The Jetty Christchurch

Wonderful food, magnificent service.

Food was lovely. Service was impeccable without being overbearing. Lovely touches like the map of where the produce was from.

Best restaurant ever.

Our first visit, with friends, to this modern restaurant overlooking the water at Mudeford, with views across the harbour to Hengistbury Head. So nicely situated, with a good view, but otherwise unremarkable in appearance. First thing to note is the confusing array of menus. There's an a la carte, a daily set lunch with plenty of choice, and a “catch of the day” menu which is unsurprisingly fish and which looks pretty expensive till you're told that the fish price includes either one of their signature souffle- cheeses or passion fruit. You can apparently mix all this to your hearts content, so choosing takes a while and is accompanied by much flashing between the different bits of paper “now where was that Octopus dish I was looking at just a minute ago?” We got there in the end but we had such a mixture that it was a bit of a mission to check the bill at the end, and a minor miracle that the server had got it all right. The food was decent to good but a little variable . My octopus starter with clams was small but tasty and served at just the right temperature (warm). This was followed by a nicely cooked and perfectly boned but somewhat bland lemon sole on a bed of crispy greens to which I added some triple-cooked chips. I was frankly a bit disappointed in the fish- a bit small, a bit bland and not nearly enough beurre blanc to contribute anything to the dish and not even enough to determine what it tasted like. I've tasted a lot of lemon sole like this- but having started to source my fish from a fishmonger in Cornwall I'm getting used to white fish with quite a bit more flavour and character than this. “Local” doesn't have to mean better. The signature passion fruit souffle surprised me a bit- its a fairly plain souffle cooked right and looking right into which is spooned quite a large quantity of a hot passionfruit sauce. The sauce is very intense and concentrated, and in my opinion could do with toning down somewhat. A trip to see how London's Ledbury deals with this dish – with the passionfruit incorporated into the souffle might result in the dish gaining a little sublety that I felt it lacked. So all told, an enjoyable meal but not a classic. Served pleasantly, it was worth the £95 per couple it cost including a bottle of wine plus a couple of glasses and coffees. Go back? Sure if we're in the area ( its a long way from home) but it's not quite a meal to remember. We've eaten in three well-liked restaurants in this area, and altough they are all different in food and style, LimeWood; The Pig, and The Jetty are at a level for me.