Patrick’s Restaurant and Bar - a great little oasis (From Dorset Society)

Patrick’s Restaurant and Bar - a great little oasis

6:00am Friday 1st January 2010

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Patrick’s Restaurant and Bar is a great little oasis in the middle of vibrant Lower Parkstone.

It started life as a bank, and was converted in 2006 into a sophisticated and stylish place to drop by and have anything from coffee and a cake, to a drink with friends, to a superb evening meal.

I love the fact that it serves breakfast daily until 2.30pm (so no need to rush out of bed for smoked bacon and scrambled eggs or the full English). You can have lunch or breakfast either in the well-styled surroundings or take advantage of the take-away menu between 10am and 2.30pm.

Or do as we did and relax over dinner on a cold winter evening.

The welcome was warm, and the menu style, being brasserie, is as cosy or elegant as you choose.

Starters, for example, ranged from the rustic soup of the day and farmhouse bread, to gateaux of crab with a mango pico de galo and mixed leaf salad.

And a range of grills and burgers sat alongside such dishes as marinated lamb rump in garlic and lemon, fondant potato, ratatouille and rosemary jus – or red snapper with a smoked red pepper, crab and sweet corn risotto. To start, my friend went for the simple but delicious buttered asparagus salad with parmesan and balsamic (£4.95).

To follow, she was reeled in by the tempura of lemon sole with posh chips and tartare sauce (£13.95). Delicate, moist fillets were coated in a light tempura batter and served with proper, hand cut golden chunky chips. A great take on a traditional favourite.

I went for items off a special menu for that evening which was very reasonably priced at £17.95 for three courses.

I think pork is a very undersung meat, and I certainly wasn’t disappointed with my slow roast pork belly (which just melted in the mouth) served with ratatouille and fluffy mashed potato.

An Atlantic prawn and crab tian in a Marie Rose sauce offered a light and refreshing starter.

Probably because we liked the look of them rather than actually needing them, we ordered a side of mixed vegetables and another of onion rings with tomato jam (I’d go back just for these), priced £2.95 each.

And to finish we shared fantastic sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream which was an astonishingly light dessert.

The restaurant seats up to 70 guests but its clever seating plan adds an air of intimacy amid the high ceilings, original features and modern décor.

A DJ adds to the atmosphere every Friday and Saturday night, while on the last Friday of every month, there’s music from the Brass Monkeys.

If you like the food at Patrick’s, you can even have it at home thanks to their outside catering service offering anything from an intimate dinner party to a marquee, barbecue, bar and entertainment for 200 people.

Patrick’s is a family-run establishment, and the level of care taken both with the standard of food and customer service was evident throughout our meal.

And given its location, I’d say it was a place you could, erm, bank on.

Patrick’s Restaurant & Bar, Bournemouth Road, Lower Parkstone: 01202 734000

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