Sometimes you just know when you walk into a restaurant that everything will be fine. And so it was with the Lord Bute at Highcliffe, recently taken over my mine hosts Simon and Gary who moved there from Milford-on-Sea.

For a change, Elena and I were early and so had 15 minutes to relax and unwind with a drink in the sweeping, curved conservatory until the rest of the party arrived. It gave time to take in the surroundings: comfortable seating in the ante room where we found ourselves, and a restaurant showing lots of space at tables and, very importantly, loads of room between them.

Our friends arrived in a noisy flurry of pint-and-aperitif-purchasing and then it was time to order. Lots of time and patience is needed with a party of friends and the waitress was helpful, patient and unflappable. Once seated the wine and starters soon arrived. I had the lobster, crab and prawn bisque, and it was beautiful. Crabby, creamy and golden but without that throat-grabbing bite that comes with too rich. Silky smooth but with nuggets of crustaceans and delicate little prawns.

Elena had the Scottish fish cakes with goats cheese and found that a wee touch too goaty for her taste. Apart from that, everyone agreed that was an excellent start to the meal.

If proof was needed that friends often have similar tastes, this was it. Of the eight, six chose the bisque and two the fishcakes. And so it was with the main courses: two steaks, a huge T-bone and a tender sirloin and the rest plumped for the lamb.

Five neat discs from a cutlet per person, every one as sweet as the other and gently covered with a tasty sauce that included wine and redcurrants in its making.

Boiled new and Lyonnais potatoes and a filo pastry bowl of tasty vegetables including butternut squash topped with a nasturtium flower and a sprig of fresh redcurrants. Tiny slivers of carrot and French beans on the side completed the dish.

Helped down with a robust and fruity red from Chile, it was a feast fit for a king. It was so good all we could manage afterwards was a coffee. It wasn't a cheap evening at £304 including all drinks, but as a special occasion evening out it would take a lot to beat it.-Bob Jolliffe

The Lord Bute, Lymington Road, Highcliffe. 01425 278884