REVIEW | ALL BAR ONE, MARISCHAL SQUARE ABERDEEN
All Bar One has arrived in Aberdeen and it has opened up in the new Marishal Square development, across from Marishal College.
A, S and myself have been there twice now and this post is based on our two visits so be prepared for lots of yummy food photos!
SMALL PLATES/TAPAS STYLE DISHES
During both visits we opted for 3 dishes from the small plates/tapas style selection for starters. These small plate dishes would also be a great accompaniment for catching up with friends over a couple of drinks or as a light lunch option.
For me, as soon as I see brushetta as an option on a menu I have to have it and had to be picked on both visits! As one of my favourite dishes when out for food or cooking at home this is the first time I’ve seen it served with avocado and I thought it was a great combination.
A’s pick of the small plates was the chorizo and halloumi skewers. As someone who hasn’t really tried halloumi before these were a tasty combination and a dish I would pick again.
Cheese and bread a match made in heaven! Even S dived right in to try it out – although he definitely ate more bread on it’s own than with the cheese!
Who doesn’t like garlic bread?! A generous portion but a light weight starter ensuring that there was plenty of room for main course!
Another of A’s picks, he enjoyed this bubbling hot lobster mac & cheese. As someone who loves mac & cheese it looked SO good – however as I don’t eat seafood I can’t say how it tasted but I’m assured by A it was good.
KIDS MEALS
For us the range of kids meals available in restaurants dictates where we end up eating, if there isn’t anything on the menu we think S will try then it rules out the restaurant straight away – thankfully All Bar One had several meals on their kids menu we thought would cater to our fussy 3 year olds tastes.
During our first visit we chose the chicken breast for S, which served with a choice of steamed rice, fries or salad. For S it was always going to be fries! Our fussy 3 year old wouldn’t eat the grilled parts of the chicken, ate up the rest of it and the chips – with his usual ketchup and mayo combo along with it!
Second time we picked the cod goujons for S, again served with a choice of steamed rice, fries or salad – these were a big hit with S!
MAIN MEALS
All Bar One have a wide range of main meals from sandwiches, salads, burgers and more – perfect for a lunch with the family or catching up with the girls over dinner and drinks.
The grilled chicken focaccia filled with smashed avocado, roasted red pepper, rocket and a sunblush tomato & basil dressing along with a generous portion of fries.
A’s first choice was the Chicken Quesadilla – a chargrilled tortilla with pulled chicken, black beans, peppers, lime and mozzarella. Served with pineapple and habanero ketchup served with fries.
BURGERS
All of the burger options can be served with either a beef burger, cornflake & buttermilk fried chicken or aubergine & harissa burger and served in a glazed brioche bun with a dill gherkin and fries.
The Brunch – Smoked back bacon, roast mushroom, fried egg & bloody mary ketchup – was A’s pick of the burgers.
I opted for The Ultimate – smoked back bacon, smoked cheddar and All Bar One’s signature burger sauce – with the cornflake & buttermilk fried chicken and had fries with parmesan to accompany it. This is something I will be going back to have again – the chicken was delicious!
SWEET TREATS
Who can say no to dessert? Not us!
S opted for the chocolate brownie from the kids options and it was a good sized portion served with a scoop of ice cream. Judging by the clear plate at the end, S clearly enjoyed it!
Churros are one of my favourites so we got a portion to share on our first visit, which S had clearly remembered about as on our second visit he was ready to order them when we were ordering our main courses!
A picked out the cranachan sundae – toasted oats & crushed raspberries in whisky with honey and cream. Served with generous scoops of bourbon vanilla ice cream and Scottish short bread. A loved his sweet Scottish dessert.
OVERALL
We had a great time on both visits to All Bar One, enjoyed the food and would throughly recommend visiting. I’m sure we’ll be back again soon – if S has something to do with it he’ll be back for more churros in no time at all! The staff were very friendly and accommodating towards S – especially when he was getting restless and wanted to play peek-a-boo with the lady at the counter behind us.
You can see more of what All Bar One has to offer over on Facebook, Instagram and over on their website.
*** We were invited along to All Bar One to check out their menu, one of our trips to All Bar One was complementary in return for an open and honest review, as always all opinions are our own ***
You can also see our first visit to All Bar One in our Easter Weekend vlog…