The New Bell

This review appears in the The List's Eating & Drinking Guide 2008 – in the shops now or buy online.

This Southside restaurant above the Old Bell bar has cemented a reliable reputation over the years with a friendly atmosphere and welcoming staff. Its well-rounded menu will suit all tastes and it offers a selection of staple children's favourites on request. Inside, the New Bell has a traditional style with wooden floors and furniture, simple white tablecloths and walls scattered with a variety of eclectic framed photographs. The menu makes a stab at competing with its more sophisticated city-centre rivals, with a good choice of Scottish standards, including haggis, haddock, mussels, venison and beef. Understated smoked haddock and cheddar fish-cakes are a popular starter choice, while good use of pine nuts adds a bit of crunch to a bowl of mussels steamed creatively in bacon, basil and white wine. A tender steak cooked exactly to order is a good choice of main if you're looking for a classic, while the perfectly pink pan-seared venison is more imaginatively presented with braised red cabbage, parsnip purée and a shiraz and beetroot jus. Desserts will delight the generations, with a lovely stodgy stem ginger pudding with Drambuie custard or a dark chocolate fondant with mandarin sorbet to choose from.

• High point: Family-friendly food and atmosphere
• Low point: Tobacco stained walls went out with the smoking ban