The George, George Street, Bath

George Street, Bath: I’ve only very recently waxed very lyrically about it, when reviewing a restaurant further down one of Bath’s liveliest thoroughfares that’s known locally as ‘the strip’.

Summary of that waxing for the TLDR brigade: an overheard comment made by a passing tourist along the lines of “it looks like one of those classy little streets off the Marais.” And indeed, in a way, it does, especially at twilight, when the sparkling lights twinkle from behind various bars and restaurants and promising aromas (steaks, griddling; garlic, sizzling; various colognes, wafting) linger on the soft breeze.

Linger at the crossroads at the top of Milsom Street, however, and a brand new kid on the George Street block (sorry, strip) catches the eye: The George, née seafood restaurant Flute, now an enticing combination of old-school proper hostelry and new season proper bar where a proper bar selection, a proper(ly flexible) food menu and properly seductive surroundings all combine to create plenty of very good reasons to investigate… and then, linger long.

Decor is artfully alluring: low lights reflecting in polished wood, whimsical wallpaper, forest green walls – it’s playful in a grown up way, with a touch of Alice in Wonderland here, a smattering of Bemelmans Bar there and plenty of inviting nooks and crannies for parties of all sizes everywhere.

Oh, sit me down in this gently buzzing haven of merriment and bring me a French 75! That’s how we started – and I advise you to do the same, as there’s clearly nothing the bar staff here don’t know about rustling up the perfect French 75. 

The kitchen team, it seems, are equally accomplished in their responsibilities too: think, oozy, creamy Somerset Rarebit that proves once and for all that Rarebit is NOT “just cheese on toast”; spicy, sweet, supremely tender Hot Honey Chorizo; a big, fat Scotch Egg, crisp on the outside and moistly meaty within, with rivulets of golden yolk bringing it all together; frangible calamari; rugged breaded steak strips with a punchy, poky ‘cowboy butter’. 

You may have realised by now that we’re largely on small plate territory here. We’re not, however, anywhere near the really jaded small plate menu blah-blah that results in either a muddled array of over-priced dishes that don’t really hang together or a shower of supermarket-style party buffet bites that too many jaded kitchens rely on for big profits. 

At The George, the small plates are (a) not that small at all, (b) classic, but with enough of an imaginative spin to elevate them to classy, and (c) exceedingly well-priced for the quality on offer: 7 for £49, with a £4 supplement for that Scotch Egg and those steak strips, both of which really are worth pushing the (very small) boat out for (although, having said that, I could have ordered three plates of Somerset Rarebit and four Hot Honey Chorizo and have been about as dazed, satisfied and satiated as dazed, satisfied and satiated gets.)  

But oh, hang on, there are big plate mains on the menu too, from which we chose the Braised Short Ribs with Polenta Fries and Red Wine Gravy to share over the fish and chips, steak frites, Mr George Burger and a selection of similarly promising hearties because we loved how, on the table next to ours, somebody else had gone short rib, picked one up and found themselves with just a clean, white bone in hand: that’s how properly tender The George’s Braised Short Ribs are, served with polenta fries worth fighting for (but you don’t really need to, as they’re on the small plates selection too) and a deeply umami gravy to drench them in… all of which bodes very well for the promise of a thoroughly decent Sunday Roast here too.

But this was a Friday evening, and the time had come to leave this gently buzzing haven of merriment and make my way home, away from the flowing wine (great little list; great little prices) and the Alice in Wonderland vibe but smiling like a Cheshire Cat that this enticing combination of old-school proper hostelry and new season proper bar has made a home on the George Street strip.