'Mmm, that looks nice'.
The menu looked good, the decor looked good, the waitress looked.... efficient. All seemed to be positive. But, when we slid our way in for a recent date night, there was a big but. The place was full on a Wednesday with couples and groups all taking seats, we waited for a few minutes at the bar where Mrs P. spent a significant proportion of the nights bill on a 'Coal Cosmopolitan' and I had a hideously over priced bottled social beverage.
As for the food, well. We shared the starter, as is our want:
But it just didn't work. Fried chicken, fried onions, fried potato and fried dough balls sitting around some cheesy nachos. Mrs P. and I both tried our best to enjoy it but the chicken wings, despite being the best items on the board, weren't exactly generous in their portion or proportion. However, it was the dough balls that were really confusing. They tasted odd, felt odd and just were odd. Imagine Pizza Express dough balls in a deep fat fryer and you'll get the idea.
The mains that followed just compounded the problems. We went for the 'famous' fire sticks. I really can't stand it when places do that. There is nothing famous about a skewer. Beef, sausage and prawns were all cooked with all the skill of a bad kebab shop, then paraded out to us with the expected pomp and circumstance that is apparently necessary for a 'famous' skewer and placed on some veg.
Then the dauphinois potatoes were put next to it. Wait, what? Cheesy, milky potato with sausage and steak? Eh?
The place remains confused to me. It should be such a fantastic concept but in closer inspection it fails on almost every level. From the fake non-functioning fire pit in the entrance to the overcooked skewer showpieces. In order to make things consistent for customers in a chain, the corporate ethos has overtaken and over eaten the experience. Oh well, there are two other new steak houses opening in Milton Keynes soon. Perhaps they can do better.
http://coalgrillandbar.co.uk/index
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