Driving by, on the way home we discovered an available park outside the newly re-opened Hotel Metropole. On impulse, we thought we’d stop off and see how the place had scrubbed up and see what they had on the menu. What we discovered was a really smart, well priced and simple menu. Sometimes that’s just the thing you want – simple food that is done well.
We had the opportunity to meet the new owners and I very much look forward to seeing them succeed. The pub has a fresh, new, family friendly feel with live music in the beer garden and on a Sunday afternoon, while the kitchen is closed, they run a BBQ so you can grab a burger and a beer and just relax for the afternoon.
We decided to forego the beer garden and try out the restaurant this time and here’s what we had:
Entrée
Smoked Salmon Croquettes with a honey mustard sauce $12.00
Cheesy Garlic Bread $ 9.00
Mains
Spaghetti Bolognese $15.00
Salt and Pepper Calamari Salad with Asian Dressing $23.00
The star of the show for me was the Smoked Salmon Croquettes. Made in house (one of the Chef’s creations), they were deliciously flavoured inside with a thin, crispy crumbed coating.
I enjoyed my Bolognese and was happy to use the cheesy garlic bread to soak up the remaining sauce at the bottom of the bowl. Now, what we did find to be a little outside the box, was the calamari salad. Whilst Salt and Pepper Calamari has become quite the trend over the last couple of years, the addition of the Asian dressing, sesame seeds, dried crunchy onion and crispy bean thread noodles to the salad, made this dish slightly different to the norm.
Really enjoyable for a lighter meal.
All in all, the Hotel Metropole has a fantastic atmosphere, non-pretentious and quite affordable. I feel these guys have a bright future in the Ipswich arena and I hope you find the time to go and visit yourself.
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