AS OUR mission to sample and review as many of the restaurants and pubs in and around Salisbury continues at a pace - regular readers will be familiar with our freelance reviewer Peter Hime's efforts by now - the time came for a trip to the Cosy Club, on New Street.
We took an early dinner - 5.30pm on Saturday evening, and the place was already buzzing.
It only became busier throughout the night, and the atmosphere - on the bottom floor at least - was busy, and loud, but not disruptive.
On arrival, we ordered a Brixton Reliance Pale Ale and a Morning Cooler, which was lemon, elderflower and mint, finished with soda and cucumber.
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To start, we had the treacle-cured pork belly bites: cider and mustard glaze, potato and chive rosti, pink pickled onions (£7.95) and the Crayfish roll: dressed crayfish tails with capers, dill, cucumber, lemon, mayonnaise, brioche roll (£7.75).
The crayfish roll was a nice size and tasted fresh, which is nice as we go into spring. The brioche bun particularly was very light
For our mains, we went with 8oz flat iron steak served with fries, parmesan and rocket (£19.95). I added a peppercorn sauce (£2.25), no surprise there.
I asked for the steak to be rare, and I was not disappointed. A word of warning: if you order a rare steak at the Cosy Club, expect it to be very rare.
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That's not to say my steak was blue, but it was definitely rare and cooked just how I like it.
Rare-cooked steak tends to be my go-to order when my turn to do these reviews comes around, as regular readers may have noticed, and I have not always left restaurants in and around Salisbury satisfied with how it's been cooked. There was no such disappointment here.
A generous portion, perfectly cooked, and a lovely parmesan and rocket side to go with the fries. Steak, it is said, is often a good barometer of the quality of a restaurant's food, and this one was genuinely excellent.
We also had the pan-fried seabass with leeks and peas, smoked bacon, white wine cream, twice-roasted new potatoes (£17.25).
The fish was cooked perfectly, very tender and flaky with a crispy skin, and the sauce with the main tasted so good my company asked for a spoon so they didn’t miss any.
We both tried each other's meals, and we were in full agreement about the taste and quality.
I think it is fair to say now that Cosy Club is quickly becoming - or has already become - one of Salisbury's nicest and most consistent restaurants.
In recent months we have been there for brunch, lunches and dinners, and we have never been let down. The service, from our waitress Jess, was also excellent.
If it's for a meal or even if it's just for a cocktail or two, you can't do better in Salisbury right now than Cosy Club.
For more information go to cosyclub.co.uk/location/salisbury.
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