Restaurants / Reviews
Chris and Jo’s Kitchen – restaurant review
Stepping into Chris and Jo’s Kitchen, the empty restaurant and humble decorations make me feel as if I have been invited into Chris Newall and Jo French’s dining room.
Tinsel and baubles hang between sporadically placed frames, which display pictures of the couple’s stuffed mascot Chipotle the snow leopard, posing in various holiday destinations.
Jo welcomes us warmly and leads us to one of the plywood tables that she has set in preparation for our arrival. While she makes sure that we have enough to drink, distant sounds of Chris preparing his ingredients can be heard through the small pass.
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It was in a similar environment that the couple first met in Brighton. Chris was the head chef at a gastro pub and Jo responded to an ad for a commis chef in the same place. Ten years on, the pair are now engaged, as well as being business partners.
After running a pop-up kitchen in the Vittoria pub on Whiteladies Road, they have now taken over what was once QED Bistro on St Michael’s Hill.
At first glance, the menu appears slightly confused. Italian focaccia and peperonata sit next to Indian inspired spiced roast cauliflower steak and cauliflower bhajis. But the mix of cuisine becomes clearer when Jo that the daily changing menu is designed around ingredients that their suppliers have in on a particular day.
Although unusual, the eclectic menu means that there is something for everyone.
My friend opts for the roast butternut, sage and chestnut risotto, baby spinach and Old Winchester cheese (£10.95) while I order pan-fried hake fillet, chorizo and chickpea stew, crispy roast potatoes and tender stem broccoli (£11.95).
When the food arrives, it is served in big, hearty portions. My dining partner loves her risotto; it’s rich, creamy and not too heavy with the butternut squash adding texture to the rice.
The hake is good too. The fish is tasty and fresh with the broccoli cooked to perfection. The sauce on the other hand lacks flavour and the chickpeas are slightly too al dente for my taste, but these small imperfections add to the impression that this is unpretentious, home-cooked food.
As I stand at the counter to pay, Jo wrestles with an uncooperative till. Having no luck, she taps out my order on a nearby calculator. Despite this and a few other early teething problems, once Chris and Jo have settled into their new kitchen it promises to be a go-to place for feel good food.
Chris and Jo’s Kitchen, 122 St Michaels Hill, Bristol, BS2 8BU
07948 952692
www.facebook.com/chrisjoskitchen
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