Super comfy booths, cheap meals with a drink purchase, nice friendly staff, what more could you ask for! Scratch that, I can ask for decent music! lol :-) the music didn't kill me, but it also didn't endear me to the place. Shame, it ticks all the other boxes. Did I mention the super dooper comfy booths??

Approximate cost: $12

Comfy relaxed venue. Not recommended for those with children, I went there the other day with my sister & 14mth old niece and we were promptly turned away. The venue was empty at 11am, we were looking for somewhere comfortable to sit and chat and have a cool drink or coffee. The doorman did recommend another venue, however, I am curious to know why the no kids policy, if its part of their licensing laws or a personal decision. Despite this it's a decent place to hang out with adult friends! They also do cheap lunch deals.

I have been a customer of these guys for several years now and they have never failed to deliver on quality or service. The staff are always helpful and open to answering any questions I have.

Bertha Brown is a strange girl. Interesting, yet a little cool and awkward in ways.
The staff are nice, efficient and attentive. The food is good, though nothing fantastic. Vegetarian options are uninspired, though they do exist!
It's a comfortable space with good happy hour specials, and up an end of town where decent places to hang out are fewer.

Worth checking out if you are in the area, though I wouldn't go out of my way.

Approximate cost: $8.50 - $20

A really lovely dining experience was had here recently by myself and two dear friends! Service wise, it is one of the best dining encounters I have had in a long time, and probably ranks in my top ten of all time! The waiter who looked after us, for that is what he did, was attentive when needed, pleasant and went above and beyond to make our meal and time at the Royal Saxon an event to remember.

The food was all superb. Being a vegetarian there was not a heap of choice for me, but this is more often than not the case these days! That being said, I was more than happy with my vegie selection.

We enjoyed, starters, mains, desserts. All were superb! Beers, wines and stickys were all matched well with our dishes.

The venue is quite large, however, with several different areas a sense of privacy is maintained. I look forward to returning soon and enjoying the inviting courtyard on a sunny day!

Approximate cost: $20-35

My first Wagamama experience was a few weeks ago before seeing a show at the Arts Centre. A perfect location for a meal before seeing a show, it's so close and the service is pretty quick.

The food was lovely and fresh. Flavours were great, pretty much what I expected. A little pricier than what the surroundings of the restaurant suggest. It was still reasonably priced, just not a great deal which is what the decor suggests to me.
One plus was the option to have a regular or large glass of wine. The large glass looked to be approximately one and a half times a standard drink, which proved a more affordable alternative. The wines on offer were good too!
The desserts and teas looked tempting, I will be back to try these soon when I have more time :-)

Approximate cost: $17

On the one hand quite a nice evening was had by myself and my partner at Lai Thai recently, on the other not so great.

The restaurant itself is nicely put together. More interesting than most Thai restaurants, with a fusion of modern and traditional Thai furnishings. The lighting was pleasing being not too bright, as was the music.

The staff too were lovely. Attentive, smiling - they added to the pleasing atmosphere of the restaurant.

The food, ...sadly was not up to the standard of other Thai restaurants I have been to. Which has been a great many over the years! The dishes my partner and i ordered appeared to be reheated. Gasp! Thai food is usually so crisp and fresh. A big no no in my book, and the reason why I will not go back to Lai Thai or recommend it to friends.

Price wise they are affordable, cheaper than some other Thai restaurants. Fully licensed and BYO wine only.

Approximate cost: $15

I went to 14 Bridge Rd Italian restaurant recently on a voucher deal. The restaurant itself is nice and open with a raised area up the back with lovely large windows and roadside seating out the front to take advantage of the warmer weather (when we have it!). The furnishings in the back/raised area badly need a makeover. The wooden chairs, once I am sure quite lovely and although still comfortable, are in really poor condition with the varnish in strips. I was embarrassed for the owners to see the chairs in such a poor state, it really says they don't care how their restaurant looks and makes me wonder what the kitchen is like if this is what they think is acceptable.

Onto the food....we had a three course meal and bottle of wine. Fantastic value through an Ouffer deal. The regular prices are reasonable as well.
The entree, a shared bruschetta of tomato, onion and basil was nice enough but somewhat lacklustre. The flavours were all there but more along the lines of a snack you'd whip up at home. The addition of some badly wilted lettuce didn't help things along. The dish was saved by a particularly good balsamic reduction.
For mains we had spinach & ricotta agnolotti with a pumpkin& sundried tomato creamy sauce. This dish was great! Nice fresh pasta made on the premises & the portion size was perfect - I often find meals too large when dining out and end up eating the whole thing anyway and feeling stuffed! My partner had a Calabrase pizza. He said it was good, not great but good. I spied pizzas on some other tables that looked a little more tempting, perhaps he lucked out with his choice, although it would be nice to have consistency between dishes.
Dessert! Well dessert was definitely the highlight. I had a trio of gelati, strawberry, lemon and chocolate. All were divine, particularly the berry. My partner had the chocolate croissant pudding. I was dubious of this dish when he ordered it, however, it was really good! Served with a warm chocolate sauce, mmm, need I say more!

Service was okay, there were a few times when I felt the staff could have been more attentive. All the staff were pleasant, particularly one waitress who really did improve the atmosphere of the place with her smile and happy attitude.

All in all a nice evening. The main letdown was the bruschetta with its wilted, mostly inedible, lettuce. If not for this the meal was nice, as expected from an Italian restaurant although nothing to rave about. Worth checking out if you live nearby or are looking at buying a voucher, which they often seem to have on the various deal websites.

Approximate cost: $16-24

Fantastic kebabs! The standout is the bread, so fresh and soft, mmmmm! The felafels are very nice, and I have been told by others that the meat varieties are good too. A wide selection of dips if you choose a meal. I tried their stuffed turkish pizza once and sadly wasn't impressed, but their kebabs - yum! They also sell their pide bread separately for about $3 which is great since it's oh so so good! Expect to pay a little more than some other kebab places, but they are worth it!

Approximate cost: $9-15

I have been dining at Matsuya for several years now and have always been very happy with my experiences there. The food is very good, prices are reasonable - usually $25 per person including drinks - and the service is friendly and efficient. The decor of the restaurant is clean and concise, typical of a Japanese restaurant. If I were to change anything about this restaurant it would be to alter the decor somewhat, making it a little warmer and more relaxed.
They are very accommodating for those with babies too; there is enough room to wheel a pram through the doors and to your table, plus space to park it!
I highly recommend their seaweed salad :) yum!!
A note for vegetarians - Matsuya have a separate vegie menu, make sure you request a copy and order from here as many of the seemingly vegetarian dishes on the regular menu have fish products in them. Something which is common to most Japanese restaurants, but most don't cater for us as well as Matsuya!