The Friary, Cardiff. 029 2066 7096 ★★★★☆
Since its transition from Ha Ha Bar to Browns earlier this year, I’d only popped in for a drink and was yet to sample the food. As I’d always found Ha Ha hit and miss – I  was once served uncooked chicken and was told by the chef “it was meant to be cooked that way” – I was keen to see what Browns was like.
For a Thursday evening there was a good atmosphere, the bar area was busy and many tables were occupied with diners. Once seated, it didn’t take us long to decide what we fancied. To drink I had a glass (or two) of Merlot; I opted for the king prawn cocktail (£5.95), my husband the baked pancetta mushrooms (£4.95). Both were delicious, my husband’s mushrooms were full of flavour and I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of prawns in my cocktail. Only problem being that due to my height (or lack of), I found the tall glass the prawns were served in a challenge. Obviously my husband found this hilarious, and rightly so.
I continued the fish theme for my main with the seared tuna niçoise with egg, baby potatoes, olives and anchovies (£12.45) whilst my other half chose a confit of Norfolk pork belly with crackling, squash purée, French beans, crispy leeks and a mustard and thyme jus (£13.95). A friend of ours had raved about the sweet potato dauphinoise (£2.95) so we ordered a side of that too. My tuna steak was cooked to perfection, a rare feat that normally sees it served still swimming or well overdone. My dining partner also thoroughly enjoyed his main, although perhaps a bit too dry for my taste. And after seeing it on the menu earlier, my husband was determined to try the hot chocolate brownie (£5.95), which must have been delicious as I was refused a taste.
Overall it was a very pleasant evening with good food, lovely wine, great service and not too expensive either. A definite improvement from Ha Ha and a welcome addition to the city centre. I just need to remember a cushion to sit on next time if I’m to order the prawn cocktail. ANGHARAD BROWN