Dizzy’s: Carden Place, Aberdeen

ASK any of my mates and they’ll confirm I’m always late.

So with a friend’s birthday drinks at 7.30pm – and me arriving home from work with less than an hour to spare – it seemed like another tardy entrance was on the cards.

Instead, I decided to grab a hungry pal and head early to our intended venue – Dizzy’s – for a bite to eat.

This bar/diner is a classy affair, all rich red and black furnishings and quirky artwork on the walls. Early on a week-night evening, there was already quite a buzz around the place, with suited professionals grabbing a glass of vino on the way home from the office and couples settling down for some dinner.

With not enough time to savour a meal from the a la carte restaurant menu, we quickly chose from the bar menu.

It was fairly limited with only a few real meals on it, including burgers, macaroni and the fish and chips (£7.90), which my friend went for.

Other than that it tended more towards nibbly type things so I ordered a portion of hummus and pitta bread (£4.80), and some marinated black olives which came with bread (£2.85). The olives were plump and juicy and would have been nicer if the bread had come with some oils, but it was just served dry. The hummus was yummy though.

My pal chose best with her crispy battered haddock, the tender flaky fish going down a treat. Quick and friendly service meant we were fed fast, and right on time for our friends.