The Old Bookshop

I started going to the Old Bookshop back when in opened in 2011 with a girlfriend of mine who, when I asked for directions, told me to drive past the Spotted Cow and it would be 'somewhere on the right'. I was incredulous - was there life beyond the Spotted Cow? Surely driving past would just take you towards East Street and it's cacophony of kebab shops. But no, I was very wrong and thus my love affair with the Old Bookshop began and 20 months on, it has become a deeply rooted favourite amongst my friends and I.

As you walk in through the door you're struck by the quirky exterior - the trumpets hanging above the bar, the vintage typewriters lining the wall, the piano that's been turned into a bar and the mad taxidermied animals perched around the place but there's no air of 'try-to-hard' or pretentiousness. It all seems to feel very lived in, established and dare I say it, natural which seems strange considering the bleak surrounding environment of sandwich shops and take aways. The tiny stage has seen bands such as the locally loved, Ten Pound Suit Band and when not in use houses a few more tables.

Their chef has changed in the last few months, previously headed up by Scott Raynal Hislop who now works in Hermanos on the Triangle, it seems he has left the Old Bookshop in safe hands and their food is as good as ever.Their take on tapas is served in mismatched crockery that would not feel unwelcome in your granny's kitchen cupboard and the menu changes from week to week. Previous visits have seen seafood heavy menus with garlic prawns, sardines and deep fried calamari but our visit last night featured quite a few beef dishes - meatballs, lasagne, chilli, mini burgers. We opted for the meatballs, chilli, deep fried chicken drumsticks and macaroni cheese with a side of cheesy fries (I AM pleased they've stopped calling it Frites Fromage - you don't need to try to be cool guys, you already are!).

The meatballs were heady and fragrant with marjoram, and were soft, salty and delicious served in a stew with beans and potatoes. The chilli again was fairly heavy on the herbs but not in an overpowering way and was served with rice and a big dollop of soured cream. I was a bit disappointed by the drumsticks, from the description I was expecting fried chicken with a Caribbean spiced batter but they seemed to have been slow roasted - they were still delicious, the meat almost fell away from the bone - but not what I expected. The macaroni cheese was the big highlight with the most moreish sauce and the welcome additives of spinach and cherry tomatoes. I could have eaten a big plateful on my own.

The ingredients seem to be locally sourced with Mark's Bread an almost constant resident, seafood from Brixham etc and seasonal  but they don't bang on about either issue of locality or seasonality, they just focus on what they do best, serving tasty food.

I've yet to try their Sunday roasts or partake in American Night (soon to be Caribbean Night) on a Monday but I'm sure there will be many more opportunities for that. We were told last night that they have secured the premises next door so they can extend which is great in some respects but I'm going to miss the feeling of the tiny, cocoon-like interior but knowing how well they have managed with such a small space, I'm confident that they will be able to keep the intimate and cozy ambience. I do hope they stick to their no reservations policy - feeling that you can pop in anytime to get a couple of bowls of something yummy adds to the relaxed feeling of locality and the friendly neighbourhood cafe and I hope to be popping by for many more years to come...