Coast To Coast

Ive visited Coast 2 Coast now 4 times. Based on my last two experiences I won't be going back for the food.

This is an 'American themed' restaurant. Think burgers, ribs, sizzling fajitas. It has a lengthy cocktail menu with a decent happy hour between 5 and 7. You can mix and match 2 for 1. I've found the bar staff lack consistency. Sometimes my drinks will come out superb. Other visits the drinks have missed half the garnish.

What disappoints me the most is the price of the food for what you receive. Two salads I have tried both came out the size of a starter salad..and for £13 each!!! The burgers come with a pathetic amount of chips. Looks like a McDonald's happy meal instead of a juicy restaurant burger and chips. I will say the calzone and puddings are what I would consider a normal portion size.

Service seems to be hit or miss. Most recent visit it was nearly ten minutes before someone took our drink order. And it wasn't busy time.

Coast 2 Coast is great for cocktails if the bar isn't slammed, diasspointing for food, and gives lackluster service. There's better places out there.

Ok food ok service, could do a lot better quite easily.
2 mistakes on our order but our waiter was a really nice guy and he said it was his 3rd shift.
Go for burgers, they are excellent - the buffalo sauce was very weak but the burger itself good.
Home made nachos to start were ok and fully loaded but the frickles were so good.

This place seems to be getting a bit of a beating, so I'll try and level up the playing field somewhat with my experience of Coast 2 Coast...

So, this place popped up last year (I believe) and dominates one of the big glass buildings towards the Brindley Place side of Broad Street. The building always seems to be pretty clean (which is unusual for Broad Street) and is well signed, so you'll spot it if you are heading here.

I had wanted to go when it first opened, but as I always say "too many restaurants, not enough meals in the day". I joined their mailing list to keep an eye on what's going on and received a voucher for a free main course on my birthday. This seemed as good a reason as any to take a trip down and try it out.

We made a reservation through their super easy online booking and rocked up of an eve to see what was in store at this posher-than-average Americana style bar and diner. First thing to note is that if you're a fan of Frankie and Benny's, you're probably going to love this place. It has a similar sense of decor and menu, whilst being a tad more new and independent (although there are now quite a few branches across the UK).

The voucher I had received has stated "one free main course". Now, this isn't my first rodeo and I was expecting a lot of stipulations, but no! I was informed by the helpful and polite waitress (who was training) that I could have anything I wanted off the menu! Result! I opted for the second most expensive steak (the most expensive was off the menu) and some sides. We also both ordered a cocktail to accompany our meal.

The steak was pretty damn good, actually. Well cooked and served with nice fries. It certainly wasn't the BEST steak I have ever eaten, but I didn't have any complaints about it. We even got an apology for our food being late (it was about 6:30 on a busy Friday night), but we hadn't noticed any delay at all...

The dessert bit was strange. We were pretty full and weren't sure if we would fit in a sweet, so a peruse of the menu would have been nice. Our waitress informed us that there WASN'T a menu and proceeded to tell us what was on that night. Now, I get that this must be a bit of a skill is the menu changes regularly... But A) I want to see what's IN the desserts B) I want to know the Price of the desserts and C) How am I supposed to remember a massive list?! By the time she got to the end I had totally forgotten what she had said at the start and we gave up and opted not to bother. This was a shame really as we might have stayed for another course if we could have physically read and seen the menu. **NOTE - This was March last year and could well have changed**

Our bill was higher than you might have thought (with Dan's burger coming in at £15 - a little on the high side really), but we were looked after and the food was good. Now, I would give this place more like 3.5 stars, but looking at some of the poorer reviews it has received, I have bumped it up to 4.

I hope to go back soon and see if the dessert menu policy has changed and if it's deserving of that star based generosity...

After our recent trip to coast to coast and seeing some scathing reviews I thought it best to try and even out the balance a touch.

We arrived at half 6 on a Friday, a little early for dining but the place was really quite busy. We were greeted, seated and introduced to our waitress in an incredibly timely and friendly manner. We actually had two serving staff as one was in training so her trainer took a seat with us and engaged in a bit of light banter while she went through the menu.

Drinks ordered, food ordered, drinks served and then we were given an apology for the delay in our food arriving - much to our confusion. It can't have been more than 20 minutes. Not that I'm complaining the level of attention shown by the veritable army of servers was really impressive.

I went for a black and blue burger with sweet potato fries coupled with a portion of macaroni cheese and Vicky opted for the steak (you get a voucher for a free main around your birthday, normally that wouldn't include steak but there's no restrictions here). The burger was good, although the bread to meat ratio was way off in my opinion, and the accompanying Cajun dip, sweet potato fries and macaroni cheese with bacon were all delicious. The steak was great and very well cooked. We were offered dessert, although there isn't technically a dessert menu - instead the waitress reeled off the desserts available and we were left to ponder them with no reference. I thought that a bit weird. In all honesty after that much food neither of us could stomach dessert so we left it at that.

The food was good, the service was good it's just the price of the place that lets it down a bit. I don't mind paying for good food but the best part of £15 for a burger that didn't come close to the best I've had seems way too high. Needless to say though I will probably be back, although I'll be on the hunt for vouchers as I wouldn't want to pay full whack there. If I could I would give it 3.75 stars but as it is I've bumped it up to 4 as it's more than a 3 star venue.

We were quite disappointed by Coast To Coast, it looks like it should be a great place to eat but unfortunately our visit proved that wrong. The service was very slow, our meals came before the drinks did and the meals themselves (4 burgers) were underwhelming. Especially at the prices they charge, you're better off saving money and going to a fast food chain.

Breakfast Review:

Its an American styled restaurant. The breakfasts are quite unusual.

The venue is on Broad Street in Birmingham, its a cracking venue, right in the middle of Birmingham's number one 'going out' street. Its really cool inside too - like a massive diner - which I imagine is the point? I did find it weird that every time I have been in there, they seem to be showing horse racing on the TV's?!

You get a generous portion: 2 Sausages, 2 Bacon, 2 fried eggs, a whole roasted tomato, black pudding, beans, (mine were separate - its a thing I do), potato cake and for some inexplicable reason, a mini Oreo?

In fairness to the restaurant, when we turned up, I believe there were about 15 of us, so its not really fair to expect everyone to have a perfect breakfast. That said, it was pretty impressive, everything was OK, but I didn't think that the ingredients were particularly good. It could be worth 4 stars, but I am comparing this breakfast against the others I have tried, (about 35 to date), and it wasn't enough for me to merit the 4th star.

I couldn't fault the service either. It was excellent.

I must say my experience at Coast to Coast conflicts directly with other reviews on this site.

A friend and I went for dinner there on a Monday night after work and the staff were very helpful. When I first got there, I was guided to the table at which my friend was sat by the attending manager. Drinks orders were taken within minutes and thanks to me visiting the Coast to Coast website before our meal and signing up to their mailing list, my friend and I got a free cocktail using my free cocktail voucher too.

The cocktails were of decent quality and were definitely not lacking in the alcohol content! The prices were not unusual for cocktails either - a mojito was about £6.

For dinner, I ordered a club sandwich with sweet potato fries which was delicious. The portions are generous to say the least and I didn't think the £12.55 price tag attached was unreasonable. The food arrived quickly and we both ate so much that we physically couldn't manage a dessert, which also reduced the bill! Throughout our meal, the staff were attentive and were keen to help us with anything else we might need.

The decor is in the typical American style with pictures and decorations all round, and the music also fits with the theme. The toilets were clean and nicely presented, though I couldn't make the soap work but that might just have been me!

My friend and I stayed for another drink after dinner and were not asked to leave or move despite the fact that the restaurant was getting busy, which we were both happy with.

Overall, I was pleased with my experience and I would definitely come back.

That was a surprise. I'd never been to coast to coast and quite honestly try to avoid most places on broad street however I went there last week as I had been invited. I was surprised how nice the place is on the inside. The service is very quick and friendly. They replicate the American customer service which is so much better than most English places. I enjoyed a nice glass of wine and some nibbles. The manager came personally to say hello and told us a boy about the restaurant.

I've been here three times, at two different locations (Solihull and City Centre). I'm not horrified, but I'm not even mildly impressed.

For the price and reputation I thought I was getting a "must return" type of experience... And while I have returned, it wasn't my choice (one must appease the Birthday girl/guy).

Food is creatively described in the menu and well displayed when served, but that's doesn't make up for the lack of flavor or mediocre cooking techniques leave the food with a "not quite right" texture.

As an American (who had lived in many of the places "celebrated" at Coast to Coast) I DO recommend the Mac-N-Cheese... But I also recommend you use quite a bit of salt and pepper.

Drinks are well made but not creative, and the atmosphere is generally pleasant and lively. Not MY choice for a celebration, but I won't begrudge others theirs.

I'm not convinced enough to try and dinner at this branch yet.

They were kind enough to host 40 instagrammers on a Saturday afternoon and give us a free lemonade and cocktail off the menu.

The service was very friendly and our waiter made a grand effort with us. We were given mini pretzels to sample.

I have previously had more than one great family meal at Touchwood in So it makes me wonder why people are not saying the same great things about this branch.

Is it just not unique enough for a big city with lots and lots of different types of food?