A Day Out in Bristol

My second visit to Bristol was on a decidedly damp Saturday afternoon, so we were looking for places to spend some time inside. Having walked down the steep slope of Park Street and not being in any hurry to go back up, I suggested that the Arnolfini arts centre might not be too much further to walk. Situated on Bristol's Harbourside, it is easily reached by walking along the quayside from The Centre. From the south you can get there by crossing the swing bridge on Prince Street. Admission is free, so it is definitely worth a visit if you are interested in the arts.

The Arnolfini has no permanent collection of artworks, so exhibitions change from time to time. There is currently (August 2008) a display described as an 'interactive shopping experience' entitled 'Far West'. Although not exactly my cup of tea, there was a degree of variety and an opportunity for visitors to participate in certain sections of the show – a particularly good idea during the school holidays. On the ground floor, for example, visitors can create paper fruits from templates; these can then be purchased or exchanged for a real piece of fruit. The paper fruits are exhibited in a stall similar to the way they would be in a market. In the same gallery, a number of unfinished paintings by artist Lui Ding are on sale at a price of £100 each; the idea is to complete the painting at home in whatever way you wish. Most of them featured trees or parts of a landscape. I'm afraid we didn't buy one, but it's a fascinating concept.

One of the busiest and apparently most popular areas of the exhibition was Yoko Ono's 'Mend Piece – for Merry England' on the first floor. Donations of unwanted or broken crockery are handed in by visitors, who are then invited to create a new item or miniature work of art from the fragments that are available. A gift is offered in exchange, although I'm afraid I don't know what this would be. The creations made by visitors are put on display and are worth taking a close look at: there are the purely abstract pieces amidst attempts at creating fish, faces, bodies, all sorts. In the same gallery, we admired Philippe Parreno and Pierre Huyghe's 'Skin of Light', a neon depiction of AnnLee, a character originally created by Japanese Manga illustrators.

The Arnolfini spans three floors and has a series of small but well-lit galleries whose walls are normally painted white. (Some of them are currently covered in a garish blue wallpaper featuring over-sized bunches of flowers as part of the 'Far West' display.) The ground floor also houses a shop offering a good selection of art books (including exhibition catalogues), greetings cards and postcards, as well as a selection of artists' prints and limited editions. The shop is open until 6pm on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, until 8pm Thursday to Sunday. There is a cafe bar which we did not visit; on fine days you can sit outside and have lunch (salad and pasta) or a drink and something light to eat, but it wasn't the weather for that on the occasion I was there. Fairtrade tea, coffee and hot chocolate are served along with organic produce. The cafe is open from 10am until 11pm Tuesday to Saturday, and until 10.30pm on Sundays.

On the top floor of the Arnolfini you will find a reading room with back catalogues and a wide selection of art magazines as well as books. We even noticed a copy of the 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' DVD which you could watch on a computer, so if it's pouring down and your children are on holiday, you could kill a little time here.

On Saturday 16th August 2008, the Saturday following my visit, the periodic 'Mash Up', a family-friendly event with workshops, activities and storytelling was due to take place. I'm not sure how often this 'Mash Up' occurs, but details can be found on Arnolfini's website.

Exhibition tours take place every Saturday at 2pm, and are led by an artist. Booking is not necessary; you just turn up at the information desk.

Events at Arnolfini are by no means confined to the visual arts. There is a theatre/cinema on the premises, and details of film showings and theatrical performances can be found at Arnolfini's website. The Bristol Poetry Festival is an annual event taking place in September with readings by contemporary poets such as Simon Armitage, and a poetry slam between Liverpool and Bristol. This type of event, however, is not always free; check the Arnolfini website for ticket prices.

The upper floors of the Arnolfini can be reached by either stairs or a lift, and there seemed to be quite a few people wheeling buggies around on the top floor. Toilets are available on the top floor as well as adjacent to the cafe on the ground floor, where there are also baby-changing facilities.

Considered as one of Europe's leading centres for the contemporary arts, the Arnolfini is worthy of a visit by anyone interested in visual art, film, poetry, or dance. It is, however, closed on Mondays, except for Bank Holidays. You can sign up at Arnolfini's website for their newsletter to be sent to you by either email or post; since events and displays are only temporary, this will enable you to plan a visit to suit your particular interests.

www.arnolfini.org.uk

Tel. 0117 9172300/01

Email: boxoffice@arnolfini.org.uk

Bristol's new branch of La Tasca is on the top level of the spanking new Glass House at Cabot Circus. Two of us had travelled by train and took about twenty minutes to walk from Temple Meads to Cabot Circus. My younger son lives in Bristol and had been able to get a bus right to the shopping centre. On the ground floor of the Glass House a well-informed lady was giving out maps of the centre and answering visitors' questions, so I took a map. One of my sons went bounding up the staircase but I quickly called him back, as I had spotted an escalator that my knees would find much easier. Later, when we were coming back down, we saw that there was a lift which would obviously be helpful for buggies and wheelchairs.

As we went up, we had not yet decided where to eat. We spotted Cafe Rouge on Level 2 but decided to have a look at Yo! Sushi on Level 3, as there is no branch in Portsmouth. We couldn't agree unanimously on it, however. Prices were indicated on the front window, but there did not seem to be any way of looking at the menu unless you went inside. None of us had been to La Tasca recently, as one of my sons had experienced poor service at the Gunwharf Quays branch on a couple of occasions. We decided that tapas would make a change, and we thought perhaps service might be better at this particular branch.

There are a few tables outside at La Tasca, and although the Glass House has sections of glass domes, it is open to the elements in places. In spite of it being November, it wasn't particularly cold and some people were sitting at these tables from whence you have a good view of other parts of the mall. We decided, however, to sit inside and were greeted by a lady who spoke extremely quickly with a Spanish accent. It was mid-afternoon, and she wanted to tell us that although she had been run off her feet all through lunchtime, things had now quietened down and she could actually offer us a choice of tables.

We chose a table by the wall, and I sat on a seat surrounded by cushions with little space for coats and bags. But it was comfortable. The lighting is low, provided by large rectangular wooden chandeliers with orange light bulbs. Décor was similar to that of Gunwharf's La Tasca, aiming at being rustic but including the odd Picasso print here and there. Music is what one might call typically Spanish – lots of guitar – not really my cup of tea, but I knew what to expect so mustn't complain. The Spanish lady introduced our waiter, who brought menus for us.

One of my sons asked for a Spanish beer which did not exactly wow him. I decided on a glass of Appletiser whilst my other son went for fresh orange juice. We also ordered some mixed green and black olives as a starter. These arrived very quickly in a small earthenware bowl, but we realised that we had no plates yet and therefore nowhere to put the stones. I'm afraid we moved the vinegar and olive oil onto the table and used the plate that they had been standing on.

From the main menu we decided on the Selection of Tapas with Meat for two people at £22.45. This included chicken wings, meatballs in tomato sauce, patatas bravas, paella with spicy sausage, sliced spicy sausage, Spanish tortilla and garlic mushrooms. We had chosen this one partly because one of my sons steers clear of fish and seafood, although he doesn't actually like mushrooms either but is very fond of chorizo. As there were three of us, we thought another two individual tapas dishes would satisfy our appetites and we picked the ensalada mixta at £3.75, which is mainly tuna and lettuce with a couple of slices of hard-boiled egg and cherry tomato thrown in, as well as a rice dish cooked with cheese, green beans and peas which was listed in the vegetable section at £3.95. You can of course order all your tapas dishes individually, or you might like a paella which is aimed at at least two people.

It wasn't long before the food was brought by a young waitress who hoped we would enjoy our meal. I lost no time in pointing out that we had no plates or cutlery, but these were immediately provided by the waiter who had taken our order. It does seem a little strange that the plates you are given to eat from are extremely small – I know the tapas dishes themselves are small, but it would seem logical to me to have a plate large enough for a serving of several tapas at once. Perhaps that is not the authentic way. We checked that we had the correct number of dishes and found that we did. As we began helping ourselves I also felt that one or two serving spoons would have made the process easier.

I'm sounding a little fussy over some things, but I really had no complaints about the food itself. The meatballs and patatas bravas are both served with plenty of tomato sauce, which for me is a bonus. I always find chicken wings fiddly, but I have to say the meat was very tender. Only two of us were sharing the mushrooms so I certainly had quite a few; they complemented the other tapas extremely well. The rice dish with green vegetables and cheese was, we felt, a particularly good one and proved slightly more popular than the paella. I didn't try the spicy sausage. The ensalata mixta was perhaps not the most inspiring salad, consisting mainly of lettuce and tuna. We were unable to finish it. In fact we left a little of two or three dishes, not because we didn't enjoy them but because our appetites were satisfied.

Deciding against the offers of dessert or coffee, we asked for the bill and there was no delay in bringing this. It came to exactly £40 for three drinks, nine tapas dishes and a bowl of olives. Pretty reasonable, I have to say. We did add a tip to this. As we left the waiter thanked us, but I almost bumped into the Spanish lady who still seemed to be rushing here, there and everywhere.

I have never been to Spain and cannot comment on how La Tasca compares to authentic Spanish tapas, but I have to say that the three of us all enjoyed our lunch there and we are not always easily pleased. I have no complaints about service either, although I realise that we did not go at the busiest time and there may be longer delays at the usual lunch or dinner periods. My quibbles were all minor ones and did not really relate to the food itself.

Although this particular restaurant is situated on Level 3 at Cabot Circus, it is easily accessible. La Tasca at Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth has a large upper floor that is reach by a winding staircase that I no longer find easy and would be impossible for some.

We were told that La Tasca's menu is changing in mid November, and changing for the better. My reply was that we had therefore come at the wrong time but I was told no, you just need to come back again in a couple of weeks. Much as I would like to, I may not be visiting Bristol again for a while as our plan is to meet in Bath next time. But if you should be Christmas shopping in Cabot Circus, you could do a lot worse than dine at La Tasca. Mid afternoon is recommended.

http://www.latasca.co.uk/find-us/bristol-cabot-circus.html

One of my sons decided he'd had enough of Southsea and was offered a job in Bristol, so off he went. Having given him three weeks to settle in, I thought it was about time I went for a visit. It's a city I was until now totally unfamiliar with, but it seems to have a lot to offer. After a good walk and a visit to the museum, we were feeling peckish and ready for a sit down. My son suggested Wagamama, having been once before, and I'm usually ready to try a new place. Southsea has nothing in the way of Japanese restaurants and I can't vouch for the authenticity of Wagamama, but at least it was a different experience for me.

I wasn't convinced at first that sitting on a wooden bench would be a relaxing way of eating a meal after traipsing round Bristol for two hours, but I was actually surprised that it was quite comfortable, as long as elbows on the table were allowed. I should say, however, that I am not much over five foot tall, whereas my son is about six foot three and didn't find it quite so easy on his back. We arrived not long after four o'clock when the place was not busy and were able to put our jackets and bags on the bench next to us, but it occurred to me that if you were part of a group or went at the busiest time, you might not find anywhere to put your things.

Menus were brought as soon as we were seated, and I liked the sound of the apple and lime juice. My son was disappointed that the sake is served chilled; he insisted that it should be warm. He ordered an Asahi Beer instead. The waiter offered us sparkling water as an accompaniment, but we said plain tap water would be quite enough, thank you. The drinks were brought very quickly. My juice had a layer of pulp at the top so I gave it a good stir with the straw, but the pulp soon insisted on rising again. The juice was delicious, very refreshing with the twist of lime, but I was left at the end with a considerable amount of undrinkable fruit pulp.

Rather than starters, Wagamama offers side dishes as accompaniments to main meals, and these range from miso soup at £1.35 through freshly steamed green soya beans at £3.50 to deep-fried black tiger prawns at £5.90. Since I usually find a main course is more than enough, we decided just to go for one main dish each. My son was immediately attracted by the teriyaki steak soba (noodles) with chillies, beansprouts, onions, mangetout and bok choi from the special menu for the day. I was torn between the salmon ramen, a grilled fillet of salmon on top of noodles in a pork and chicken spiced miso soup with seasonal vegetables, and the ginger chicken udon noodles with bean sprouts, onions, chilli, egg and mangetout. Seeing how large the bowls of miso soup were, I decided on the ginger chicken udon.

Numbers signifying our choices were scribbled on the paper mats by our waiter, who tried in vain to persuade us to add a side dish to our main meal. There was then a wait of about twenty-five minutes, as all food is freshly cooked at Wagamama. This does mean that one dish may be served before another, and in fact my ginger chicken udon arrived a good couple of minutes before the teriyaki steak. I can see that this might cause a problem if a group of people were dining together – would the first one have finished by the time the last one was being served? With two people, it doesn't matter a great deal. We weren't in any hurry, and I would rather wait and have well cooked food than be served in five minutes with something heated up in a microwave.

We both enjoyed our meals and had nothing to complain about, but my plump udon noodles proved too much and I wasn't able to finish them. The pickled ginger had a gorgeous taste, the chicken was very tender and the vegetables very fresh, not overcooked. My son ate every last mouthful of his, and he is easily put off if something is not quite right. I should perhaps mention that only chopsticks are available; these are disposable, and I found it quite hard to separate mine.

We had considered sampling the desserts, which are craftily listed on the paper place mats so that you cannot avoid reading the details. The white chocolate and ginger cheesecake, tamarind and chilli pavlova, and mango with lime zest and lychee sorbet all sounded very tempting, but we both really just fancied a coffee and decided we'd cross the road for a browse around Borders and take a book into Starbucks (not the best choice, as it turned out). Another time I'll leave some room for that pavlova, I think. I noticed also that green tea is served free of charge.

The bill came to £25.25 altogether, to which we added a tip. I felt that the food was excellent value considering the quality, but I would say that £2.85 for the apple and lime juice was not cheap for a drink that became undrinkable towards the end.

I would give full marks for both cleanliness and service. The waiter (or server) did try to tempt us to order extra drinks and side dishes, but he was extremely polite, prompt and efficient, making a point of standing by the door as we left to thank us and say goodbye.

There are half a dozen main courses specially for children at Wagamama; one is a fish dish, one vegetarian, and the rest are based around chicken. Vanilla ice cream or fruit lollies are on the kids' dessert menu, and they can have fresh orange or apple juice, or a mixture of both.

Wagamama is not a restaurant with a great deal of atmosphere – there is no music, and I did become very aware at one point of the noise of clattering glasses as they were washed. I'm not sure I would be quite so keen on going at the busiest times when complete strangers could be nudging each other and wondering where to put their belongings. Having a private conversation could be difficult. I know that it would not be everyone's idea of the perfect restaurant, but I hope I do have a chance to go back one day, ideally at a similar quiet time. I'm still thinking about that tamarind and chilli pavlova with raspberry sauce...

Opening hours: Monday – Saturday Noon – 11pm; Sunday Noon – 10pm

Disabled facilities are available.

Having recently visited Portsmouth City Museum and Art Gallery, I was interested to see how its counterpart in Bristol compared. I expected that perhaps it would be a grander affair, and I was right. Whereas Portsmouth concentrates mainly on local history and art, Bristol, whilst giving prominence to local artists and exhibits, has world-class displays in its galleries.

The museum is housed in an imposing three-storey Edwardian building; the stairs are not steep and there is a lift to certain areas on the upper floors, but you do have to call an attendant to operate the lift. How easy it is to do this I do not know. However, if you are at all interested in Ancient Egypt you are in for a treat, as there is a new display on the ground floor. This is where we started our visit.

The Egyptian exhibits here are based on the themes of life, death and the afterlife. Everything is behind glass, unsurprisingly considering the age of these artefacts. Even after more than twenty years of living in Egypt, I can still marvel at tiny amulets that look almost as if they were made yesterday, the mummy of a woman, or examples of hieroglyphics and other writing on a fragment of papyrus or a piece of stone. Touch screens placed low enough for children who can read allow visitors to access information on the individual items in each case. As well as the themes of life and death, attention is drawn to the way the Egyptians worked with different materials such as wood (as in the case for the mummy) and stone.

Moving further down this gallery, there are some fine examples of Assyrian reliefs. These are finely executed, but personally they didn't thrill me in quite the way that the Egyptian exhibits did.

At the top of the stairs leading to second floor is a gypsy caravan; turning left, we found ourselves in the Oriental gallery where Chinese dragons are to be seen wherever you look. There is even a tee-shirt from Tammy Girl decorated with a dragon. It was interesting that although this gallery was one of the quieter ones, there were two children sitting drawing whilst their parents looked around. Emerging from the dragon room, you find yourself admiring one of the best collections of Chinese glass outside Asia.

From Oriental art you proceed to British art. The first gallery is devoted to a collection of beautiful silver artefacts amid paintings of Bristol as it was over two hundred years ago. Realising that we did not have time to see everything in one visit, we passed fairly quickly through this room; I really must go back one day to admire the silver. We made a beeline for the more modern exhibits such as the paintings of the St Ives group. Barbara Hepworth is represented here by a painting rather than a sculpture, alongside Ben Nicholson in Gallery 5. I was also particularly interested to find Bristol-born Richard Long's Delabole Slate Circle, acquired from Tate Modern in 1997. Long was a great influence of mine in my students days, as was Tom Phillips, one of whose paintings I was delighted to find here.

If you are not a fan of modern art, you might prefer the work of the Pre-Raphaelites in Gallery 6 where both Millais and Burne-Jones are represented amongst others. There are a few examples of Impressionist paintings in the European room, notably by Renoir, Sisley and Lucien Pissaro. Beyond the French gallery is a display of pottery and ceramics, but this was another room that I had to leave for a future visit.

Going back down to the first floor we were greeted by a fibreglass replica of a dinosaur as well as a huge dinosaur leg skeleton. This area was obviously one of the most popular ones for children, so we decided to leave them to it as they greatly outnumbered us.

The display of minerals was one we spent more time on. Although there are exquisite pieces from all over the world, perhaps my favourite was a slice of Blue John from Derbyshire. It's true that this mineral holds a special place in my heart because I spent some wonderful holidays in the Peak District during my childhood, but I loved the colours in this example, which ranged from orange through to purple. My son prefered the pyrophyllite with its fascinating geometrical forms.

Minerals were followed by fossils, including some that were unearthed during the building of the Great Western Railway. Then came the wildlife area, but we decided to give it a miss as it looked to be swarming with children and must be one of the most popular sections of the museum. Many of the exhibits there focus on rare, endangered or extinct species of wildlife. British wildlife can be seen on the ground floor.

Descending the staircase to the ground floor once again, we walked past the shop without taking a look, as I don't usually buy souvenirs from museums. We noticed an enclosed area for temporary exhibitions where paintings were waiting to be hung. There is a cafe in an open area on the ground floor which seemed to be frequented mostly by families with young children who probably needed a break from all the excitement of dinosaurs and gorillas. Organic and fair trade food and drinks are served here. The cafe, as well as the toilets, are due for refurbishment during the course of 2008.

As we were leaving I suddenly noticed a huge biplane suspended from the lofty ceiling above the entrance hall – despite its size, neither of us had looked up and spotted it on our way in.

Certain areas of the museum are great attractions for children, and there were plenty around on the grey Saturday afternoon when we visited. There is even a play area called Small World for the under-fives on the ground floor. The museum would be an excellent choice for a family outing, whether your children are into dinosaurs, wild animals or mummies. As for adults, I'm sure everyone will find a display here that fascinates them. Since it's free, there is nothing to lose by paying a visit.

www.bristol.gov.uk/museums

Open Daily, 10am-5pm

Lifts to some floors; space to leave buggies in front hall; baby-change; toilets' wheelchairs; highchairs available in cafe.

Car parks are situated five minutes' walk from the museum in either West End or Trenchard Street. On foot, the museum is ten minutes from the city centre and twenty-five minutes from Bristol Temple Meads railway station.

Cabot Circus, opened in September 2008, is Bristol's largest shopping complex. It has ample car parking space, but is also easily reached by local buses and is only fifteen to twenty minutes' walk from Bristol Temple Meads railway station.

The centrepiece of Cabot Circus is the Glasshouse, a three-storey construction with a partial glass roof that affords both protection and light. The upper levels can be reached by either steps, escalators or a lift. At the time of my visit in November 2008, it was easy to find knowledgeable staff on the groung level handing out plans of Cabot Circus and answering particular questions about the location of individual shops. The House of Fraser department store dominates the Glasshouse, but we found it unbearably hot inside and did not stay for long. Instead we found a table by a window at Costa Coffee, ordered hot drinks and sat and watched shoppers of all ages go by.

Coming out of the Glasshouse and crossing the road, we went in search of the Apple Store in the Friary area. This was chock full of Mac enthusiasts trying out the various products on display, from Macbooks to ipods. My sons wanted to look at headphones on the upper floor, so I left them to it and went to see what else was on offer in the Friary. This was for me by far the most pleasant area of Cabot Circus, with its old church alongside Raymond Blanc's Brasserie Blanc and Carluccio's Italian Restaurant. Opposite these is a row of clothes shops and shoe shops that were mostly beyond my pocket. It seemed hard to believe that we were suffering a credit crunch, although one of my sons pointed out later that there were plenty of people around but not many actually carrying bags. I ventured into Harvey Nichols and noticed that they had a doorman – was this because on opening day one of the doors smashed as a young mother with a buggy was entering?

My sons emerged from Apple without having parted with any cash, telling me that although bigger than the store in West Quay, Southampton, it didn't actually have a wider range of products but merely more of the same. They had also realised that better headphones were available online at a loer price. We headed back to the Glasshouse and visited the Sony store on Level 3, which was almost deserted compared to the crowds in Apple. We were rather intrigued by their e-reader which none of us had seen before, but I'm afraid that here again none of us bought anything.

At this point we were ready for a late lunch and considered Cafe Rouge and La Tasca, both of which have outdoor and indoor seating. There was also the possibility of Yo! Sushi, but menus were not on display in the window, so we plumped for La Tasca. This was mid-afternoon on a Saturday, and the manageress gave the impression that they had been overwhelmed at lunchtime. We were lucky to have a choice of tables.

There are of course toilets in all the eateries, but I hadn't noticed many others around. It was only when we went back down to the lower level that I noticed a separate one there – handy at least for families with young children, or the disabled.

I was looking for an O2 Store, but this turned out from the plan to be in the nearby Broadmead centre, so I went to Carphone Warehouse instead and was assured that even if I bought a phone there and had a problem with it, I could return it to their branch in my home town. I would have liked to visit Broadmead as that is where Waterstone's bookshop is situated. Cabot Circus seems to have everything you could possibly want, except for bookstores. Broadmead is very close by, but we had a train to catch and couldn't spare the extra few minutes.

Whether you're looking for clothes, jewellery, accessories, mobile phones, toys or gifts – in fact anything except books – you will find it at Cabot Circus. There are plenty of places to choose from to rest your weary legs for a while and have a drink or a bite to eat.