"The foodie city"?

In a 2016 review of Cardiff restaurant the Classroom, Jay Rayner claimed that, "while the city has many good things to recommend it, the eating opportunities are not among them". His comments provoked quite a bit of fuss and furore at the time - so this recent article by the Independent's Ibrahim Salha, titled "Why Cardiff should be considered one of our brightest and best cities for food", comes across as either a corrective riposte to Rayner's criticism or an indication that the city has made significant strides forwards over the last three years.

Over the course of his visit, Salha called in at some places I'd heartily endorse (Pettigrew Tea Rooms; Wally's) as well as several others that I really should have tried by now (Greazy Vegan; Ffwrnes, now established in the covered market; Madame Fromage, whose cawl and rarebit I've heard others rave about). At the upper end of the price spectrum, James Sommerlin's restaurant in Penarth is definitely on our radar, as too is the Admiral St David's at St David's Hotel. It was also interesting to read such a glowing write-up of Park House, a mere stone's throw from my office.

Nevertheless, the reaction from Cardiff foodie community seems to have been mixed. Some people have suggested that Salha could have sought out the views and recommendations of food bloggers on the ground; some have criticised his itinerary as conservative and unadventurous, particularly in light of the initial observation that Cardiff is "a thoroughly cosmopolitan city"; and some have argued that he's rather over-egged it by suggesting that the city "is staking a serious claim to being one of the most exciting places to eat in the UK", pointing out that it's no Bristol, for instance, and that there's still significant room for improvement.

In other words, calling Cardiff "the foodie city", as Salha suggests we should, is rather premature. But, on a positive note, at least the article goes to show that the situation is not as dire as Rayner made out in 2016, and that there are lots of places to enjoy.