Coast To Coast

Quick stop for food before heading off on the long drive home.
There are loads of eateries in this leisure park, after having an initial look around this one drew our attention, easy to park at, inviting exterior and well lit
On entering we were almost immediately seated by a the lovely hostess, very polite and smiling.
I liked the décor of the interior, there was a lot of booth style seating which made it feel very luxurious and private from other diners
We were promptly given the menus and asked for drinks again by a gentleman who was very welcoming and helpful
That’s the reason they get the two stars so far… Cause after this … Nothing was that great
The food took a lot longer than expected to come out, over 30 mins from ordering, looking around the place wasn’t even ¼ full, this made us wonder how they coped on the busier nights
We spotted our food on the hot plate and it sat there for some time before we finally had it served, I guess this was why we got warm food instead of hot food
The food itself was very blahhh
What I mean by that is … I ordered a burger and chips and the burger was quite small in the bun, no real flavour and each bite was rather bland, even the presentation was boring and lacked any appeal.
Buffalo boneless chicken had plenty of sauce and I’m glad as the chicken itself was very dry
Onion rings tasted like week old dirt oil leaving them quite greasy.
The hot and spicy calzone was neither hot nor spicy
The food was very underwhelming and frankly disappointing From a place that visually appeals up until the plates are placed in front of you

American style restaurant nicely laid out superb food although a little on the pricy side good service nice bar area were u can enjoy a drink before being seated at your table first, highly recommended

So we may need to look at other options for brunch… we went in after our initial visit and of course we were both thinking about pancakes. We noticed the manager running around looking quite panicked, but hoped it was nothing that would affect our dining experience. We were sitting there and as the waitress came over to take our drinks order, she mentioned that they didn’t have any pancakes. That pretty much means that half of their breakfast menu is unavailable. Making pancakes from scratch isn’t difficult, I could even show them how to make buttermilk for fluffier pancakes using things they already have. Not to mention Mr. Snarky pointed out that they are within walking distance of three supermarkets where they could either get a pancake mix, the ingredients to make pancakes, or even buy little Scotch Pancakes.
So we told her we would need another minute to decide. Mr. Snarky ordered the Coast to Coast Breakfast and I ordered the Breakfast Stack. Just after our waitress disappeared, we overheard another waitress tell another couple that they were out of sausages as well. Clearly someone didn’t order enough supply and to be honest, I’m a little surprised that the manager didn’t send one of the staff across to one of the supermarkets to get a couple of packages of sausages to get them through breakfast service. We were also worried that our waitress would come back and let Mr. Snarky know that he wouldn’t have sausages with his breakfast, but she never did.
As people came in, I don’t remember if they ran out of something else but I remember hearing one customer say, «We should order quick before they run out of another item.» And even more sad was when a parent had to let their child know that they couldn’t have pancakes and maybe next time they could have them. My Breakfast Stack was underwhelming and actually quite small. It is one, thin hashbrown round with a bit of bacon and egg on top. The yolk wasn’t very runny so it was also quite dry.
I guess I wonder if they were out of pancakes, were they out of waffles too? I am assuming it is a pre-​made mix they are working with, in which case, pancake mix and waffle mix are pretty similar… Anyway, it was just a disappointment and we haven’t been back because it is waste to drive somewhere just to find out that they don’t have everything on the menu.

We decided to go here after we were told it was a good place to eat. On the outside it looks clean and a fun place and there have always been rafts of people perusing the menu and going inside.
We booked a table through the website and that was easy to do and then we just had to wait. Before the meal at 7 we went to the cinema which is a 2 minute walk away and it is on a retail park so its location is prime but due to this there are a number of restaurants coast to coast has to contend with.
The film finished and we thought we could have a walk around the retail park but unfortunately most of the shops were closed. We went to see if we could sit down earlier than our reservation, we went in and on first glance inside it looked really nice. It was very clean and there were a number of tables and booths and the bar was well stocked and there were a number of bartenders.
They said it was fine to check in early but we just had to wait at the bar until a table was ready. We sat down at the bar and looked over the drinks menu. A large number of different spirits were on display and there were a number of bottles of beer, a lot I haven’t seen since I was last in America. When we sat down there was a bartender there waiting asking if we wanted a drink or time to think. Being our first visit we asked for time, even though we all knew it would be coke or sprite.
The drinks menu wasn’t overly expensive but at the same time it wasn’t cheap. £4.25 for a bottle of Samuel Adams beer. Granted it would have hd to be imported but that is still steep for a beer. While we were waiting for our table we saw the spirits price list. These were extremely expensive with a shot of cognac being about £10 (granted I don’t know much about spirits or prices and I assume this was a special one but it still would cost about £20 for a bottle at tesco). The three soft drinks came in at around £8 so we only had the one throughout our whole time there.
We waited and waited and it was about 6:55pm when a table was ready (we booked for 7pm and got there about 6:30pm). We were sat at a booth and we could see inside the busy kitchen where a number of chefs were in there. We had already pre looked at the menu at home and had an idea of what we wanted.
For starters we had ordered the salted pretzels and garlic bread with cheese. After about 7 minutes these arrived. The garlic bread was really nice, not too garlicky and a decent size with a good amount of cheese on it and a dipping bowl with garlic butter. All served on a plate with the restaurants logo on it. The pretzels came in a small metal bucket with its own garlic butter dipping dish. Straight away we thought of how they could also incorporate the pretzels into a desert instead of a starter and realised it was a starter as it had salt so you would order more drinks (a known bar trick).
After these our mains shortly arrived. I had ordered the BBQ chicken breast and my brother the slider burgers both with sweet potato fries. When these arrived they were both fairly good portions and seemed good value for money. The chicken was really nice and the burgers were cute and the meat was to die for. The downsides to the dishes tho … The chicken had some sort of spicy rub on it … I like spice but with it not being mentioned on the menu, was a little surprise and a good thing I wasn’t allergic. My sister doesn’t like spice so it ruined it a little for her. The corn on the cob was nice but it was hard to get the corn off as I didn’t want to go hands in biting it off like in a comedic cartoon. The onion rings were also hard and quite small but I think it was just us being unlucky as another table had bigger ones and they seemed bigger and softer. My brother said the burgers were nice but the last one, the blue cheese was a bit over powering for him.
With my sister eating all the coleslaw (including mine as I don’t like it) her mouth was still burning. We asked for the desert menu to have a look as we don’t usually get 3 courses but decided we would. We noticed that all of he deserts came with a chantilly cream which we had never heard of and upon a quick google discovered it should have been a vanilla whipped cream. I ordered the pecan pie and my sister ordered the cheesecake.
When they arrived I had a fair slice of pie and a bowl of vanilla ice cream and this chantilly cream. Wanting to try it to see I had some and realised it was basically the UHT squirty cream you can get from any supermarket. The pie was nice and warm and sticky and the ice cream was one of the best I’ve tried. When we have cheesecake we are usually used to a baked harder bottom but this one was soft as it had soaked up the compot. The cheesecake was nice but the compot a bit too tart for my liking and the ice cream had actual berries in which my sister didn’t like.
The total bill came to around £64 (not including drinks) which isn’t too terrible for 7 dishes. I think I would go back again, but not straight awa

This time last year, there wasn’t even a building standing here! Coast To Coast is the newest addition to Bolton’s Middlebrook Retail Park, and has had the good fortune of having a unit built especially for them between Pizza Hut and McDonalds, where there was formerly some parking that wasn’t used very much.
As you approach the restaurant, it’s nice to see that they have a stylish and pleasant outdoor seating area which I can see being popular in summer. A nice touch is that the pots on the tables are actually fresh rosemary plants which smell great.
When you walk into the restaurant itself, it definitely has a «wow» factor. It’s very stylishly decorated in dark woods, padding, and with theatrical lighting and spotlights to give it a nicer atmosphere, very much in a New York Loft style. The decoration is very focussed on its American theming, with wall boxes containing artifacts and pictures of different US States. Even the toilets are bright, stylish, and pleasant.
The seating is split into different areas and a bar area, there are standard tables, tall tables, and cosy booths, all padded in blacks, deep blues, and reds. The condiments on the table tell you ahead of time that you’re in for a good quality trip. High quality vinegar, Tabasco, and Budweiser BBQ Sauce (delicious!) with tactile salt and pepper shakers have you ready for the experience.
The menu is extensive, expensive, and very tempting! I say expensive, as it’s a bit more than the average cost in the area, (their cheapest burger is £10.45), but they have some really good weekday lunch offers where you can really get a good deal compared to the main evening menu.
Our server was a pleasant guy called Joel who told us about the specials, things not available, and his personal recommendations. He was friendly and professional through our visit, attempting to up-​sell a few times (sides, desserts etc) but without being obnoxious or pushy about it.
We ordered from the lunch menu, and chose to start with the loaded skins and the battered mushrooms.
These didn’t take long to arrive, and were absolutely superb. The battered mushrooms weren’t little button mushrooms like the usual offerings, but big mushrooms, in a perfectly crispy batter! The potato skins were loaded with cheese and BBQ Pulled Pork, which was mind blowing! I’ve not had pulled pork in a loaded skin before, and the flavour and texture was sublime. I didn’t even need to touch that mayonnaise! It’s a nice point to notice that the dishes are prepared so their logo is at the top of the plate, and facing the customer, almost like a piece of artwork.
For our mains we went for the classic cheeseburger and the southern fried chicken burger.
Once again, these were nicely presented. We both chose different fries as our accompaniments. The normal fries were nice but nothing amazing, however the sweet potato fries were crispy, delicious, and morish! I’d definitely get those next time! The cheeseburger was juicy and meaty, and perfectly cooked. The southern fried chicken burger had the most perfect crunch, and was seasoned just right without turning into the pepper-​fest that so many chicken dishes fall into.
We didn’t order dessert (we were stuffed!), but Joel told us about how his favourite dessert was the warm fudge brownie, (complete with «mmm! nom nom nom!» after describing it).
The food was very good, particularly given the lunchtime price. I’m not sure I’d be as happy with the price if it was the full evening cost, but as somewhere to come for a special occasion now and then, Coast To Coast delivers, even if it’s not somewhere you’d go as often as some of the other cheaper chain restaurant options on the leisure park. However, I can see those other restaurants quaking in their boots a bit, as Coast To Coast is doing what they’re doing, but better, and may steal their customers!
The service is really superb, from the host greeting you at the door, to the server, and even the folks bringing the food out to your table if your server is busy. We felt taken care of, and looked after. It didn’t feel like we were just another bill, and we didn’t have to crane ourselves about looking for staff.
I’d dine here again. It’d be great for a birthday or anniversary visit. There’s much more I’d like to try from that menu! I have my eye on the sliders…