Raphael Bar & Restaurant, Bath

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Blackthorn _ left this review about Raphael Bar & Restaurant

Although this "pub" describes itself on it's website as a restaurant and bar, in reality the emphasis, and even the appearance of the establishment, is very much the former, and had it not already been listed on here it would not have occurred to me to add it. There is a very small bar counter, but this seems to be more for the benefit of staff than punters and I imagine anybody standing at it would be in the way of the waitresses whizzing between the two halves of the pub. When we called in at 6:30 on a Saturday evening, it was full to capacity with diners and I can't see how anybody just wanting a drink could have been accommodated.

That said, it's a pleasant enough place if you're after a bite to eat, and it would seem that the popularity of the venue when we visited was down to their "2 courses for £14.95" pre-theatre deal. The flooring is very dark, almost black wood and this contrasts with the very pale blue, almost white walls. It's not especially big, and the tables and chairs are quite tightly packed in, and there was also some bench seating along the rear wall. A ledge above this housed all manor of bottles such as champagne and olive oil, as well as wine crates and other food and drink paraphernalia. The theme is apparently French, and this was reflected in the inscriptions on the large mirrors on the wall, the signs on the loos and at least one of the waitresses.

The menu offered a fairly succinct choice with half a dozen or so options for each course, although there were a few more on a specials menu. Most of the mains were around the £15 mark if you didn't opt for the pre-theatre deal mentioned earlier. Both my filo duck parcel with stir fried vegetables in an oriental sauce for starter and the honey roasted pork belly in a caramelised onion red wine sauce for the main course were pleasant and tasty dishes and I would happily return to try something else.

Unfortunately there were no draught ales available, or anything else on draught come to that. The solitary bottled beer was Bath's Gem, while the cider option was Weston's Organic.

On 25^th April 2013 - rating: 7
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