Location: 66 Wind Street, Swansea, SA1 1EQ

Web site: www.ilpadrinoswansea.com

Telephone number: 01792 644611

Date of visit: 18/8/10

Approx. cost per head: £16

Comments on wine list/beer: A good range of wines and beers

Media link:

Review:

Located on Wind Street, in the heart of the City Centre, the restaurant has changed both name and ownership since I last visited.

I’m pleased to say that the once good food, atmosphere and service is even better it its new guise. An Italian restaurant run by Italians makes all the difference compared to the growing list of chains, something well reflected in the food and the evening overall.

The restaurant itself is well turned out and inviting and the staff provide a warm and friendly welcome.

The menu offers an excellent range of choice, very good for vegetarians too. Starters average £5-6 whilst pasta mains hover around £9, and others £10-15. The Penne Polpette was very tasty, as was the Tagliatelle Positano. The desert menu is a little limited but still very nice.

I’ll no doubt be visiting again next time I’m in the city.

Dave Lamont

Web site: http://thaielephantswansea.com

Telephone number: 01792 650 050

Date of visit: 15/8/10

Approx. cost per head: £15

Comments on wine list/beer: A safe selection of wines and beers

Media link:

Review:

Situated in Swansea’s swanky new SA1 development on the edge of the City Centre, The Thai Elephant is adjacent to a few similar sized bars and restaurants with ample parking nearby.

Having read a few online reviews before our meal, the one recurring criticism people had was service – something we immediately noticed on arrival. Despite having booked we were initially turned away rather rudely and told the restaurant was closing in an hour. Having then been chased by an apologetic waiter we went on to enjoy a very nice meal.

The atmosphere was a little sterile and the restaurant is somewhat small but the food is the best Thai food I’ve found in the area. In fact, in Wales.

Starters, which are rather substantial, average around £5 and mains just short of £10. Wine is reasonably priced with a good selection on offer.

The Thai Elephant is also relatively new and still, I think, finding its feet. If they can breathe a little life into the service and atmosphere it’s a hard option to overlook for a nice evening out.

Address: Brecon Road, Pen y Cae, Swansea Valley, Powys SA9 1GL (A4067 Swansea-Brecon Road)

Telephone number: 01639 731167

Website: www.craigynoscastle.com

Date of visit: 5 and 6 August 2010

Approximate cost per head: Rooms start at £42.50 pp for 2 sharing for B&B. Single from approx £70

Comments on wine list/beer: Carling is the main larger on tap in the bar and that sums the place up.

Summary:

I was there for a Wedding.

The castle specialises in functions. They do not serve lunch or dinner except as part of a do.

As this is a foodie blog, I’ll start with the food. The normal breakfast is described as continental – I have never experienced anything so poor anywhere in the world where I had to paid to stay.

On a long table, there were:  a basket of bread (while and brown – incidentally, the brown was a sort of seeded German loaf which was the best part of the meal), a basket containing butter and jam patties, a bowl of yogurt, a basket of cold hard boiled eggs, a selection of cereals (the small individual multipacks that you can buy in a supermarket), tea in a thermos flask and coffee on a coffer warmer and NOTHING else. Sorry, we did have a toaster.

They do serve cooked breakfast but only at weekends and for a wedding party – if the guests were staying overnight.

At the “wedding breakfast”, for starters, we were offered Thai fish cake with a sweet chilli sauce or parma ham with melon, main courses were a choice between roast beef (over cooked) or slow cooked lamb shank. The accompanying vegetables were beans, carrots and parsnip all over cooked. I had the lamb shank which was excellent – it came with a rich clingy dark sauce and nice mash. The Thai fish cake was thin and dry.

For desserts, there was a choice between strawberry crème brulee or chocolate brownies with ice cream. I never saw the crème brulee as the bride sent it back on the basis it was more like angel delight than something firm.

Later that evening, we had a hog roast with all the trimmings. The meat was moist, the crackling crisp and the meat easily pulled apart – excellent.

For breakfast the next day, cooked breakfast was on offer to the hundred or so guests that have stayed. You can have anything (or everything) from, fried and scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, black pudding, grilled and tinned tomatoes, bake beans, mushrooms, hash brown and fried bread.

The moral of the story is that this place is only geared for functions – although they do welcome guests for B&B.

Now that the food part is over, let me tell you about the rooms and the castle.

The castle was built in 1840s by a Captain Powell, after his death, the Morgans bought it and by the 1860s sold it onto Adelina Patti – the famous diva. She subsequently spent £100,000 upgrading it. The most famous part of the building is her theatre which has a floor that can be raised at the back to offer those sitting at the back a better vantage point or levelled for ballroom dancing. The theatre can sit 150 people. She used it to entertain her friends – including Edward VII. The place is also full of furniture styled in Louis XIV fashion. By the way, if you are not staying there, they offer tours of the place including a ghost tour.

Back to the hotel, although the rooms are pretty nice looking, there are all sorts of problems. For example, the hot water ran out and if you get up very early, you could be in for a surprise when you take your early morning shower. There are rooms with its own hot water tank but it is only good for 2 showers or a bath (it’s in the brochure). The toilet roll in my en suite only had five sheets of paper and there was no replacement roll. On top of that, some rooms have no TV reception – Sky is available in certain  rooms and the lounge. There is a Spa but I did not visit it.

Nearby are the world famous Dan Yr Ogof Caves and the Penderyn Distillery http://www.welsh-whisky.co.uk/  (Welsh Single Malt!).

 Two miles from Craid y Nos Castle is a place called Abercarf. The inn there is also called Abercarf  http://www.abercraveinn.co.uk/, I recommend that you eat and stay there – there will be a write up on the Abercarf Inn. Do visit Craig y Nos Castle.

E

PS Overall the wedding was great.

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