Number 9, Wimborne
9 West Borough, Wimborne, Dorset, BH21 1LT. (Map)
Tel: 01202 887557
This restaurant was given some very good comments through friends and Tripadvisor so was intrigued at how such a place would turn out. I don't think Wimborne as a great reputation for anything beyond safe dining. They didn't have a web site at the time of writing but did have a Facebook page.
This is our friend who made a booking for 8.30pm Saturday night.
It was an interesting touch to have the table reserved marker to be the person's surname spelt out using a Scrabble set. I wonder what would happen with some double-barreled country household if they booked. The place is brightly lit, Bistro-like, modern and easy going.
I liked the look of the wine menu and good to see something like the Marsanne-Viognier on the menu and not have a plain old list of safe options.
We had several bottles of the Rare Vineyards Marsanne Viognier and one of the E Minor Barossa Shiraz.
I went for the duck starter and then had fish and chips as my main.
That duck starter was one of those things that were cooked in a water bath I assume. I was expecting the pan-fried, crispy skin and medium pink meat variety. It was a bit so-so and the dish a bit bland from under-seasoning, or even no seasoning. Once I put a bit of salt on top it was much better.
I was also a bit underwhelmed with the fish and chips. A bit of seasoning on the fish would have went a lot long. It was an OK piece of fish but not that big as you can see from the photo and I liked the big chunky chips but they could have been better twice fried.
Brett had the grey mullet which tasted delicious and that definitely was well seasoned, so I don't understand what happened with the others.
The scallops looked glorious. I'm all for ginger and spring onion for its Chinese flavours. Not really the perfect mix with boiled potatoes, but it was tasty. Emma losing 20% of her main for our tasting duties was a bit harsh but had to be done.
Did I say we enjoyed the wine? We got several more bottles of the Marsanne Viognier.
I finished off with the cheeseboard which was handy to share.
We really enjoyed the night out, it had a good menu, good wines, inside is bright and lively, service was pleasant. Wimborne can only get better and I hear that more restaurants are opening soon.
