where to have a nice girly lunch in central Birmingham?

[carocaro]

Any ideas, not mega ££££ but decent enough!

Jamie Olivers?

What does a girly lunch consist of please?

penny blacks

How much per head do you want to spend? The chains, such as Strada, Cafe Rouge, etc. have good set menus, but service and atmosphere can be a bit hit and miss.

San Carlo is good - as long as you don't go too mad and avoid the fish specials then it also works out reasonable.

Hotel du Vin occasionally have lunch deals on - worth checking.

If you want to push the boat out then Simpsons is one of the best restaurants in Birmingham and has a set lunch menu, including half a bottle of wine for £43 including the 12% service charge.

Simpsons is lovely.

Glynn Purcell has just opened a bistro which looks quite fun as well.

Thanks ladies, great suggestions, will look into them all.

I like Carluccio's in Brindley Place. Simpsons isn't in the centre of town but is probably the most revered in the city. Cielo is in Brindley Place and is an upmarket Italian which does a decent set menu for about 17 pounds iirc. Thai Edge is also in Brindley Place and does a v reasonable set lunch, but it can be a bit conveyor-beltish as they don't seem to like you hanging around.

Purnell's is nice. And then you can nip to Urban Coffee for the best espresso in town.

I like Cafe Blend, near the Mailbox, better than Urban Coffee.

Haven't been to Cafe Blend - will give it a go next time I'm in Brum!

Browns!!

Or you can go here and tell me what it is like

Keep meaning to try Bodega and haven't got there yet.

Purnells bistro and gingers bar.

Bluestocking have you been to the Purnells bistro? We like the restaurant but haven't tried the bistro yet.

Hi squiggle, I've only been to the restaurant as well.

Would Druckers do, or not posh enough? The savoury menu isn't that amazing but you don't go for the savoury ...

Cafe Ikon in Brindley Place.

Druckers has gone downhill a lot, I think. It's v untidy and the staff can be quite surly. Cakes not as good or fresh as they were 6 or 7 years ago too. I stopped going after it was appallingly messy once with v bad service. We complained to head office, who didn't seem to give a stuff tbh. It's also not really the place for a long lunch, even at its best, I don't think.

What's Bank like nowadays? Is it still there?

That's a shame. Haven't been to the Birmingham one in a while, didn't realise that it hd gone downhill. I used to love the one in Great Western Arcade - very poky, but that was part of its charm.
Why do they always ruin the good things.[double sad]

Depends where you are/need to be.

Brindley place:
Bank is ok but the lunchtime set menu is a bit uninspired - better for summer cocktails. Cage ikon - didn't really enjoy it TBH. Piccolonos is lovely (just off Brindley place and would be my recommendation. Or Woktastic - a sushi place just under the old library near centenary square- fab is you like sushi (all you can eat for £10 is great), they also do noodles.

In town - probably hotel du vin, metro bar and grill or purnells (wee bit pricier though).

There is a nice (little bit hippy) vegetarian restaurant in digbeth called the Warehouse Cafe but it's a bit out of the way. And Buonissimo in Harborne is great (never been for lunch though).

The best place if you want veggie is Jyoti, but it's in Hall Green. Vegetarian Gujarati and lots of fantastic street food type starters - Ooh I love it!

Also if you like curry there's Lassan, which was a Gordon Ramsey fave.

Is the noodle bar still open in selfridges on the ground floor?

Yes - but it gets insane at weekends so would depend when op wants to go. They have an Indian bit now too, with dhosas (slurp).

Remus - I was in Jyotis a couple if weeks ago but got overwhelmed and asked for chips which they don't sell. So gave up and left. What do you recommend?

They deffo do chips as a side, although they are not the best chips in the world (for the best chips in Birmingham, go to Maison Maci in Harborne!).

Okay - go with a couple of friends so that you can mix and match and order - (scuse spellings!)

a large mixed bhaji platter

some bhel (which is a kind of crunchy salad with nuts in and is delicious)

panni puree - little balls of poppodom type stuff, with onions and bits of crunchy stuff inside, which you fill with tamarind water and then eat in one mouthful

paneer spring rolls

phatra (which is unlike anything I have tasted anywhere else - it is made of a kind of leaf and gram flour and tastes all smokey)

Then order a couple of dhosas (the medium sized ones) and some of the paneer curries and a bowl of channa bthata (chickpeas with lovely fried breads).

Have made myself VERY hungry now! :)