BAR EST looks like it was built straight out of an IKEA catalogue, but appearances can often be deceptive.

And so it proved when I ventured into Premier Lodge's trendy lunch eaterie. At first the vision of garish colours and a room full of MDF was hardly the most welcoming of sights. And when the sight of cars backed up in Blossom Street's almost continuous traffic jam greeted me from the table, I was beginning to regret suggesting it as the place to take my parents for their 27th wedding anniversary.

Especially when I noted that we three were the only customers.

But given the sumptuous food that followed, Bar Est is a culinary treasure of delights that everyone should discover.

Lunch runs between noon and 2pm and diners can choose from either a scaled-down lunch menu, offering the usual fast-food-type pub snacks, or a full menu with an extensive selection of starters, main courses and desserts.

For starters, I "gambled" rather un-adventurously on the soup of the day, which was tomato and basil (£2.35). My father, Michael, took the same option.

However, my mother, Berenice, went for the Thai-style battered prawns, weighing in at £4.45.

The catering staff are a proud bunch at Bar Est and the prawns duly arrived within minutes, delicately arranged on a platter. Thankfully, my mother pointed out, they tasted as good as they looked - the drizzled sweet chilli sauce a welcome accompaniment.

The soup, my father and I agreed, was a good temperature and deceptively large. It wasn't quite like any tomato and basil soup I have ever had before, but was undeniably tasty. Recommended.

For the main course, I chose grilled chicken with a peppercorn sauce, potatoes and vegetables (£7.20), while my mother ordered a chicken and bacon salad (£6.45).

My father, ever the traditionalist, took on the Beef and Theakston pie, at £6.80.

Tenderness is everything with chicken and this specimen was right on the money. Neither too tough nor too soft, it was enhanced beautifully by the peppercorn sauce, which was creamy and spicy.

The vegetables were a little on the caramelised side, but this minor concern was negated by a fluffy jacket potato. A substantial number, I had some trouble finishing the course.

My father's pie was, he bemoaned, rather artistic arriving in its own little dish. He wished for a little more meat, but said the lack of filling did not concern him too much.

People who take the salad option often think they are taking the easy way out. Think again at Bar Est. The salad which greeted my mother dwarfed anything on show on either of our other plates. The menu describes it as "satisfying". You have been warned.

Yet volume was a secondary concern to taste. Tender pieces of chicken were coated with red onion, cos leaves and a nutty pesto. Delicious, was my mother's verdict.

And so on to dessert. Cheesecake with fruits of the forest for me (£3.25), clotted cream ice-cream for my mum (£2.25) and Profiteroles (£3.25) for the old man.

Both main desserts came with a choice of cream or ice-cream and were as good as they were described in the menu.

The only negative point was that my mother's original choice, lemon and lime tart, had sold out. Ironic I mused, considering there was no one else in the restaurant.

We washed all this down with a bottle of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, priced at a very reasonable £12.45.

Its fruity, yet medium, texture complemented the chicken very nicely indeed. It went down so easily I contemplated ordering another, realising only at the last minute that it was still only 2pm.

The bill, following two cappuccinos, came to a very reasonable £53.90 for three, including the wine.

Appearances can often cloud decision. You may eat at better looking places but, in this case, Bar Est is somewhere where it's definitely worth taking a deep breath and diving on in.

Updated: 09:05 Saturday, October 12, 2002