It’s always a delight to catch up with friends of long-standing, particularly when the time between meetings has been too long.
Once my friend Colin and I had exhausted the charms of the Cafe Royal, we wandered on with Colin’s request for a “burger and a good feed” ringing in my ears. I saw an opportunity to give the much vaunted Jake’s Place a try, so it was to there that we headed.
Part of a backpackers’ hostel, the place showcases good beer, single malts and meaty delights, with burgers at the heart of things. We ordered up a pair of house burgers, beers to match and a smoked turkey leg to share.
Items promptly arrived, with the gigantic Henry the VIII-style turkey leg packing considerable wow factor and comedy value.
The burgers were firmly in the knife and fork realm, to my mind, but Colin cast such temerity to the winds, attacking with faceward shoving glee. I followed his lead. The burgers were substantial and filling, but surprisingly light on flavour. It was perfectly pleasant but lacked real meaty depth.
The turkey leg was hilarious fun, but the meat was a trifle on the dry side. However, the accompanying smoky sauce was spectacularly good and will live long in the memory.
So overall, Jake’s Place met our needs very nicely. The food had considerable personality and charm, but didn’t quite see things through on flavour. The plentiful substance fed us most admirably, though. I’d be happy to return next time a ravenous appetite needs quickly addressed.
Scores
Blythe scores Jake’s Place
3.5/5 for food
4/5 for presentation
3.5/5 for setting
3.5/5 for service
giving an overall 14.5/20
Today’s questers were: Colin, Blythe
We ate: burgers (2), smoked turkey leg
We drank: beers
Total bill: c.£37