There are a host of incredible restaurants at the Celtic Manor in Newport - and some of the food is out of this world

ANYONE who loves good food but has never eaten at Newport's Celtic Manor Resort doesn't know what they are missing.

The resort is home to a number of restaurants covering everything from contemporary Asia to classic steaks - there really is something for every taste.

And we were recently invited along to a tasting session highlighting the different dishes on offer in the seven restaurants across the resort.

All of the restaurants are open to the public. You can choose from the two AA Rosette award-winning Newbridge on Usk, which offers modern British cuisine featuring seasonal ingredients sourced from its own garden or relaxed dining at The Grill, which offered honest and simple food including steaks, pasta, salads, dish and burgers.

The resort's signature restaurant is Steak on Six, which fuses contemporary dining with rustic flavour. Then there is the popular Rib Smokehouse and Grill at the Coldra Court Hotel in Langstone.

One of the reasons for the evening was to highlight the rebranding of the Cen restaurant, housed in the Manor House, after the two-year contract between the resort and Masterchef finalist Larkin Cen was not renewed by mutual consent.

The new restaurant is called Pad.

The Celtic Manor Resort team of chefs, which developed dishes alongside Larkin at Cen restaurant, has refined a similar menu featuring fresh, contemporary Asian cuisine at its new Pad restaurant in the same space at the Manor House.

And it was in a private dining room next to Pad that a band of journalists and food bloggers were treated to a nine course taster menu, after sampling delicious cocktails in the Mulberry cocktail bar just off the atrium of the main hotel.

Simon Crockford, executive restaurant chef at the resort, and Adam Whittle, chef at the Newbridge on Usk, led the team of chefs in creating a menu ranging from deliciously crisp beef gyoza from Pad to dessert of salted caramel Whoopie Pie from The Olive Tree.

As each dish came out, paired with a range of drinks including Newport's own Tiny Rebel Cwtch and an amazing plum sake, we photographed the plates before devouring them and declaring each one a real treat. At the end of the evening it was difficult to decide which was the favourite - needless to say each was delicious in its own right and it really was just down to personal preference which one topped each of our list.

Representing The Grill, which is housed at the Golf Club at the resort, was crispy pork belly with a potato and chive salad, corn salsa, ranch dressing and a Bourbon glaze.

The next course featured a dish from Rafters, the restaurant at the Twenty Ten Clubhouse. Simon Crockford, who hails from Pembrokeshire, decided to do a take on a traditional fish and chips. We were treated to Tenby Harbour Ale battered halloumi with polenta chips, peas, tarragon and lemon tartare sauce - with a Halon Mon vinegar-infused salt, which proved a great discussion point.

Looking down the menu, we could see the next course was going to be from Steak on Six, a restaurant on the sixth floor of the main hotel boasting views over the Coldra Woods. As a bit of a curve ball, the course consisted of hand carved Welsh Penderyn whisky cured salmon with oak smoked mousse, crackling, caper crisps, Keta and iced grapes.

Pad's second offering of the evening was packed with flavour. A Malaysian Laksa with prawns and scallop. We were given the recipe for this dish to try for ourselves at home. The broth was packed with rice noodles, coconut, lemongrass, ginger and chilli.

Herb crusted lamb rump was the next dish - from Adam Whittle at the Newbridge on Usk. The succulent piece of lamb came with celeriac and rosemary terrine, hispi cabbage, onion and carrot.

On to the desserts and along with the Whoopie Pie were we treated to a Peanut Butter Parfait, one of the most popular desserts on offer at the Rib Smokehouse and Grill, which can be found at the Coldra Court Hotel in Langstone.

So, if you're looking for a place to eat and want to venture away from the city centre for a change, why not try one of the restaurants at the Celtic Manor?