The Forge & Fern, Staple Hill: ‘Underwhelming food in opulent surroundings’ – restaurant review

If you don’t already know where The Forge & Fern is, you can hardly fail to notice it when heading through Staple Hill.

The former Red Lion pub on Broad Street has been well and truly transformed into a cafe-bar and restaurant with a vast foliage-coated exterior that proudly bears its new name.

Here, behind a screen and vibrant array of flowers, diners and drinkers spill out onto outside tables and chairs to soak up the summer evening sun.

Forge & Fern is the first venue for the Bristol-based Forges hospitality group and the name is a nod to the building’s past history as a blacksmith and the flora & fauna both onsite and in nearby Page Park.

The new venue not only boasts a ‘living wall’ designed to boost biodiversity but also hosts bees on its roof and a home-grown herb garden. All of which is admirable but seems slightly at odds with the AstroTurfed beer garden to the side.

Before I get distracted by AstroTurf, we need to focus on the décor which, from the opulent bar area to the plush rainforest-themed chairs, is beautiful. The bathrooms almost deserve a review to themselves such is the stunning combination of raised glass hand basins, ornate hooks and fragrant hand cream.

As one customer put it: “They are lush toilets. It could have been another shitty pub like it was before but they’ve thought of everything.”

The AstroTurf beer garden seems at odds with the venue’s impressive commitment to biodiversity elsewhere

The former Red Lion pub has been completely transformed

Judging by the packed house on a Wednesday evening, this new venue is already going down a storm.

Forge & Fern even has its own distillery down in the cellar to make gin on site. This helps explain the impressively extensive drinks menu, which features plenty of local tipples.

From the cocktail menu, curated by the team at Brozen on St Nicholas Street, the old fashioned (£9.50) is punchy and boozy as promised. It’s a winning start.

From the mocktail menu, I select an option from Arnos Vale-based Caleño. It is billed as a light & zesty with tonic, although this proves to be a bit of a misnomer as the ‘Double Dutch lemon tonic’ mixer has no hint of tonic or mention of it on the bottle. It’s a pleasant drink but essentially tastes like a nice lemonade with a £7 price tag.

The food menu keeps things simple with a selection of small plates, burgers, house steaks, fish & chips, a choice of two salads and a reasonable number of vegan and gluten-free options among the mix.

After much deliberation, in anticipation of hearty main meals, we opted for a light starter of olives and smashed avocado with corn tortilla chips. We needn’t have worried about being over-faced, the small plates here are exactly as described.

The small plates lived up to their name

The six gordal olives we received – each with their own wooden cocktail stick – were plump, juicy and divine – although £4.25 is arguably pretty steep for six olives.

Hoping for some semblance of the fresh corn chips and zesty guacamole that forms a staple of many Mexican meals, we were sorely disappointed by the second dish. Both components lacked flavour. While the attentive wait staff did fetch a second ramekin of avocado, requested in a desperate bid to liven up the lifeless chips, we’d still have got more enjoyment from a pack of Doritos and supermarket dip.

The mains are a mixed bag.

Having fallen spectacularly off the vegetarian bandwagon, my partner has no complaints about the ‘Finisher’ burger (£16.95), an impressively stacked pile of beef patty, streaky bacon and pickles topped with macaroni and cheese breadcrumbed parcels – an unnecessary but interesting addition – in a brioche bun. Logistical challenges of eating such a whopper aside, it’s a satisfying dish.

The mains are a mixed bag

The fish & chips (£15.95) had the potential to be nice. The chips were once delicately fried before being left unloved on a plate, presumably to wait for their weightier companion, to go cold and soggy. The crushed peas, although nicely minted, suffered the same fate. This leaves the modest portion of fish, piping hot with crisp batter, to take the crown.

Dessert, a chocolate mousse, honeycomb & salted caramel ‘pot’, golden honey sponge cake (£7.95) is a thing of beauty. In an intricately-presented garden scene, the decadent, rich chocolate mousse is hidden inside a chocolate garden pot. The accompanying sponge honeycomb though has the texture of a bath sponge – and without much more flavour. The Marshfield icecream and sorbet trio (£5.95) works as a nice addition to help cut through the sweetness.

A thing of beauty

Overall, we were left feeling underwhelmed by the meal despite the beautiful surroundings.

This is a place that deserves to do well, it has a great ethos that supports Bristol independents and puts an emphasis on biodiversity. Staff are friendly and attentive and the the Forge & Fern is also clearly a popular addition to Staple Hill. It just needs a bit more consistency with the food to be worth the price tag.

The Forge & Fern has taken the place of the former Red Lion pub, with a ‘living wall’ slightly at odds with its AstroTurfed beer garden

The Forge & Fern, 76 Broad Street, Staple Hill, Bristol, BS16 5NL
www.theforges.co.uk

All photos: Ellie Pipe

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