Bill's - A review

There has been a lot of hype around the Bill's restaurant chain and they seem to be popping up everywhere I go. I have only ever heard good things about Bill's, and I'm a sucker for any restaurant with a seasonal menu and fancy interior design. My first visit to Bill's was for dinner at the converted church house restaurant in Reading. The location and interior of the restaurant is very impressive. The atmosphere was good, and so was the food.

The menu at Bill's covers breakfast, lunch, dinner and even afternoon tea. They offer a wide range of unpretentious dishes including; burgers, meze, steak, salads and pies. Today, my mum and I went for lunch at the Leamington Spa Bill's. To drink we both had coffees, one americano and one iced. Iced coffee is my favourite thing ever, the it did not disappoint. I had the chilli and lime crusted salmon served on noodle salad. The salmon was pan fried, so it was crispy in parts and was a bit drier than I am used to, but the flavour was lovely, slightly spicy but fresh. The buckweat soba noodles were delicious - fragrant, salty and tangy.

Although the setting wasn't as impressive as the Reading branch, the inside still had the rustic, eclectic and semi-industrial feel that is consistent throughout all of the Bill's restaurants. I happen to really like the relaxed style, and I am particularly keen on the shelves stacked with jars, bottles and boxes of various foodie treats that you can buy and take home.

Although the food was really tasty, the dishes are in my opinion slightly too pricey for such laid back dining. The dishes aren't fancy, and a fish finger sandwich for £8.50 seems like daylight robbery in the eyes of anyone, let alone a student like me!