Nicola's reviews
Review of Dragon At Bistro Vietnam
08 Nov 07, 16:29
Great Vietnamese Food 
Bistro Vietnam is in the centre of Canterbury on a small side street, housed in a beautifully refurbished industrial building. The restaurant has a lovely calm and relaxed atmosphere which makes it the perfect venue for a meal with friends. I would recommend going in a group as the food is great to share and some of the meals are for two or more people. The food itself has a Vietnamese influence and is delicious. The starters are a tapas style so perfecr to pick at and try a few at once. The main courses come in very generous portions and the majority either come with noodles or rice can be ordered as a side order. If you are partial to a glass of champagne then this is the place for you, there is an extensive champagne menu. The wines are good too! The staff are always willing to advise about the size of portions and how much to order. You also get to choose how spicy your dish is which means all tastes are catered for. My favourite dishes are the vegetarian pancakes and the pork and rice noodle salad. The location is perfect if you fancy a couple of drinks afterwards.
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Review of The Bishop's Finger
08 Nov 07, 11:34
The Nun's Delight!
I find reviewing the Bishop's Finger pub very difficult as it is one of my favourite pubs in Canterbury but I can't quite put my finger on the reason why! It always has a good atmosphere and is a popular place with students and locals alike.Set in a 16th Century buliding this is a real pub not a bar so it is not particularly modern but does have a cosy feel to it. It has a nice garden in the summer and usually the selection of music playing is pretty good which can be changed if you don't like it because there is a juke box! It is the kind of place where you can sit and chat with a few drinks all evening. It is also a good place to start your evening. The Bishop's Finger has a late license and you do not have to be in before 11 to be served which is the case in most bars and pubs in Canterbury. The staff are always fun and friendly which always makes for a good evening. My one problem with this pub is the toilets, they are not nice and if they sorted them out I would give them 4 stars!
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Review of The Good Food Cafe
08 Nov 07, 09:53
Tasty Vegetarian Food
The Good Food Cafe is located above Canterbury's independent wholefoods store. It has a great relaxed atmosphere perfect for a casual lunch or coffee. The tables are nicely spread out so you don't feel too close to your fellow diners. The food served here is vegetarian as well as organic, local, fair trade and fresh. There are also, gluten free and vegan options always available. The food is very tasty and served in generous portions. This is not bland and dull vegetarian food it is really enjoyable and there is always a good selction of dishes to choose from. Generally on the menu you will find soups, salads, sandwiches and more substantial hot meals. There also some nice cakes and ice creams to finish off your lunch. The staff are always very laid back and friendly. A great place to go even if you are not a vegetarian.
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Review of The Sugar Boy
05 Nov 07, 23:07
A Sweet Emporium 
If you love sweets you will love this shop and even if you don't love sweets its worth a look anyway. In a tiny shop next to the King's School, this is an old fashioned sweet shop, it only sells sweets! The walls are entirely lined with jars of sweets, which looks amazing and the shop has a lovely cosy feel to it. It sells pretty much every type of sweet you can imagine from aniseed balls to rhubarb and custards. This approach for me is so much better than pick n mix as all the sweets are in jars it means that they have not been touched by hundreds of dirty hands! I could spend ages just browsing in this store looking at all the different types of sweets. Black Jacks and Fruit Salads are still sold for one penny each in this store which I think is brilliant! Once you have made your selection, harder than it may sound, you take it to the counter where it is weighed and placed into red and white stripey paper bags...perfect!
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of Baby Love
05 Nov 07, 22:41
beautiful and ethical!
Baby Love is an independent store in a really nice part of the town. The store itself is really lovely, finished in white wood which makes it feel fresh and calm. The shop sells baby's and children's clothes up to the age of six. All the clothes they stock are fair-trade and give something back to the community in which they are made. Some of the brands stocked are made from organic cotton. The clothes are all beautiful and are perfect for a gift. The brands sold are all small and make items which are much more age appropriate than a lot of the children's clothes you see on the highstreet. Baby Love also sell some great toys, I particularly like the knitted animals which just look so lovely. They also stock handcrafted wooden toys. The items are all quite pricey but ideal for presents.
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of Chicago Rock Cafe
05 Nov 07, 09:52
you deserve better!! 
Chicago Rock Cafe is a terrible place, I'm sorry to be so negative but it is very difficult to say anything positive about this venue! It is one of very few late night venues in Canterbury and it takes advantage of this shortage as they know that people will be forced to go there. The drinks are over priced, generally luke warm and normally you will have to queue for about 20 minutes to get one. The music played is terrible and the same evey week a mix of cheese and r n b. The floors are always sticky and the toilets are just disgusting, normally blocked and generally unhygienic. Its a small venue and it just gets way too crowded. The only positive about it is that if you have lived in Canterbury a long time you will see a lot of people you know in there!
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of Alberry's Wine Bar
01 Nov 07, 16:07
fun with rum!
This is the only late night venue in Canterbury that I will willing go to! During the day Alberry's is a wine bar and bistro in the evening it is more of a drinking and dancing venue! It is the night time side of Alberry's I am reviewing. Canterbury is very short on decent places to go when the pubs shut. The other venues mainly cater for a very young crowd and persistently play terrible music! Alberry's caters for a much larger age group and plays a wide selection of music which varies depending on the night. The music ranges from break beat to house and drum n base to electro which means that most people will find some music to suit them. The bar has an extensive cocktail menu and stocks the largerst selction of rums you will probably ever see! It is a fairly small venue so can get pretty crowded and certain downstairs areas have very low ceilings so not good for tall people. After 10 pm an entry fee of £4 is charged. All in all though, it is a pretty good venue. Thursday nights are buy one get one free, before midnight, on mainline spirits so that always makes for a cheaper night out.
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of Saffron Cafe
01 Nov 07, 15:32
al fresco lunch
Saffron Cafe is about a 2 minute walk from the centre of Canterbury and a good choice for a quick breakfast or lunch. The menu is mainly made up of sandwiches, paninis and baguettes all of which are freshly made, with a large selection of fillings and good value for money. Also on the menu are salads, jacket potatoes, omeletes and pasta. This a good choice for breakfast if you fancy a full english but don't fancy the greasy spoon! The breakfasts are good and there are lots of options. The best part about this cafe is the garden, at the back of the restaurant there is a beautiful little courtyard hung with grapevines it really is lovely spot in the spring and summer. Takeaway sandwiches are also available.
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Review of City Arms Inn
01 Nov 07, 14:13
nice pub in the centre of town
The City Arms is in the city centre down a little side street. It is a fairly small pub but it is a great place for a few after work drinks or for a pub lunch. The staff are great, really friendly and the pub cleaniness is always kept to a very high standard. They serve a nice selection of beers and wines alongside all the usual drinks and cocktails. The food is also pretty good, the kitchen is open between 12 and 5 and serves good pub food. I can recommend the City Burger it is homemade and massive! The service is usually quick enough to enable you to eat there in a lunch hour. There is however, only one women's toilet so there can be a queue and this pub can get very crowded at busy times as it is small.
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Review of Old City Bar
01 Nov 07, 13:54
nice local pub
The Old City is located just outside of the city walls, slightly tucked away in a fairly nice part of town. It is pretty much my local pub, it always has a nice relaxed atmosphere, which makes it a good place to go to for a couple of quiet drinks. You don't to have wait ages to get served and the staff are pleasant. They stock a good selection of bottled and draught beers and there is a nice, big garden at the back of the pub. This is probably not the place for you if you are after a big night out, but makes a good starting point. The Old City shows a fair bit of sport and not just football, so good for sports fans.
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