My Bristol Food - Jamie Caddick
Posted on: 29 Nov 2016Bristol is blessed with superb dining venues that cover every base. From Michelin Star to greasy spoon, tapas to burgers, BBQ to...you get the idea. As a result, there are a select few people around the city whose opinion is greatly respected...
In this series of interviews, 365Bristol will meet with people who love their food first and foremost. We're meeting real people who like real food. You can't judge fine dining against a burrito but there's no reason why you can't enjoy and comment on both; enlightening the city of Bristol as to which places we should visit.
This week we chat with Jamie Caddick. He's spent a lifetime seeking out the best eateries around Bristol and that won't be a surprise to our readers - he's our number one food critic and his hefty words weigh heavily on many of Bristol's eateries.
Who are you? Are you from Bristol?
I'm a writer, poet, journo, critic, reviewer, daydreamer, existentialist, Atheist and eternal wanderer around the fringes of life's great and glorious literary unknown. OK, so I'm a writer who churns out occasional words of wisdom about great places to gig, eat and be merry in Bristol, but it's impossible for me not to add a few creative flourishes.
I'm born and bred in Bristol, which I think - in a completely unbiased and objective fashion, of course - is the best city in the UK. Vibrant, eclectic, diverse, fun, lively, idiosyncratic, creative - they're all words that have become modern cliches, but sometimes a cliche is truly the only real way of describing something, and they perfectly encapsulate the spirit, essence and vibe of the city.
Bristol is a fantastic place and I love it.
Where is the best place to go and have some food in Bristol?
Jeez, that's a tough one - and it depends on what kind of food you like, as everyone's tastes are different.
The thing about Bristol is that we're so blessed with such a magnificent cornucopia of first-rate food establishments that it's really, really difficult to pick out a favourite. But seeing as I have to, I will - and it would be The Raj on King St.
So it might looked as though it's still stuck in the 1970s with its outdated decor and modern Indian restaurants have, for the most part, moved on from keeping the food warm on those silver grilles with flickering candles underneath - but that's precisely why I love it. Charming in a natural, charming, unforced, totally unpretentious way.
The Raj is unashamedly old school and all the better for it. It's not being retro in the kind of nauseatingly semi-ironic fashion a lot of venues are nowadays. It's cosy, intimate, the staff are excellent and it's a place that lets the (stunningly delicious, superb) food speak for itself. For me, it easily ranks as the best Indian food in the city.
You’ve got 24 hours in Bristol to show some visitors around. What are you going to do?
24 hours would barely scratch the surface, but the top unmissable spots for the Bristol uninitiated would have to include the Bristol Suspension Bridge, a good walk around the harbourside, Bristol Cathedral, Brandon Hill and Cabot Tower, Queen Square, St Mary Redcliffe, Blaise Castle, Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, ss Great Britain, and Bristol Zoo.
Then of course there are all the fabulous pubs and restaurants. So that would immediately involve the likes of The Old Fish Market, The Bag o' Nails, The Green Man, The Hobgoblin, The Prince of Wales, The Burger Joint, The Stable, The Three Tuns, The Shakespeare on Princes Street, The Cornubia, Spitfire BBQ & Grill, Brunel Buttery, and The Volunteer Tavern.
You see the dilemma here? So much to do and so little time. That's the blessing and the curse of Bristol.
If you were the Mayor of Bristol for a day what would you change or implement?
This has the deliciously ripe potential of being somewhat contentious and controversial....so why not? I'm rather ambivalent - actually, pretty resolutely unconvinced - that a Mayor is required or even necessary in Bristol anyway.
(After all, apart from a few embarrassing, cringe-worthy speeches, a myriad of lousy decisions, an apparent insistence on running the city into the ground, and a seemingly relentless pursuit of self-promotion and the progression of their own twisted political agendas, what have our two Mayoral incumbents actually REALLY done?)
But on the basis one exists - and that I'm in charge for a day (in itself a wise and commendable move) - I'd abolish all 20mph zones and RPZs, remove half the traffic lights to ease congestion, cut middle-management councillor salaries and sack the incompetent ones (so that's half of them in one fell swoop, then), and immediately expunge its obsession with outsourcing or hiring rapacious, time-wasting advisers and consultants (they always end up pocketing thousands, whilst we always end up with nothing).
With the cash saved from overpaid, inept councillors and such despicable cohorts, I'd plow the money straight back into the things that REALLY matter in this city - dealing with the increasingly out-of-control homeless situation and helping the most vulnerable in society, funding youth projects, mental health charities and support groups for people with alcohol and drug addictions, the continuation and support of public libraries, reduce the exorbitant council tax, and pump money into much-needed public services, hospitals, nurseries, schools and care homes for the elderly.
These are the things that matter and to which elected powers should have a total, unequivocal commitment.
Oh, and the Metrobus system and the habitually delayed Arena. I'd insist on hiring people who knew how to make a firm decision, stick to it, have some basic grasp of what they were doing, and have at least one single organisational bone in their body. The pure and utter waste of money and casual profligacy of council tax payers' cash is as shockingly risible as it is farcical.
Other than that though, I wouldn't change a thing.
Best Burger
Hobgoblin, Gloucester Road
Best Sunday Roast
The Green Man, Kingsdown
Best Steak
The Ashville, Southville
Best Indian
Best Italian
Best Pub
Think you're a true Bristol foodie? Know someone who thinks they are? Get in touch.
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Article by:
Born and raised in the suburbs of Swansea, Jimmy moved to Bristol back in 2004 to attend university. Passionate about live music, sport, science and nature, he can usually be found walking his cocker spaniel Baxter at any number of green spots around the city. Call James on 078 9999 3534 or email Editor@365Bristol.com.
