THE LITTLE slice of Italy next to Winchester Castle has been feeding the city's diners for decades.

Yes, it's changed hands a few times, but Manhattans has always been popular with those who stray off the beaten track of High Street's main drag.

And the restaurant still provides people willing to turn their backs on the major eating chains, with the combination of fine food and excellent service which means you go home satisfied and happy.

I was so confident of Manhattans' selection of pasta and pizza dishes, I took my mum there.

The decor is simple and effective - wooden floors and furniture - which is cast in a rosy glow by soft candlelight.

To begin with we munched on succulent prawns in a buttery, garlic sauce, then got stuck into main courses which both disappeared from the plate with alarming speed.

Mum had a crisp salad, smothered in succulent vegetables, while I savoured every mouthful of that Italian favourite tagliatelle carbonara.

This is a fairly simple recipe, but one which many, mysteriously, manage to get wrong.

Yet Manhattans' new chef produced a corker, not too stomach churningly rich and with plenty of chunky bacon bits.

The only drawback was that this left us with no room for any pudding - but I'm sure they would have been as delicious as the rest of the food.

The meal was all washed down with several glasses of the distinctly gluggable house red wine and what must be some of the best coffees in town.

Manhattans' new owner has exciting plans to expand her restaurant into the garden for the summer.

But, in its present form, the restaurant is just fine, believe me.

It's a jolly, relaxed place, which won't cost the earth.

It's the sort of restaurant where, joy of joys, they give you jelly beans at the end of the meal.

It's what eating out should be.

Reservations: 01962 840384.