Giraffe, Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth
Giraffe has just opened a new branch in Portsmouth - but why did owners of this 36-strong 'family-friendly' restaurant chain call it giraffe?
Simple really. Giraffes have the largest heart of any land mammal, so we are led to believe these restaurateurs have the biggest one in human terms. Ahhhh….
Staff, kitted out in Love, Eat, Live T-shirts are spotted in the jungle of closely-packed chairs, high and low tables and high chairs, the orange painted walls equally signed with Love and Smile.
Is this pure gimmickry and marketing? Does Giraffe deliver family-type food in a family-type environment? Or is all this enforced jollility grating?
Step inside and once past the parked buggies, the first thing you'll notice is the cacophany. World music, the owners' passion it appears, is barely heard thanks to the noise.
Meeting and greeting is obviously in the How to Look After Customers staff handbook and they do it well and with charm. None of your 'youawrighthere?' here.
The menu says it is all about 'exploring the wonderful foods from around the world.' And it's about as imaginative and different as, well, most other 'family-friendly' chains.
Granted, you might find a Chicken Kiev or Jambalaya meatballs for around a tenner at some of the branches, but the usual suspects - burgers (Greek, Cajun chicken, beef all around 9), salads, cheesy garlic breads, pasta, nachos, grilled chicken piri piri, breakfasts - are here. The website offers a tantalising glimpse of many more interesting dishes which don't feature in Portsmouth.
I tried the most interesting of choices on offer - the hoummus with pine nuts, warm naan bread and crudits (4.95) and the healthy winter salad with broccoli, pumpkin, beetroot, French beans, toasted pumpkin seeds, cashew nuts and baby spinach (8.95) - and both were far better than usually found in chain restaurants.
The naan was warm and well-sourced, the carrot sticks, pepper and celery firm and fresh, the hoummus a good variety. The salad was a good pick-me-up after all the winter carbs, the friendly, effective waitress complimenting me on my healthy choice.
What Giraffe management excel at is their staff training: never in the history of British fast food outlets have I witnessed such sureness of touch, swiftness of service.
But there's only so much Loving and Smiling one can fit into a meal time - and noise. One thing is for sure, though. Gordon Brown could use that big heart, however genuine, or not, it is.
My bill came to 18.76 including a beer and 10 per cent added service.
Carol is a chef, former restaurateur and editor of Savour, the Guild of Food Writers magazine.
Giraffe, North Promenade Buildings, Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth PO1 3TA
(023) 9283 3787
Open: 10am-11 pm (Mon-Fri), 9am-11pm (Sat) and 9am-10.30 pm (Sun)
Food: ***
Service: *****
Atmosphere: ***
Disabled access: OK but wheelchairs have competition with high chairs and buggies.
How to get there: From the city, follow the brown signs to Gunwharf Quays. Large underground car park.
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Friday 10 February 2012
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