PLEASE NOTE:
Reviewed
1996

Ma Belle is a relatively new restaurant; it has been open for around a year and a half. They serve food with a distinctly French flavour, as the name would suggest. The menu consists of eleven starters, ten main courses and nine desserts. For our first course we had goat's cheese croutons, and prawns with mushrooms in garlic butter. The goat's cheese croutons were nice. The dressing on the salad contained wholegrain mustard which complemented the cheese well, but the course as a whole was unremarkable. There was a large portion of tasty prawns and mushrooms.

For our main courses we had spinach cheese roulade with mixed beans and ribeye steak with shallot butter. The roulade came with a moulded portion of spiced rice with potatoes underneath and two sauces, one which tasted of mushrooms and one which was described as provençale. This was all good; the portions were large, the food tasted nice and the presentation was colourful. I have a bit of a problem with the bitty way that they put their dishes together, with several foods laid out in small mounds on a large plate, owing more to artistic endeavour than to culinary considerations. Others like the presentation and think that it adds to meals here. We had the ribeye steak with shallot butter, but we could have chosen green peppercorn sauce instead. The steak was substantial and of good quality. The presence of the shallot butter made for a richness which was enjoyed. (There were a number of lighter dishes for those with different tastes, for example, chicken breasts with tagliatelle served in a tarragon sauce.) The main courses were served with dishes of fresh vegetables; boiled potatoes which had been sautéed then seasoned and steamed vegetables, consisting of courgettes, cauliflower, carrots, mange tout and carrots.

There was a wide range of excellent desserts, ranging in style from a superb rich chocolate mousse to (for those looking for a lighter end to their meal) the innovative crème brulée. Once again the food was well flavoured and the portions were generous.

The pricing is simple and exceptionally good value, and the menu structure is flexible. We asked for an additional dessert (the pain of being a reviewer) and they did not demur.

The overall impression is of delicious food, stylishly presented. The inventive approach makes for a really interesting and enjoyable night out. A minor gripe is that there is not a huge range of vegetarian meals, and those which they have seem to rely rather heavily on cheese; perhaps this is due to the emphasis on French cuisine. The service is attentive and friendly, but we didn't feel rushed. The food arrived from the kitchen in a dumb waiter, ensuring that even though we were sitting in the upstairs part of the restaurant each course was still fresh and hot when it reached us. The decoration is in earthy colours with individual colours; in a funny sort of way this seems to complement the food.

I can't recommend this restaurant highly enough. The food is wonderful. I would expect to pay a lot more for a meal as classy as this.

Paul Lewis and Nadine Turner.