff.com/the-waiting-room
The all-encompassing Tramshed’s latest launch is The Waiting Room, set up in the bar area downstairs, as a bar/kitchen style eatery serving sliders and small bespoke sides and desserts. The menu is pared down: not a massive choice but straightforward. While downing a pint of one of the artisan beers, you can sample a miniature beefburger, which does exactly what it says on the menu for a mere £3.50 (pick any two sliders and a side order for only £7.50, add an extra slider for only £2.50).
The concept is simple – mini-sliders, displayed either in a three-tiered cake stand or presented in a cardboard tray. No fuss, good value, and created to be a complimentary addition to the bar. The Bronx is a beef patty with crispy bacon, lettuce, tomato and onion, while the vegan-friendly Patti Smith comprises a brown rice, black bean and beetroot patty with shoestring potatoes, caramelised onions and roast tomato. Even as a non-veggie, this was the one for me.
The new-fangled Fizz IQ, a specifically designed carbonation and bottling machine, has also arrived from America, so expect to be dazzled by the steam and puff emanating from the bar, serving up more traditional cocktails: the vodka-based Lavender Collins, cucumber and strawberry fizz, tiki fizz and pineapple scotch soda, and a selection of bourbon based drinks. All are made on site and bottled ready to serve, and will soon be available to take away. The key to the Waiting Room menu is the price – desserts from £2, sides from £1.50 – and it’s genuinely good, too.
Open for breakfast with bacon buns and various options (for example, a bun with tea or coffee for £3), the Tramshed’s restaurant Dough Eyes is due to open by the end of summer. With that plus a cinema and media hub next door, the Tramshed is regenerating Grangetown and providing a much-needed alternative venue.
words ANTONIA LEVAY