I'm all for cheap and cheerful but every once in a while it really is worthwhile pushing the boat out a little (ok, maybe a bit more than a little - more on that later) just to place things well and truly in perspective.

Meeting in Lammars, a rather opulent kitch bar tucked away in a sneaky corner behind Piccadilly, provided the perfect pre meal environment to sup up a couple of drinks before we walked round to Abode. Downstairs in the main restaurant the surroundings are pleasant enough, we liked the orange lighting and stripey carpets! Thankfully we were in the main restaurant and not the function room as promised by the hostess.

Onto the food itself: From the foamy Asparagus soup, fresh crusty bread, scallops, spinnach pasta, to the duck, lamb or fish before ending up with the lemon tart, chocolate orange and fruity thing, every dish was a delight for the eyes and a melody of taste, form and texture... downright pure indulgence!

Whenever I see foamy food, I know theres something special about to happen, the amount of effort required to produce such delicate textures is not to be underestimated. However, it is easy to see why that effort is worth making. Somehow the flavours have room to breathe, and the bubbles tickle your taste buds with a subtle, gentle popping sensation, tentatively teasing, promising pleasures ultimately delivered in the moment you reach the 'substance' of the dish. Wonderful!

The attention to detail was extraordinary, the portions of sauces or vegetables complemented the main component of each course perfectly, including the occasional contrasting element too. Not a scratch below my expectations and in one or two instances a little above! Yep, quality was top notch, I didn't hear a single complaint all evening (would be interested if there were any complaints about the food) but then, you would hope this was the case given the chef has two little michellin stars!

Which brings me onto my *only* complaint about the night; I knew we would be on a restricted menu and these were duly presented as we sat at the table - only one potential problem - no prices!! So, I asked the head waiter for an approximation of cost and was told if we each had a starter, a main and a dessert it would be about £25 - £30 per person plus whatever we drank - great! I remember thinking that seems slightly cheap, but dismissed it as I had no reason to doubt the waiter - ooops! The bill came in at £430 + drinks - quite a far cry from the £250 - £300 we were all expecting! I don't think that even at this price we were ripped off, in fact, I would go as far to say it was still very reasonable for what it was, but I ain't too happy about being misled like that! Anyway... despite that rather unfortunate surprise at the end, I hope everyone would agree it was definitely worth it! Please feel free to reply and share your thoughts :-)

More information available on the Abode website: http://www.abodehotels.co.uk/manchester/manchester/mc-dining