BANG in the heart of York is Gert & Henry’s, an atmospheric restaurant housed in a Tudor building in the centre of Newgate Market.

Perfect for a stop-off lunch after a busy morning’s shopping, or a more relaxed evening meal with family or friends, Gert & Henry’s might not be the first place that springs to mind when searching for a bite to eat, but judging by our experience, it should be.

The historic exterior of the building impressed my brother, Karl, when we visited one chilly Tuesday evening. We were not disappointed either by the interior, with its higgledy piggledy staircases leading to various seated areas.

The inside is Tardis-like: diners might not know (unless they venture to the upstairs toilet) that there are two substantial dining rooms on the second floor, with beamed ceilings, church bench seating and a melange of round and rectangular solid wooden tables with carver chairs.

We sat downstairs, and were surprised to find it bustling and busy, mainly with couples, some obviously regulars. Karl, my mum and I were welcomed by the three members of staff who were serving the floor.

Our waitress was very friendly and efficient, and left us to browse the interesting menu and extensive specials board, promptly bringing us a complimentary bread basket and the litre of house rose wine (£15.95) we had ordered.

The main menu is divided into sections, one “to get you going”, followed by “meat for a treat”, “salad days”, “ocean’s away”, “pasta mania” and “steak corner” Something for everyone’s palette.

We liked the fact that many of the dishes were traditional English or European with intriguing twists. Black pudding with prunes and apple chutney (£4.75) for starters caught Karl’s eye, but he ended up choosing smoked chicken and Wensleydale cheese with apricot chutney (£5.95) instead.

Mum, meanwhile, was tempted by king prawns pan fried with lemon, garlic and chilli (£7.95) to start, but went for bruschetta with garlic, tomato and anchovy (£3.95).

I looked to the specials board for my starter, going for butter beans and ricotta on toast (the menu option had bacon, but being a vegetarian, they kindly modified it for me).

Choosing the main courses was just as hard a decision for all of us – with so many tempting dishes on offer. I eventually went for penne pasta with pumpkin and orange sauce (£7.95) from the special’s board, while mum went for fettuccine with crab sauce, again from the specials board, and Karl went for faggots with pease pudding.

He was particularly impressed with our waitress’ service at this point, as the dish on the specials board was displayed at £4.95, while the same dish on the main menu was £7.45. Our waitress went to investigate when he queried this and we were duly charged the lesser price.

It didn’t take long for our starters to arrive, and we were all impressed by the portion sizes and presentation of the dishes.

My dish was suitably creamy without being fatty and had a mouth-watering texture. It looked like it should have filled me up, but it was lighter in consistency than it first appeared.

Karl declared his starter extremely tasty, the smokiness of the chicken and the creamy cheese complementing each other perfectly. The portion was generous and the addition of the salad garnish and orange made the dish even more appetising.

Mum said that her starter was tempting, with just a hint of garlic and not fatty in the slightest.

The flavours blended together perfectly and would make an excellent choice for the discerning weight watcher.

The main courses followed soon after and once again we were overwhelmed by the generous portion sizes. My penne was cooked to perfection and the seasonal pumpkin and orange sauce was piquant and moreish.

Karl’s face lit up when he saw the faggots, accompanied by home-made pease pudding, plenty of roasted potatoes and fresh vegetables. At £4.95, he was more than happy.

Mum declared her main course impeccably prepared: the fettuccine laced with a creamy crab sauce and served with fresh garden peas, was light and well flavoured.

Filled almost to the brim by this point, we shared a light and enjoyable Italian cassata pistachio ice-cream (£3.55) that refreshed and cleansed the palate.

We concluded that the menu was not only unusual and exciting, but also very competitively priced: our bill came to £56.20.

Natalya visited Gert & Henry’s on Tuesday, October 28, 2008.

Gert & Henry’s, 4 Jubbergate, York, YO1 8RT. Tel: 01904 621445