THE last time I visited Curro's in Cross Street, Caerleon, I was not too impressed. This time I was hoping for a better experience both in terms of service and food.

Having booked a table for four for 8.30pm a week before we were due, my guests and I arrived 15 minutes early. But it was 9pm before we directed to our table. To be fair we had requested an extra five minutes while having an aperitif and perusing the menu, but that was at 8.30.

However, the food made up for this shortcoming. Starters of prawn cocktail, minestrone soup and a large bacon and mushroom filled vol-au-vent were par for the course for such an established restaurant.

My companions, unlike myself, are fully-fledged carnivores. So while I choose a fillet of Dover sole for my main dish they respectively decided to sample a tournedos rossini fillet of beef, a pork tenderloin and chicken with herbs and garlic in a tomato sauce.

The dishes were accompanied by a selection of well-cooked tasty vegetables that included carrots, broccoli and potatoes, which were served by a friendly waitress. My Dover sole, I am happy to say, was meaty yet light. By the soothing tones coming from my companions I took it that their meals were just as good.

For dessert a selection of goodies to tempt anyone on a diet to sin was offered. I had a slice of chocolate orange gateaux with cream. My wife took a creme caramel to heart while Chris, our friend, picked out the tiramasu to devour. His wife, April, declined a dessert.

The sweets, as with the main course, were judged a success as they melted away in our mouths.

The bill with drinks included came to just under £100. At £25 a head it appeared to be good value but while we left feeling well fed we were slightly disappointed not to feel totally satisfied on what should have been a celebratory Saturday night out. Ceri Hillier