IF YOU haven't been to the Wine Bar in Bedford Place for a while, then it is time to pay a visit. The funky bar has recently started doing a world tapas menu in the evening.

After several trips to Spain, I am an avid fan of dining the relaxed way. It's just such a sociable way of eating. Several dishes of tasty morsels go in the middle of the table - and you and your friends nibble and pick your way through the lot over the course of the evening, with plenty of good red wine and chatter, of course.

My brother and I decided to put the Wine Bar to the test. Both of us love our food - it's a genetic thing. To keep things simple each dish is £3.50, and you can order three dishes for a tenner.

The menu is split into vegetarian, meat dishes, seafood and salads. We chose chilli peppers stuffed with soft cheese, lamb koftas with mint yoghurt, quesadillias with hoi sin duck and spring onion, Thai crab cakes with chilli mango dip, paella with crusty bread, Catalan salad with chorizo sausage and chicken.

Yep, it's a long list isn't it? In fact, I had to write it all down and take the list to the bar, so not to forget! I also reassured my brother that if we weren't full, with tapas, you just keep on ordering until you're done.

How foolish of me. The six dishes arrived, piping hot, looking delicious and we knew we wouldn't have room for seconds. So, we leisurely tucked in, sharing and discussing the food along with catching up on news and sharing stories. My brother loved the lamb koftas and the paella, and I was particularly taken with the Catalan salad - but it was the combination of different dishes and flavours made it such fun.

The atmosphere of the bar is great too. Towards the front, couples relaxed on the brown leather sofas, by the bar a lively crowd set the scene. Upstairs has been recently refurbished, giving more room to the always busy Wine Bar.

If only the Wine Bar could organise some Spanish-style weather, I'd be a happy girl!

Tapas dishes £3.50 each and three for £10, served from 6pm-9.30pm.

The Wine Bar, 26 Bedford Place, Southampton. Tel: 023 8033 8898.