When people ask me 'where's good to eat in Lisburn?' I am often stumped - apart from the eateries in Lisburn Square all you really have is the Omniplex, which, fit for purpose is excellent, if you're looking big American sized portions - but that's all you get there, there is no sense of fine dining or sophistication. So I usually just send everyone to the Square.
The Cardan Bar & Grill - 41 Railway St, Lisburn BT28 1XP - 028 9267 8065
However, that has all changed now! Last Thursday I got the chance to try The Cardan - located on Railway Street, and directly opposite Lisburn Train Station (handy) The Cardan offers a fine dining experience, with a superb menu in a beautifully, and recently refurbished space. Friendly and attentive staff, an excellent menu along with live entertainment Thursday to Sunday makes The Cardan a beautiful place to visit, and I promise your taste buds will agree.
The Food
Let's call it sophisticated pub grub with a modern twist on presentation - you will still get your classics such as Burgers, Steaks and Pie (perfect for this winter weather) but as you peruse the menu you see more elegant dishes; Crispy Pork Belly, Baked Coley and Truffled Mushroom Risotto can all be found.
There are also incredible offers to be had! 2 courses for £18 and 3 courses for £21 and both these deals include a free drink - we had the house white.
My Trip
For starter I was deciding between the Salt & Chilli Squid or the Duck Spring rolls, it was a tough decision! Being the gent I am I let Laurie order first, the wee beaut ordered the Squid, leaving me to order the Spring Rolls, best of both worlds, have I ever loved her more? No...
The Spring rolls were crispy, the duck was tasty and it came on a bed of picked vegetables, almost like a salsa which was a really good pairing, and as this was a duck dish there was a lovely big swoosh of hoisin sauce; Yum!
The Squid was crispy and NOT chewy, (thank God, nothing worse than a chewy squid) - it came served on a bed of Asian Slaw and the nicest satay I have ever tried - worth a trip back for these alone! I may have licked the plate...
For mains I decided on the Crispy Pork Belly, served with Black Pudding, Burnt Carrot Puree, Kale, Hazelnut Praline and a Toffee Apple Sauce Served with Breaded Potato Gratin; there really was no other option for me, presented superbly the star of the show for me was, surprisingly not the Pork Belly but the Breaded Potato Gratin...WOW, think of dauphinoise potatoes, breadcrumbed and lightly fried, now stop drooling and keep reading. The whole dish worked really well and the toffee apple sauce, which I was apprehensive of was beautiful, that wee addition of sweetness really complimented the Crispy Pork.
Lauren got the Special of the Night - bar and restaurant manager Danny talked us through the menu and Lauren was sold on the Hake and Risotto, I, as you know, am not the biggest fish fan so I had to let Lauren review this, all positive remarks and she thought the fish flaked well and the pancetta in the risotto was amazing...you'll have to take her word for it!
We even had a little bit of room for dessert, well to be honest Danny convinced us to try it, and when he uttered the words; homemade honeycomb and spiced apple I screeched a little, anyway, here it is...look down.
So what was different about this review/blog was that it was organised by the management and the staff had no idea who I was until I presented my voucher at the end of the meal. I really liked this, it was a bit sneaky I suppose of me not to say but I am really pleased to say that the service I got was incredible, the food was fantastic and the newly refurbished rooms were really beautiful, the panels and exposed brickwork, vintage lights and dark wood furniture gave a real sense of class and sophistication, something which is a welcome addition to the Lisburn Food Scene. I think head chef Antony Hendy and his team should be very proud of the food they produce and the style it's convicted with.
I would really recommend this place, myself and Lauren sat down at the weekend and named the top 3 places we've tried recently and The Cardan was in there! And I eat out a lot, an awful lot so to be in there is quite a feat. Thanks once again to Rumour Mill PR for arranging the trip and I look forward to returning to The Cardan very soon.