Bron
5 Bishop Street
Derry
BRON, so I gather, is Swedish for bridge. Having attempted to start up just as the pandemic succeeded in shutting everything down, the owners and staff here must have wondered at times if they'd ever get to the other side. Certainly they've spent much of the past year in a state of suspension.
Squeezed between a building site and an old post office (stuck between some rocks and a card place), Bron is easy to miss.
But - more broadly speaking - it's in an appropriate area, as the Cathedral Quarter of Derry gradually confirms its reputation for offering something different.
And Bron is certainly different from anything else you'll find in Derry.
Step through the door and you find it's all bare white walls, blond wood, and straight lines.
And the restaurant stretches back much further than you're expecting, so there's no sense of intimacy.
As cold as that sounds, the welcome is friendly and the atmosphere warm, heated by big smiles and a nicely-chosen playlist.
The menu, barely a side of A5, is as stripped back as the décor (although the drinks menu runs to three pages), so we - my wife, young daughter, brother, and me - didn't have to linger too long over it.
While the crispy cauliflower fell a little short, being not as crisp as it might have been, the deep and meaty croquettes were excellent, lifted by the blue cheese and the heat of the horseradish.
Top marks for the starters were shared by the salmon, gently cured and thickly sliced, and the beautifully sweet prawns in a delicate garlic oil.
All three of the mains, to my mind, had one fault in common - each lacking a touch of seasoning. That aside, they were uniformly excellent.
The rib-eye steak was very well-cooked, delightfully pink in the middle, melting on the tongue. (It was also massive, and did for lunch the next day).
The chicken was soft and tender, and enlivened by the pesto and parmesan.
The gnocchi were very good, but there were too many of them, and would have made the experience too heavy had my brother eaten them all.
My cod flaked just as a a properly-prepared fish should. The taste of the crust hit the heights, but the best thing about it was the orzo with the salsa verde, which was absolutely packed with flavour.
There was nothing on the menu to suit my four-year-old. This was fine by us, as she tucked in to a little bit of everything from the other plates, not to mention the brilliant chips and lively salad, but may be something for others to note.
She also tried the flowers decorating my dish which, I sincerely hope, were edible.
The puddings, like every dish that came, were presented with care and an eye for detail.
The passion fruit tart was encased in a thin and crisp pastry, giving the dish the texture it needed.
The zinging filling contrasted well with the sweet white chocolate truffle and then the sorbet gave added sharpness.
While the ganache and toasted mallow lacked texture, it was sweet and rich and satisfying. The panna cotta didn't have much of a wobble, and it was hard to detect much coconut, but it provided a refreshing end to the meal.
Light, bright, and spacious, and open from early morning right through to dinner, Bron has to cover a lot of bases.
While it has more the feel of a café-bar than a restaurant, and while the atmosphere is possibly more suited to cocktail-sampling groups than romantic couples, don't underestimate Bron.
It offers high-quality ingredients, cooked with flair and understanding, as well as a pleasing blend of boldness and subtlety.
It's relaxed and assured, a place of easy-going confidence and style.
THE BILL
For four:
Starters
King prawns in chilli and garlic, sourdough - £7.00
Crispy cauliflower, spicy walnut chorizo, - £7.00
Graved salmon, pickled beets - £6.00
Beef and blue cheese croquettes, horseradish crème £7.00
Mains
Rib-eye steak, porcini and port butter, fondant potatoes - £22.50
Cod, chorizo and sun-dried tomato crust, orzo, salsa verde - £17.50
Sicilian chicken, summer vegetables, gnocchi, pesto, parmesan - £19.00
Sides of chips, broccoli, and salad, accompanying mains
Puddings
Ice cream - £2.50
Raspberry and coconut panna cotta, nut crumb, fresh berries - £5.50
Passion fruit tart,white chocolate truffle, raspberry sorbet - £5.50
S'more, chocolate ganache, toasted mallow, hazelnut crumb - £5.50
Drinks
Diet Coke x 2 - £6.00
Total: £111.00
