The View from the Pod, No.2 : Rojano's in the Square, Padstow

The View from the Pod, No.2 - Rojano's (in the Square)

So next stop on our travels was the wonderful town of Padstow, famed for Rick Stein and his whole plethora of restaurants, cafe's and shops, however this review isn't one of those and it instead is part of the new guard in the town.  Rojano's In The Square, or Rojano's for short has been a must visit for us on a number of occasions now, it is a lovely restaurant just one road back from the picturesque harbour that is lined with all its shops and cafe's.  Owned by Paul Ainsworth, this restaurant has been transformed into a fresh and vibrant operation that is a casual but refined venue for lunch and dinner.

More importantly when you have children with you it is a restaurant that is more comfortable to suit their needs without losing any quality in the food that is on offer.  This trip to Rojano's for us was a lunchtime visit on a quieter day in February, and once again the restaurant didn't disappoint.  Looking around the restaurant it attracts all types of clientele, and on that day it showed it, there were parties of ladies out to lunch, retired couples of friends meeting, couples lunching out and families enjoying a bite to eat.  

The children were catered for and not just by the food, with drawing provided to keep them happy, and a very attentive staff all of whom seemed to be friendly and alert to the needs of 2 and 4 year old customers, Paul, the manager who served us indeed shared that he had children of similar ages at home and loved having children in the restaurant.  

In terms of the menu, this again is packed with dishes to entice, from nibbles to sharing options, every base is covered, we chose to share the Calamari which was billed as a main for one or starter to share and it was delicious, the dressing on the rocket was amazing, The dough balls that we also ordered were delicious and devoured by the children.  

As for the mains, the children picked pizza off the Bambini menu, with The Boy selecting a range of vegetables for his, while The Princess had the Bolognaise dish, which she polished off, we didn't take the offer of the full set menu for the children as the only disappointment was that the drink choice was Fruit Shoots of all flavours, a drink that we are passionately against and our children prefer fresh juice or water, so maybe this should be looked at, however this is a personal choice.

For our mains, we went for very different dishes ranging from Sirloin Steak which was cooked to perfection, as it was asked for medium rare, the chips also had a crispness and texture that was extremely morish.  I on the other hand had a blast from my past and chose the Calzone, a favourite when I was younger with the lads having a cheeky takeaway as a student, however this surpassed any previous attempts I have had, it was full of flavour with a some good spicy arrabiata to make the taste interesting, the mozzarella was melt in the mouth stuff and the presentation of the dish was worthy of any dish in Paul Ainsworth's other more established restaurant in Padstow, if it wasn't a calzone.  Being in Cornwall and having a cornish style Pizza seemed apt and everyone enjoyed a taste of it as it was probably the best of all the dishes chosen.  

Overall,  the experience was an enjoyable one for the whole family, equally so if you were going for a evening meal as a couple or with friends this is a great place to go with good all round menu, and also great cocktails upstairs.  If you happen to be on holiday and visiting Padstow this year make sure you visit this restaurant, and it will give you a break from all the pasties and cream teas on offer.  Finally also if you get chance, try the charcuterie plank, we did on a previous visit, great to share, all the meats are full of flavour and the fondue in the middle is a great accompaniment to the dish.  Rojano's is the place to go for all reasons and so if you get there this summer, don't necessarily make a bee line for the seafood restaurants pay Rojano's a visit.  Thanks to Paul Dodd the General Manager for another great meal.

Service:  5/5

Price:     5/5

Food Quality:  4/5

Cleanliness: 5/5

Overall experience: 19/20