So the clink came to my rescue for mother days, with me leaving a booking till the last minute. Using a website called resdiary, it's easy to selected the time and date, checking for Availablity. A deposit per head is taken of £15 but is used towards your bill at the end.
The clink is a charity that helps prisoners in rehabilitation and then reduces reoffending while training in their restaurant. The Cardiff branch is located on Knox road in the city centre. With public transport routes and parking nearby, its easy to get to.
When we entered we were early but warmly welcomed to our tables. The decor is fantastic with a stone wall and a mirrored wall. The restaurant is actually quite small, but the mirrored wall makes it look a lot bigger.
It soon came time to order, although there was no alcohol served here they have an array of drinks. Mocktails, fizzy drinks and soft drinks. I opted for an orange juice, my dad had Sicilian lemonade, mum had a raspberry crush and my brother ice tea.
It was soon time to eat, the starters had a special on of cream of artichoke soup. This unfortunately did'nt tickle my taste buds so opted for the duck. Confit duck, with crispy skin crumb and a rhubarb gel. The combination of flavours blended so well together and was presented beautifully. As my Brother is vegan he had only one option this was the asparagus and potato warm salad. The salad came with an accompaniment of a lemon coulis and charred spring onion. I tried a bit of asparagus and was just cooked to perfection.
Soon came the main course. So many options to choose from, with the special being fish. To narrow it down I thought i'd see what others are eating to get an idea.
Then I clocked the size of the Yorkshire puddings and my choice was made. I opted for the roast sirloin of beef with a huge Yorkshire. The meat was cooked to perfection with there being very generous portions, it came with carrot and parsnips which had a great bite to them. I was so excited with the potato options too, two kinds of potato on one plate. The mash potato was creamy and delicious. Their Hasselback potatoes were so crisp but without being burnt, I wish I could replicate it at home. On the site you get a bowl filled to the brim with vegetables as well. Some cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower as well as a dash of swede. A jug full to the brim with gravy meant there was no chance of running out. The sheer volume of food was crazy. For once in my life, I was the last one eating food as there was so much.
My parents opted for a similar dish but both had the roast leg of lamb. An assortment of sauces was offered including mint to compliment the dish. Both my parents enjoyed it but were not as lucky as me to have a Yorkshire pudding.
My brother could only have one dish of the menu but the bite I sampled was delicious. Tarragon and polenta gnocchi with watercress and almond pesto broad bean and asparagus, with a fennel fricassee. So the gnocchi is not what you normally image, but larger disc instead. The spices blended well and were very flavoursome.
Unfortunately my brother had to leave to go to an appointment, but that was not stopping us getting dessert. Since being told the specials at the start I knew what I was having. An absolute star of the pudding world sticky toffee pudding. The spices brought out a great taste and there was lashing of sauce to go around. It came with some beautiful ice cream, but my mum did say she'd prefer custard next time. My dad opted for the rhubarb and cardamon beignet, with rhubarb curd and a blackcurrant ice cream. Beignet I hear you ask what are those, it's a word for posh doughnuts. He just gobbled them up in no time at all.
My overall experience was excellent, all the food was delicious. Although they are only open till 3 and it was a bit over we didn't feel rushed to leave at all. The staff are friendly and welcoming, giving us a great farewell when we left.