The Queen's Royal, Marine Promenade, New Brighton

Oct 19 2007 by Lynda Roughley, Liverpool Daily Post

Lynda Roughley had mixed feelings about her trip down memory lane

NOSTALGIA is a thing of the past, I know. But the relentless ticking of the clock provides increasing scope for reminiscing.

And, with age, it is the older memories that often rise to the surface, some bringing smiles, other tears.

Such a long-forgotten memory returned to me on a visit to a former jewel in New Brighton’s seafront crown – The Queen’s Royal.

Last time I was in the premises, it was just The Queen’s and a very popular Berni Inn. Who could forget their baked potatoes, big steaks, those schooners of sherry and wonderful alcohol laden floating coffees?

You always knew what you were getting at a Berni and it was always good. However, despite invariably being busy, Berni mysteriously upped sticks and left. The building then long stood vacant. I feared it might fall victim to total dereliction, so it was good to see it given a new lease of life.

My memories of the grand old place dissipated like wisps of smoke as soon as I went through the front door which leads straight into the bright, airy and modern restaurant with tables either side.

We were quickly seen to our table by a friendly, smartly dressed waiter and plonked ourselves down on the comfy dark brown leather seats at the simple wooden tables.

It was a Sunday afternoon, and we had decided we would go along and give the carvery a try. It was late in the day, but many others had the same idea.

To start, I chose the salmon fishcake with yoghurt and dill dressing and my companions went for the baked Welsh goats cheese bruschetta with a tomato salsa and the chicken Caesar salad with fresh parmesan cheese.

We could also have had a prawn cocktail with Marie Rose sauce or melon with wild berries. And unusually there was also a choice of five soups, including creamy wild forest mushroom and potato and roast garlic.

I do wish I had seen that latter soup, partly because I’m a garlic aficionado, but mainly because the fishcakes were probably the worst I’ve eaten. They were home-made, usually a plus, but on this occasion they consisted mainly of lumpy spud.

Alongside me the generous portion of chicken Caesar salad went down well and my daughter’s goats cheese, which was also a good size, was declared to be excellent. She described herself so hungry she could eat the (beautifully laundered) napkins so after finishing her starter she decided to try mine.

Being an experienced, if amateur, chef herself she agreed with my view. I consoled myself with a nice glass of Rose D’Anjou while my table buddies settled for a glass of Coca-cola and a pint of beer.

Then it was time to attack the carvery. There was certainly plenty to chose from – rib of beef, pork, turkey, lamb and ham. And then there were peas, mashed carrot, roast potatoes, new potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, gravy, sliced carrots, Yorkshire pud and a myriad accompanying sauces.

The friendly, helpful chef happily obliged with whatever slices of meat we fancied.

The plates were suitably hot, but I wasn’t over-impressed to find that some of them weren’t clean. I guess the kitchen staff had been struggling to keep up with the stream of punters.

It was apparent from fellow diners’ plates that the accepted technique is “pile it high” rather than going back for seconds. I confess we did the same. Partly greed, partly not bothering to enquire if we could actually go back for seconds.

Anyway, we took our laden plates back to our table. The ham was delicious but we all agreed that the beef and lamb were fairly tasteless and on the chewy side. The pork had a nice flavour but was also not too kind on the gnashers.

In the restaurant’s defence, they must get through a veritable herd on a Sunday and as we all know from our own catering experiences every joint is different and not always up to expectations. But that doesn’t excuse the roasties, which were pretty awful. We, like everyone else in the place, had eyes bigger than our bellies, and left a considerable amount on our plates. It seems a waste; perhaps a notice saying come back for more, might result in fewer left-overs and more profit for the owners.

It plainly wasn’t my day, as I then went for my favourite of creme brulee and it was both extremely thin and bright yellow and certainly not the best. The meringue with whipped cream was a hit, but the apple pie pastry sadly led to a grimace.

The charge for two courses is £11.95 and £15.95 for three courses and our total bill with drinks came to £67.50.

In the week there is an a la carte menu with starters and soups at £3.95, and main courses at around the £12 mark.

The Queen's Royal, Marine Promenade, New Brighton, Wirral (0151 691 0101)

Interior: Welcoming and modern

Service: Friendly and helpful

Value: Plenty of it for the money

Disabled access: Yes

Children: Welcome