Sienna Rooms, 56-58 High St, Stevenage, UK

So last night Kate and I tried Stevenage's new restaurant, Sienna. There's a bar downstairs and dining room upstairs. We were greeted at the lower door by front of house staff and led upstairs to be seated. The dining room is non-smoking, but there's a smoking area, with leather seats, on the upper landing for those who must pop out between courses.

The space is attractive, with dark brown walls, good chairs and cutlery, and some decent large scale art. Service seemed eager to please and our Italian waiter was pleasant - as were the front of house staff. There were some lapses and odd bits of service, hopefully just indicative of a place finding its feet - they've only been open two weeks. Bread was served late, with several diners around us already on main courses. Our side plates had been removed along with our starters so we got no bread at all. I was offered a taste of our wine (a very nice, mid range, pinot grigio from Venice) despite it being screw capped. Ok, I can see how some diners might expect that, but it annoyed me since it reinforces the idea that wine tasting is somehow auditioning the wine, not just checking to see if it's corked. I refused the offer. Our wine was nicely presented in ice, but my glass sat empty for a while after the first serving - when I filled it myself the waiter came over and asked if I was "trying to take [his] job" ; )

Kate had a globe artichoke filled with cheese and I took a crispy duck salad as starters. It was clear at once that the kitchen is well equipped with metal rings and squeezy bottles. Presentation was excellent. I thought my salad was slightly over-dressed but it was good none-the-less. Kate liked hers very much, and the taste I had was good. Mains were Seabass fillet for Kate and I had a roast neck of lamb with truffle mash and wild mushrooms off the specials list.
The mash and heavily reduced and intensified mushrooms were both top rate and any kitchen could be proud of them. My lamb was close to being very good too, except for a significant piece of quite tough fat at one end. The other end of the long cut was 8/10, so it was a shame the dish was dragged down by the slightly unlucky cut. As expected with a roast from a smaller dining room I wasn't asked how I'd like my meat, so I was pleasantly surprised that it came out on the lower end of medium - still quite pink. We had french beans as a side, and frankly they tasted like supermarket food - quite resistant and plasticky.

Deserts came from a long list and after wondering why desert prices were written (five pounds seventy five) and drink prices were numbers (£3.50) we went for a Cox Pippin Tart (Kate) and Bread and Butter Pudding (me). They'd sold out of the creme brulee, which every other diner around us seemed to have gone for. The tart was great and Kate was rightly pleased with it. My bread and butter pudding was ok, but could have lived with more fruit. The orange creme anglaise it was served with was ok too.

Overall we had fun, and I'm thrilled that Stevenage Old Town has a more interesting venue than the big chains that surround it. The place was full and I got the impression that most of the diners were happy with their meals. I'll definitely be back to see if they iron out some of the inconsitencies and improve as they settle in.

I had a good look at the kitchen which was clean and well staffed. All the food seemed to be cooked to order and prepared fresh on the premises, which singles Sienna out in a town that is dominated by chains.

The check was £65 before the tip and also included a bottle of sparkling water, but no coffee.