Before Christmas the WREC made the right step (in my opinion) down the Burton road and frequented Rhubarb . I'd eaten before and really enjoyed my meal and was hoping that this occasion would be the same. I was a little worried that the night wouldn't live up to my expectations as there would be a party of 25 there at the same time. I needn't have worried, the service was swift and, as before, the food was excellent. This is definitely a restaurant that I would recommend to others and definitely visit again. So I think the proof is in the pudding as they say, lets forget Wilmslow road and explore the far more interesting Burton road or any other road for that matter!

No 4

After a long break from the WREC our journey through manchester's finest restaurants began again at N0.4. What a delight this restaurant is, a perfect choice to get our interest in restaurants going again after so many 'bland' experiences before it. From what essentially looks like a small two up two down, comes some well made, well presented, very tasty food at very reasonable prices. I really enjoyed this dining experience and would highly recommend this restaurant to others, as the restaurant have mangaged to do what so many others on the Wilmslow road have failed to do; provide good food and reasonable prices in a welcoming and relaxed environment.
This experience has only strengthened my belief that we should now be called the WREC goes Wild. Enough with the bland and overpriced restaurants along the Wilmslow road, lets turn to it's much more cultured neighbour of Burton Road and explore all that that has to offer. It surely can't be as bad as the loch Fyne fiasco or as cold as the Jade Garden and if it is then there are plenty more streets in Manchester to explore!! Are my fellow diners coming with me on this journey????

So far behind!

OK - by now I can't remember Fat Loaf, Sangam 2 or Felicini's. So I'll give up trying to remember.

Jade Garden I really did not like the food here and was forced to have chips!

Gusto like the others the service was inattentive. The loos were good (high score there). The food OK. The seafood risotto was small but efficient.

The future? It took me years to give myself the permission to give up reading books that I was not enjoying - consequently I wasted huge amounts of valuable time and energy. My first reaction to the suggestion was very much "Nooooo we can't! We've made an undertaking and must see it through even if we hate every moment! It's a slippery slope, what next - the end of civilisation as we know it (Jim)" Very much a protestant restaurant-visit ethic!

After a minute ... however .. yes why not, we're grown-ups aren't we? Who's going to tell us off? Be free!

To be known as WREC - Wilmslow Road Evasion Crew? Why Ruin Eating Club?

Still like to do Aladdins and Kosmos though.

Jade Garden, Gusto and other ramblings

Blogging again after a lengthy absence (you're very busy when you don't work). I was going to catch up with Jade Garden but on reading the other contributions it's all been said - especially how COLD it was (my own personal restaurant killer).

So on to Gusto, where I think I'm going to be a bit more negative, as the woman who 'welcomed' us into the restaurant (we arrived first, as usual) did a poor job - offhand, vague about what was happening, and left us hanging about after inviting us to 'have a drink at the bar'(at our own expense of course - this is one of the standard restaurant ploys to get you to spend more - and was no easy feat as the barman was about as attentive as our greeter). And it's not as if we'd arrived early - we ourselves were 5 mins late. Bafflingly, the table we were eventually shown to (20-25 mins after our booked time) was one which had been empty all along, so if they'd got their act together they could have prepared it and sat us down about 15 mins earlier. They then compounded their sins by leaving us looking at menus for what seemed like about half an hour, until verbally jabbed in the arse by Diner 6. After that, amazingly, it was all plain sailing, and the food was really good - it's just that by then you're feeling a little underwhelmed.

Surveying the immediate future on Wilmslow Road, I find myself agreeing with our revered leader: Tapas bar, Third Eye....I've never been but find I'm not slavering at the prospect. I was looking fwd to the Japanese place (well, at least it wd have been different) but find it has lived up to its name and closed down. Conversation at Gusto suggested we were only really looking fwd to Aladdin's and Kosmos (unless the Thai Banana place turned out to be an unexpected gourmet delight....). Meanwhile there are interesting-sounding places (Green Tea Restaurant)and old favourites ( Gurkha Grill) on Burton Rd; on Lapwing Lane ( always enjoy Piccolino's, and Lime Tree is an institution - if a rather pricey one); and even in Didsbury but not on Wilmslow Rd. eg. Cafe Jem & I (good but again pricey) or No.4 Wine & Dine (complete unknown quantity). Also, read a rave review of a new place in Heaton Moor called Damson the other day, and I think there are other places in that neck of woods. And of course there's Chorlton - though not Marmalade any more, as the Reporter has gleefully informed us that Marmalade is toast. Plus the city centre has loads of new places all the time, though maybe it's easier to stay relatively local.

Could this be the end of WREC as we have known it, to be replaced by WREC goes wild, WREC around town, WREC Libre or whatever ? Further contributions awaited.....

Gusto

Wow!I thought I was going to be first to comment instead of last .....but no someone else beat me to it. Well after rushing around to get to Gusto at the appointed time I was disappointed to find that our table was no where near ready (there were a few uncleared tables). The service was not as swift as it might have been-drinks were forgotten and we had to gain attention to be able to order. It was quite busy but not packed. However the atmosphere was good and I did enjoy my wild mushroom rissotto. I did think the prices were a bit steep considering what we got for our money compared to other resaurants on our WREC journey.
I think that 'the crew' should continue down Wilmslow Rd (there are a couple of restaurants I'd like to try)until we get to Barlow Moor Rd then swiftly head on down to Burton Rd to do the WREC go WILD. As always it is the company and chance to go out that are as important as the choice of venue.

Gusto

The month of May brought Gusto, which to be honest I wasn't expecting a great deal from and as predicted I got what I'd thought I'd get. On the plus side, the restaurant was full which created a good atmosphere and all diners gave a high score for the restaurant decor. Unfortunately once again I felt that everything was 'OK' but predictable; nothing that special or interesting on the menu, very poor service and slightly over inflated prices for run of the mill food.

I'm now getting very bored of writing about 'ok' restaurants with 'ok' food and think that we should seriously think about rebranding as 'the WREC go wild'! By doing this we can change the constitution and cherry pick the restaurants we'd like to eat in along the Wilmslow road and then divert our attentions to what looks like the far more appealing Burton Road........thoughts on the blog please fellow diners.

Jade Garden

I was really looking forward to the Jade Garden having had some lovely meals there before (especially the crispy aromatic duck). However I did feel a little disappointed by our evening. It was a miserable rainy night and we rushed to arrive on time but the atmosphere when we got there was equally miserable. There were two other 'largish' parties in the restaurant already but it was by no means 'packed out'. The waiters were attentive but not particularly helpful or unhelpful. The overwhelming feeling was that I was cold!-every time the door opened it stuck and I felt a cold wind whistle around the table. I discovered there was actually a small heater at the other end of the table but this had been 'hogged' by a fellow diner! The food was enjoyable (as I expected) but nothing out of the ordinary or worth commenting on. The company was the most enjoyable part of the evening as always. I look forward to the next meet up when certain group members have returned from their fabulous holiday over Easter.