Mediterranean in Shropshire

A foodie group of 8 of us went for a birthday meal. The decor is stylish and there has clearly been a significant investment so we were surprised to be the only diners in a sea of empty reserved tables. Service was led by the one and only waiter who was nice but young, a bit inexperienced perhaps and certainly not representative of a fine dining experience. Wine on the list was limited to such a degree that it was not in stock and a five pound substitute from Tesco next door was delivered and remarkably morphed into a £20 bottle. Not fine dining by any stretch . We felt very dismayed at that point. Having read the menu there were some very different options which I thought we would all enjoy. The bone marrow with snails went down a storm, sea bass and duck similarly well received. The chicken dish arrived and was very lukewarm which left us wandering how service would fare should the mystery diners who had reserved tables suddenly appear. The vegetarian options are pitiful and given that Mediterranean food is often vegetarian it was very disappointing. Soup and a salad or some wildly al dense pasta dish, also with a mushroom sauce wasn’t good. The salad was gentrified with some very tasteless truffle. In summary it wasn’t the experience we were expecting. We thought the location was likely to limit clientele and in its current format the model is unlikely to succeed. The place does have talent in the kitchen so more mainstream Mediterranean food done well with superb steaks etc might catch on. A good USP to get bums on seats might be the chance to BYO. Also problems with paying with cards so all cash and a handwritten bill! Really?

Advertisement as fine dining, prices certainly that end, food presentation and taste good but better for same price available in and around town. Had to ask for steak knife to cut duck given what looked like kitchen vegetable knife. Lee's not properly washed as had gritty soil in. Menu more general European than Mediterranean. Ambience of place not what I would associate with Mediterranean, music definitely not good (bit drum and bass). Service while not awful also not fine dining. Suggest they take fine dining out of title and adverts. Lots of reserved tables but no diners.

Mediterranean only opened a few weeks ago, a couple of hundred metres away from where I live, and it was such an unusual place for a fine dining restaurant to be - in Ditherington, next door to Tesco Express, and there seemed to be no information about the place, apart from a short piece on Shropshire Live - that I was very intrigued, so when my Mother came to stay for a visit, we just had to investigate. I am SO glad we did, this understated little restaurant deserves far more publicity than it has received so far, the food is top quality, service is professional and friendly, and the ambience sophisticated and chic. There was no menu posted outside, when we arrived, which is unfortunate and might discourage passing trade, though the restaurant does have a good website where you can view the menu and all the choices on offer. We were the first people to arrive that evening, though more did arrive later on, and we received a very friendly welcome and were immediately given the menu and asked if we wanted drinks. A lovely surprise was the warm bread and oil/balsamic vinegar brought to the table so we happily chomped on this while deciding what to order. I went for a starter of lobster bisque, which was served from a sauce boat and there was enough for two huge bowls full with plenty of chunks of lobster. I offered to share, but this was declined, so I kept the lot for myself :). For mains we both opted for the short rib of beef, with cheesy mash and asparagus The beef was cooked to perfection, but the cheesy mash was the stuff of dreams - absolute Ambrosia. I could have taken a whole plateful home with me. For afters we had Eton Mess and English Toffee Pudding. The Eton Mess was unlike any I have had before, owing to a complete absence of cream, but the kiwi and cherry puree was delicious with meringue "straws", and the Toffee pudding, while it looked to be quite dry, was in fact completely the opposite, beautifully light and very tasty. All in all a perfect meal: with two glasses of wine, the bill came to £68. The Meditteranean is a real delight, and as someone on their Facebook page has remarked, the chairs in the restaurant are extremely comfortable! I do so hate some restaurant seating that makes you feel as though you are perching on a hard surface. It was a lovely place to linger, and we will certainly be visiting again. All I can add to the owners is to publicise all you can, the location is not where you would look for such a great place to eat: put a menu and your website details outside.