The Bay Brasserie - Shetland Islands

9 of us came for a birthday lunch 5 adults and 4 children. The menu is varied, and there is a separate one for the youngsters. Adults all had different choices and all were happy. The children also were able to mix and match what they had the staff were very helpful. An excellent experience, and they brought in the birthday cake (provided by us) right on cue, with plates and forks. Very good value too!

The theme of this review is that the menu I had seen on-line and the restaurant description led me to believe this was a more refined dining experience than it turned out to be The menu is interesting and varied but the dishes we tasted didn 't quite deliver on the expectations set. The goats cheese bon bons were claggy and needed a reformat to be lighter on the palate. I wasn 't convinced that home-made sorbet particularly complemented the cheese but it certainly helped wash it from the corners of my mouth where it had stuck resolutely. The venison stroganoff promised a feast of flavours but I found it somewhat prosaic. Finally, I doubt the meringue at the heart of the pavlova had been made on the day of our visit and was indistinguishable from the rock hard nests you can buy in packs in Sainsburys. The accompanying gin and lime mousse did little to lift the dish. On the plus side, my vegetarian partner enjoyed the banana blossom which she hadn 't tried before but certainly gave a big thumbs up to. Contrary to the website description of the staff as well trained, friendly and knowledgeable we found service lacking in confidence, patchy and slightly timid. My partner was particularly annoyed that the menu was presented to us without telling her that the treacle and whiskey salmon starter was not available, even though we were amongst the first diners to be seated. As a result, she went without a starter as there was no substitute offered. Let me be clear, this was not a bad meal, just a meal that promised more than it delivered and could and should have been a lot better with a bit more care.

Ate here twice. Recommend the veal stroganoff amazing. Great value, good portions, great choice, good wine range.

What a way to finish up, 12 of us for dinner, what a great menus, food was excellent service the same, well done Lerwick Hotel team

All 3 of us has different main courses and we were all pleased with our choices, pleasant service without any fuss, desserts were also good.