It has been a pretty grime year for hospitality, with it seemingly at its most fragile for as long as I can remember (and I was born in like 346 BC). This year regrettably is shaping up to be a lot worse, with (even if watered down) the rather horrific business rate increases coming in to effect in April. Talk about kicking an industry in the nuts, when you have already pulled out all its nose hair.  I fear these increases will to be the final nail in the coffin for far too many.

As our Lords and Masters won’t do anything other than preen themselves with self satisfied smugness, as the wheels increasingly come off, it is up to us (the seemingly hated hoi polloi) to try and save the day and I have endeavoured to eat out as much as my budget (I am a small business owner myself, so I am constantly getting clobbered too) and waistline will allow.

The blog has had its best year to date, with it being viewed in over 120 countries (oddly still yet to crack North Korea, come on Kim Jong Un pull that podgy little finger out as you are the only one with internet access and click on the link for a sneaky peek). I strongly feel that the relative (itvstill has a quark – esque size reach) success of the blog last year is utterly unrelated to the fact that I haven’t done any dedicated wine posts in 2025!!!

I ate and drunk pretty well in 2025 and as ever have put together my favourites from the last year (yes it may seem rather passè to some, but so are blogs these days when you can watch a gurning guy/gal on Istaamaaaaazingram/You Tube tell you they are “obsessed” with the “insanely good“/”best evah” just about anything they just stuffed in their maw, so I’ll take passè any day of the week thank you very much).

Favourite starter/snack

January started off with a bang, with Six by Hiraeth (a playful jibe at the corporate catering somewhere else whose door I have not darken but who according to the Istaaaamazingarti is “to die for” oh and, for them no doubt, free).

One of my favourite dishes Hiraeth have done over the years is their chip butty and it made a pleasing (yet all too brief) reappearance in 2025.

A seemingly simply, for the masses, dish it has been elevated by the Hiraeth boys to a level of refined elegence without losing its humble roots.

Beautifully crisp (on the outside) potato sandwich with compressed and fried (in chicken fat I think) bread. Nice contrast of textures, with the crisp exterior and soft yielding interior. Bag loads of flavour too for what was basically bread and taters. A fruity curry sauce topped things off nicely.

Six by Hiraeth is back this month and I had had high hope that this much loved favourite would make a comeback, but alas no with a Six Nation (tricky subject in Wales at present, but you never know) theme.

I am, of course, already booked in for this.

Favourite fish course

A rather jolly week away in Whitstable introduced me to oyster happy hour (and with it oyster binge eating) and the rather fine Sportsman, a Michelin starred pub  (just outside of Whitstable)

Famous for its rather unmichelin simplicity and fulsome (and good value) taster menu, the star of a fine show for me was their slip sole (young Dover Sole).

Simply grilled in seaweed butter, with no fannying about with foams etc, the fish had that sought after need of just the merest of nudges to shift it clean off the bone. Lightly seasoned by the salinity of the seaweed  butter, which complimented the delicate buttery sweetness of the fish, this seemingly simple thing made for an utterly compelling dish.

At the other end of the year Hiraeth’s sublime scallop in a beef fat dashi was a worthy runner up,

with the delicate creaminess of the, just cooked in the dashi, scallops complimented by the meaty stock and a touch of nasally horseradish.

Favourite meat course

I have had some great steak and a fair few good lamb dishes this year,

but it was a rather more humble beef dish that lived longest in the memory.

The Taiwanese beef noodle soup at Elements Cafe in the Cathays burb of Cardiff was comfortable food at its best.

Unfashionable cuts of beef (including tendon) sat in a rich fatty full on flavoured broth, within which flat noodles and salted cabbage lurked. This stuff really put a smile on my face, with the added benefit that it was quite wallet friendly. Ideal fodder for the current Baltic conditions 

Favourite pudding course

I often think desserts are the weak link at a lot of otherwise good restaurants. Probably because not many places I frequent have a dedicated pastry chef. I tend to favour savoury over sweet, but when a dessert nails it it is such a sweet ending to a meal.

Top marks went to Hiraerth’s rather cryptically names “After Eight Mint“

Lovely dark chocolate fondant, with a properly molten core, and a pleasing mint (in the background rather than dominating) infused ice cream. Rather decadant without over egging the pudding and with a flavour that sort of brought back memories of an after dinner mint, but in a balanced rather than sickly way. 

A close runner up was a textbook blackcurrent souffle, with a cream cheese icecream, at the Sportman near Whitstable.

Favourite overall meal

I am a member of a couple of wine tasting clubs and a highlight tends to be the dinners. This year was the 40th anniversary year for the Bristol based Jeroboam Club ( at the Pumphouse in Bristol) and boy did we have a treat food and drink wise.

It was a jolly affair with my father on fine form and the food very good. What really made the meal was the amazing selection of wines that the club had put together for the dinner.

Having all of the reds in double magnum format made a fab selection just that little bit better.

What made this my favourite meal was the combination of things I enjoy and it was a rare treat for the price of £110 all in. I dread to think what it would have cost with the wines at retail let along restaurant prices.

Good food, good wine and good company is what makes me happy and this meal aced all three and thus will live long in the memory.

Favourite for value

Interesting one this as to me value doesn’t mean cheap as a cheap (bad) meal can be very bad value where as a very good meal even if relatively expensive can still respresent good value.

This brings me to two meals, both outside of Cardiff, which to me respresented real value.

At meal at the uber trendy Devonshire in central London is perhaps not the place you expect value but that is exactly what a mate and I got with 2 courses for £25 and 3 for £29 prior to a rather fine evening tasting premium riojas. This is good value in Cardiff let alone central London if it is any good and it very much was.

They don’t skimping on either quantity or quality with this offering and as a result it is not difficult to understand its popularity. Somewhere that actually lived up to the hype!

Oddly, my post on this place was by far my most popular post this year (posts on anything outside of Cardiff all to often die a death). This is probably testimony to the enduring popularity of the Devonshire rather than the blog.

The second was a place in Krakow, Poland in a rather plush boutique hotel in the Old Town called Copernicus that usually does pretty high end dining, but has a bargain week day lunch offer.

Every course was bountiful and bob on flavour wise, with the food (as our first proper introduction to Polish cuisine) far more refined than I had lead to believe was the case for Polish cooking.

I would say on balance Copernicus took Pole position, with a slightly larger, more refined and cheaper (at £21) offering.

Favourite really cheap eat

I really love oysters and for value I really don’t think you can beat Oyster Happy Hour (every day 5pm – 6pm) in the Kent town of Whitstable. This gets you oysters for a mere £1.25 a pop or 6 for £6.25 (under £1.05 a pop). I mean why have one when you can have six!

With the weather with us, I gorged on these beautiful, bargainous, briney bivalues every day of our week’s visit and still only spent a pittance.

Favourite place

I think every one should have a go to restaurant. A place they know will never let them down and where you go to celebrate birthdays etc. Such a place for me is Hiraeth in Victoria Park, Cardiff.

The food is great, the wine list interesting and not hideously pricey and the people are just really nice.

Can’t ask for more than that and as a result my visits to the place last year were in double digits. I am already booked in for Jan. this year and it will remain my preferred venue for high days and holidays visits. If you haven’t been my advice is do so ASAP in 2026.

Favourite wine drunk

I, of course, drunk plenty of wine in 2025 both at home and away. The Cardiff Wine Buyers Club has been a real boon, with the ability to eat out (and drink good and interesting wines) with fellow oenophiles. Our London trip to the Decanter Fine Wine Encounter in November was great fun (including a very good meal at Parsons).

Back to wines I drunk I am not a huge claret drinker, but a 1985 Chateau Decru- Beaucaillou (in double magnum format)

was, certainly worth the hype.

Classic cab sauv nose with graphite, cedar and pencil shavings followed by a pleasing fruitiness and then more tertiary notes of leather, earthiness and warming spice. Just a touch of medicinal herbs in the mix too.

Lovely interegation on the palate in terms of tannins and more of the same (as with the nose) flavour wise. I absolutely loved this wine, which was glorious on it own and even better with some wood roasted venison. My overall wine of the year (both red and white).

A close second was a glorious rioja from the ever reliable Bodegas Muga.

Lovely example of how well wines made from the tempranillo grape can age, with a beguiling nose which managed to combine sweet, sour, savoury and floral notes. On the palate the fruit (predominately red berries) was still in there, with tertiary meaty notes coming through and taking the lead. It still had a refreshing level of acidity and a lovely length, with it staying on the palate for a pleasingly long time.

White wine wise,  1959 and 1971 sweeties

rather got the pulse racing but it was another 1994 and another sweetie (had at a Cardiff Wine Buyers Club night out) that was my favourite.

A rich honeyed wine, with stone fruit (peach and apricot) as it lingered on the palate for an age. Very nice level of acidity meant it was not cloying at all.  People often shun sweet wines and Gewurztraminer is very much a marmite grape, but boy when they are good are they good. This was absolutely lovely stuff.

The verdict

A good year and again thanks to all the staff in kitchens and front of house who have fed and watered me so well in 2025. I sincerely hope that my fear that there will be a  tsunami of closures in 2026 is misplaced, as to me hospitality is very much the life blood of most communities. What a dreary place it would be without good pubs, bars and restaurants.

All we can do is hope for the best and keep supporting our restaurants and bars as much as we can. I have said it before and will say it again, if we don’t use them we will undoubtedly lose them!