Cardiff restaurants and cafes

Re Ruby Tuesday - shame, they had recently closed their Cheltenham branch which opened after the Cardiff one.

I just don't think the chain captured the public's imagination - so they didn't get the kind of turnover and profits that would allow them to fund expansion (and would make banks wary of lending to them). The cost of running a single restaurant was probably pretty high as well - franchise fees, lack of economies of scale for menu items etc.

Must say the one time I went I was not impressed. We waited ages for food, which was rather expensive for what it was. And even in just the last 5 years, the range of options in Cardiff has swelled significantly, making Ruby's even less competitive.

Apple Jacks on Church Street is to close apparently, so says a friend who works there.

Apple Jacks on Church Street is to close apparently, so says a friend who works there.

It wouldn't surprise me, these faux American diners seldom seem to succeed.

I suspect that what happens is that people enjoy eating at these sort of places when on holiday in the US and think the formula can be repeated here. In reality though, American food isn't that different from British food and what you end up with is an overpriced American-themed greasy spoon cafe.

I'm not surprised either but it's a shame. It looks quite good. No one was EVER in there though, not even at night. That street is fcked.

They need to get something a bit more interesting foodwise in that street. Because actually, with the views of the church, its one of the nicest spots in the city centre.

What could work? A nice Tapas place, perhaps, and a decent Italian, and a good gastro-pub style thing?

I think that almost any Restaurant is doomed in the centre of Cardiff owing to the dreadful drunkenness caused by the drinking factories. This makes the centre most unpleasant except for the young. I would never go there except in exceptional circumstances.

Thank heavens for Mermaid Quay and hopefully sports village in due course

I think that almost any Restaurant is doomed in the centre of Cardiff owing to the dreadful drunkenness caused by the drinking factories. This makes the centre most unpleasant except for the young. I would never go there except in exceptional circumstances.

Thank heavens for Mermaid Quay and hopefully sports village in due course

What an odd statement...

The centre has many, many successful restaurants. I'd argue that they do far better than in the Mermaid Quay, which more or less relies on good weather to pull a crowd. Given that most people are finished by 10pm, the majority of drunks won't even be out by then.

The reason Apple Jacks has done poorly is due to poor advertising and an over saturation of pseudo-American dining in Cardiff. We already have established chains such as Ed's Diner, TGI's, Five Guys and a large number of burger restaurants. There was just no space for it, sadly. It's nothing to do with its location as several restaurants in that area perform very, very well.

It is an odd statement, is that why quite a few restaurants are doing so well then ?

I haven't seen a single incident on the evenings I've gone out this month. I went out just a couple of nights ago and again a week or two ago and not one drunken person in sight. The restaurants were actually full of people in their forties (myself included) and above as well so it doesn't exactly seem like just a place for young people.

Coming back to Random's question - the obvious gap in the market in the city centre is for an upmarket Chinese restaurant. It's surprising there isn't one already.