Food Review- The Banc Restaurant

Foods to eat whilst on a night out or at a celebratory event is one of the most questions I get asked. So I thought for this post, as I went to a restaurant I thought I would detail what I had to eat, and the decision I made that lead to me to pick that meals I had.  

A friend of mine recommended this restaurant called The Banc, because the food looked and tasted great, so it was always on the plan to actually make an effort to go there. I always spend time looking at the menu, to plan what I am going to eat. Depending on how busy I have been that day would depend if I am going to have a starter, main and a desert. So if I have eaten a few hours before going, I would only just go for a main, and skip the rest. But on that particular day I did not eat at all, so the plan was to have the three course meal. I thoroughly go through all the menu first to decide what I am having first. I chose not to have a starter because I felt that there was not anything salad based, it was more meat/fish based like chicken/prawns etc, and because I was having this as a main it would have become too saturated for me. Usually I would go for soup with bread as a starter, or something containing a salad, or vegetables. This helps with bowel movement, and can count towards one portion of the Government's recommendation of five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. I also try not to have too much bread as a starter as i find that I am unable to consume the main meal afterwards, so I try to be careful with that. 

Going back to the menu, I skipped the starter because there was not anything that I fancied and i went straight to look at the main course options. There was a few options to choose from like the sweet n sour chicken, lamb chops, vegan burger as well as others. But the final decision was between the sea bass and the salmon. I love fish, and I discussed this in one of my previous posts here:Fish

However Salmon was the option I went for in the end because it contains more omega 3 fatty acid than sea bass. Both fishes are fantastic from a nutrition perspective because they both contain protein, which helps to build and repair new cells within the body, they both contain low amounts of saturated fat. This is ideal as foods containing high amounts of saturated fat can be a contributing factor for heart disease, high blood pressure as well as increased cholesterol levels. 

As mentioned before salmon contains a type of protein called Omega 3 fatty acid. This is an essential nutrient because the body does not make this by itself, and must be sourced from food. Omega 3 are called "good fats" because they are made up of three types:

EPA- Eicosapentaenoic Acid

DHA- Docosahexaenoic Acid

ALA- Alpha Linolenic Acid

DHA and EPA are great for the heart, blood vessels, Immune and the hormone system, plus DHA has the added bonus of supporting with the development of the eyes and brain in young infants. DHA and EPA can mainly be found in animal based products, and ALA can mainly be found in plant based products. For vegans out there there are other great options to get the Omega 3 into our bodies. Hemp seeds, flax seeds, Chia seeds are a great source of Omega 3 fatty acid. I regularly take Chia seeds, and add this to porridge every day. Walnuts are also a great source of Omega 3, and is a fantastic source for fibre. These can be found in popular supermarkets.

Going back to the menu I went for the salmon with plain chips. I could have went for cheesy chips as a side dish but decided not too because cheese does contain high amounts of fat, and was unsure how much portion of the cheese was going to be in there. Cheese is a fantastic product because it contains protein, however on this occasion because I was going for the fish (which contains protein anyway) I decided to go for the plain chips. There is nothing wrong with chips! Chips is great for carbohydrates which we need for energy, to move around on a daily basis. I do tend to have chips two to three times a week, personally it goes back to the portion size of the chips and what is added to this. Looking at the picture the portion was large however I was really hungry and managed to finish this. I do not add salt to chips because excess salt can be a contributing factor for high blood pressure. So it is important to keep the amount of salt added to food at a minimum. 

As you can see from the picture the salmon was a reasonable portion, was moist and soft. When I took a bite to it, it was well seasoned and had a great taste. The chips was lightly seasoned as well, and was glad that I was not tempted to go for the salt in the end. 

Personally I like to take a bit of a break in between my meals to allow room for pudding, on this occasion the main meal was substantially filling, and was nearly not going to have a desert meal, however I looked at the menu, saw the chocolate cake, and was sold!

There is nothing wrong with a desert at all. We are all entitled to a treat now and again, which I think is right, especially when there are celebrations happening etc. So as you can see from the picture I had chocolate fudge cake with a scoop of ice cream. To be honest I really wanted someone to carry me home because I was that full after eating the chocolate cake. 

I hope this post gives a tiny bit of guidance what to go for, overall I would advise to mind the portions and try to have a meal that has plenty of vegetables or contains salad, plenty of carbohydrates.

Further information about The Banc Restaurant can be found on their Instagram page: The Banc