I decided to book a table for my wife and I at @Angela's on the strength of one press review, Wow, im glad I did! From the moment we walked in, we were greeted with a warm smile and friendly hello, We were made to feel very welcome by Angela, one half of the husband and wife team. I was extremely surprised at the mellow relaxed atmosphere, the simple clean and precise décor with various pieces of art on the walls go some way to assisting in this, some of which gives a hint at the sense of humour and kind of team that run this superb establishment.
I got the sense that they do not take themselves too seriously in the way that they interact with their customers, it felt more as though we had gone to dinner at an old friends place, than at a paying venue. The part where they take themselves incredibly seriously is where it matters, and that is with the cuisine. They are passionate about it, and that show's in the Chef's superb presentation of the dishes and the exquisite skill with which they are cooked. Obviously I can only speak for what my wife and I ordered, however listening to the general vibe and phrases such as excellent and wonderful, I guess other customers were just as happy as us.
The menu offers just enough mouth watering choice without being over zealous, or pretentious. I had King Prawns to start in a buttery sauce, my only issue with these were because they came fresh out of the pan to my plate, they were too hot to pick up and peel!! And even though I was warned of the temperature this was an impatient frustration on my part as the aroma that was rising from my plate urged me to get stuck in! It was worth a burnt finger, they were superb, cooked to perfection and full of flavour. I chose medallions of beef stuffed with Stilton for my main with seasonal vegetables and garlic potatoes, I asked for the beef to be cooked medium, absolutely spot on! Ive not tasted beef like it, this Chef knows what he's doing! The flavours complimented each other brilliantly. My dessert was white and dark chocolate mouse, which to my pleasant surprise was extremely light and to die for. By all accounts my wife's meal was just as good, I tried some of her Mackerel starter, tender, superbly cooked and full of flavour, but then you would expect nothing less from a fish that only the very same morning would have still been swimming!
Just the right amount of time was left between courses, another nice surprise was the orange sorbet to cleanse the pallet after the starters. We never felt as though we were being rushed to make way for the next intake of customers, and Angela was always willing to take time to chat. A very nice touch was when Richard came out of the Kitchen to meet his guests. When he came to our table to meet us and enquire if we enjoyed our meal, phenomenal was my response! I think Richard was pleased with that, you can see he is proud of their business and passionate about his food, and really cares about his customers. I can highly recommend this delightful restaurant. I thought they had made an error with the bill, as 3 courses each with drinks came to a smidge under £70. For the superb quality of fare we had, we expected it to be considerably more, as our guess the bill game proved!
Enjoy, we certainly did!
emily
After becoming rather bored with Exeters chain restaurants we were keen to try somewhere new & @Angelas certainly proved to be 'the place' With crisp white linen, fresh flowers & a friendly welcome we already knew the food would be good. It was in fact the best dining experience we have had for a very long time. Complementary olives, homemade bread & a surprise sorbet made us feel thoroughly spoilt & my main course of brill & crayfish can only be described as divine. I could go on......