The Muddlers Club Restaurant — Restaurant in Belfast

I have been here about five or six times, but not for a year or so. I decided to return with some friends last weekend, self assured that our choice of restaurant would yield a fantastic evening, as previously the food has been very good. Alas, our enthusiasm was short lived.

We were forced to take the tasting menu as they no longer do a la carte on a Saturday. We were then forced to take a blind tasting menu, as the waitress couldn't possibly tell us what were having. Now if this were a Michelin starred extravaganza with some truly exceptional delights one can only assume the privilege of eating once or twice in a life time, then that would have been OK. But Muddlers Club is a bistro and as such we all agreed unanimously we would have preferred to navigate the choppy waters of the menu ourselves.

When the food finally came, the first dish, scallop and asparagus was alright, although we were ravenous and the solitary scallop certainly didn't address the 'hanger' that was dominating our group, in part fulled by the offensively loud music we had already been enduring for forty minutes.

Next we were greeted by a delightful spoonful of mozzarella (buratta) with a pistachio pesto - this was the star of the show and we all agreed we would like more.

Fish - the fish of the day was cod and it was under cooked and gelatinous. Nobody loved it.

Finally, the meat. Lamb. Truly, this was a bad dish. It was sous-vide - but clearly by someone who was trying this out for the first time, and served with a terrible yogurty excuse for a sauce. I didn't even eat mine. By this stage, the hanger around the table has reached high limits - all we have eaten is a scallop and a spoonful mozzarella. An argument has broken out between two docile people and I'm hammered because, well, I've only eaten a scallop and a spoonful of mozzarella.

For the final course, confidence in the kitchen is gone, so we were expecting nothing from the desert, so were pleased when it was a few notches above the lamb (but not quite the mozzarella)

As always, the cocktails were good and the manager was a lovely. I think he understood.

My final word for Muddlers - you're not ready for to force a tasting menu on anyone - so don't do it - especially when its sub par. Do what you do best and reignite the fire of 2016-17.

Until we hear you've done this, none of us...

Dined here solo On a Saturday night. There were all two other solo tables and with views of the kitchen, can be quite entertaining.

Long room with little interior deco- industrial style With an open kitchen and low Lighting The noise levels can get quite high with the lack of soft furnishings

Wood tables and wood chairs. Tables are generally low with bronze light lamp on the table

Great cocktail- coconut margaritas were excellent as was the chilli caiparinia.

Bread In two form: slides sour dough and a ball was Ok. The pork butter was interesting as was the good oil for dip

The trio of amouse bouche was goods and the best was the like the sea trout tartlet

The first starters: Torched scallops with broth and half peas with pea shoots- broth was too sweet made from the pure onion consommé. If it had an extra sugar would suggest reduction.

Second starter: Creamed burrata with a pesto sweet sauce with nuts and crispy bread and heritage tomatoes, really worked well as it was creamy, sweet and sour from the tomatoes and a really delight of a dish.

First main: Halibut with horse radish and beu blanc, fish wa dry Courgette buttons and asparagus heads

Second mains: Salted beef about 30g with a leaf of wild garlic over , a new potato which was boiled and a stalk of asparagus and a small beet root. The beef looked pink but was overdone to be medium tare. The whole dish looked great but was a let down by taste as When all components came to gather it didn’t wow.

Pre desert: Rhubarb with peppercorn and Curd With Drink of rhubarb juice and cream On the top was Excellent. Rhubarb was rather fibrous but sweetened.

The desert of Coconut cracker , Chocolate cracker , Chocolate mud and Hazelnut cream was good was both a save dish and did not wow.

Niall who provided the service was excellent.

Best meal I...

I had heard a lot of reports about the Muddlers Club, but with covid and the tumultuous couple of years that we have all experienced, I hadn't managed to get here until January this year. And when I walked in, I was a little underwhelmed. It's very casual, bistro like, with wooden slatted tables, and not what I was expecting from "Belfast's latest Michelin Star Must Go-to Gem". Coming from the North Coast, I am used to this style of bistro - turn up and grab a table, and order at the bar - type of establishment, but all my concerns quickly disintegrated once the waitress came over and welcomed us and started to explain the menu.

We were the first into the restaurant at 12pm, and it quickly filled with an eclectic selection of diners. There were businessmen out impressing clients, foodies out to have a special lunch, some tourists out to see what Belfast had to offer, and a few tables of couples. And I have to say, in the relaxed surroundings the atmosphere was great. There was an electric buzz in the air, and it felt very comfortable. The menu is a 6 course omakase tasting menu, and each course was delicious, from the trio of amuse bouche through to the delicious puddings. I had the wine pairing, and they were expertly matched - I ended up going home and ordering a case of both the Chenin Blanc and the Australian dessert wine that I was served at TMC.

We now have a very solid number of excellent restaurants in Belfast, each one catering for a slightly different taste. The Muddlers Club is the one that I see myself coming back to on a more frequent basis, as it's casual, bistro-like and has a vibrant atmosphere - if only I could get a...