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EATING
OUT
Mary-Louise
Harding gambols to the Casino
 The
Rendezvous Casino at Brighton Marina is a bit of a pilot
project for the parent company. Just a few months old, the
company has designed the Casino with a more discerning,
upmarket and more gender-balanced clientele in mind. The
Bay Restaurant - which offers a varied and interesting modern
European style a la carte menu as well as a choice of chargrilled,
Chinese and Indian selections and a set-price, more informal
bar menu - is central to its aims of debunking popular preconceptions
of the British casino as a smoky, seedy retreat for wide-boy
East End gangster types.
Located
in Brighton Marina, the Casino gives a crisp, pleasant,
and professional impression from the moment you enter. Any
daunting ideas of being inside a den of iniquity are largely
dispelled by the slick, modern feel of the female-staffed
reception hall.
The
restaurant is situated on a raised mezzanine alongside the
huge gaming floor, next to windows overlooking the mouth
of the Marina, giving diners a chance to stay focused on
the gaming action, or to gaze out at the harbour lights.
My companion and I were struck by the impeccable attentiveness
of the waiting staff - the likes of which you would normally
only expect in a top London restaurant or hotel!
The
current menu is a new selection - I plumped for a light
starter of Asparagus soup with garlic and red pepper
croutons (£3.00) from the European Cuisine menu,
artistically presented, and refreshingly delicious with
the seasoning complimenting the unique taste of asparagus
rather than drowning it. My companion chose a Club menu
starter of Crab and Avocado Tian with Lemon and Dill
Crème Fraiche which she was immensely impressed
by, describing the dish as light with clean, fresh avocado
and a distinct lack of lazy mayonnaise making it a superb
dish.
I followed
my soup with Roasted Monkfish wrapped in Prosciutto with
Herb Risotto and a Tomato Oregano sauce (£12.50)
which was dense, rich and good, while my fellow diner opted
for the Bay Restaurant Seafood Platter that, complete
with sole, seabass, prawns, scallop and salmon in chive
infused olive oil, was a portion strictly for large appetites!
All was washed down with a delicious bone dry, oak-less
Chablis J Moreau et Fils, Chablis, France (£17.50),
expertly recommended by our waiter from the impressive wine
list that offers the complete range for all tastes and pockets,
from an Australian Riesling at £11.00 to a 1997 Mersauilt
white burgundy at £57.00 for white wine and a similar
scale for reds.
Of course
we sampled the desserts (!), but were too well fed to appreciate
them fully - the menu caters for all palates with everything
from a refreshing sorbet medley with fresh fruit, to an
extremely rich Truffled Belgian Chocolate Bavois, and of
course the essential cheese board.
Essential
Info
Food: accomplished, pleasant and wide choice of classic
'European' dishes, catering for vegetarian demands as well
as the confirmed carnivore.
Service: Impeccably professional, politely friendly
and attentive.
Atmosphere: A relaxed respite for compulsive gamblers
and sideline diners alike.
Bay
Restaurant
Rendezvous Casino
Brighton Marina
Tel: 01273 605602
copyright The Insight 2002
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