The Grill Room is located inside Hotel Colessio in the centre of Stirling. It’s the sort of place I could see myself going for a special occasion, on this occasion we were guests in the hotel. The dining room is really comfortable and appeared to have a mix of hotel guests as well as walk ins – always a good sign with a hotel restaurant.

After a nice drink in the bar we headed through to the smartly furnished restaurant which had a mix of booth style seating plus those cocoon style seats which make you feel really cosy! We had a window seat with a good view across the restaurant which was nicely busy for a Friday evening.

The service was really attentive from the beginning and we were soon being recommended a Strawberry Mojito, which was delicious. It was the best of both worlds between a Strawberry Daiquiri (one of my favourites) and a traditional Mojito.

We started with the Butternut Squash Ravioli – soft butternut squash encased in homemade pasta with a velvety rich sauce made with parmesan and shallot cream. We had decided to share two starters and the chef had helpfully portioned them for us into our own dishes (it’s these little touches that really elevate the service experience), so what you see here is a half portion.

We also had the Shredded Duck Bons Bons, I love duck and this was really tasty, served with a fresh mango and cucumber salad and hoi sin sauce. You could sit with a huge bowl of these and not get fed up eating them, very moreish.

There was a good bit of excitement from my friend when she saw Chicken Kiev on the menu, I think kids of our generation grew up on these, obviously this was a much more sophisticated version with the garlic butter served on the side. When done as well as this was, these traditional, dare I say retro dishes end up being real crowd pleasers.

I had the Lobster Frites. I swithered over the full lobster but was glad I only went for the half as it was plenty. The cheese panko crumb added an extra indulgent dimension, although I do also like a garlic butter. I’m pretty sure they could put some of that kiev butter on if that’s what you prefer – as I say, the staff seemed more than accommodating.

We only managed one dessert between us, Lemon Posset with meringue and sorbet. It was good, not quite as good as The Printing Press’s version (which set a very high bar), but definitely still enjoyable.

I felt the food and service was of a really high standard at The Grill Room, and it really exceeded my expectations. I wouldn’t hesitate to go back again if I was visiting Stirling.

The Grill Room
Location: 33 Spittal Street, Stirling, FK8 1DU
Price: Mains £12.50 – £34
Good for: Smart dining/special occasions in Stirling