Wokmania, St Werburghs church, Derby, DE1 1BU

Well I must confess, I have been to Wokmania before, but it was in Sheffield when I recently repatriated no.1 son back to university.
So it was no surprise that my visit to Derbys imposing branch of Wokmania, was once again to be with no.1
Walking into the dimly lit interior of the old St Werburghs church felt surreal and dramatic to say the least. It was immediately apparent why the opening of this branch was delayed almost a year, the logistics and cost must have given somebody a few sleepless nights.

We were promptly shown to our seats and the layout of the food was clearly explained, starters, mains and a section for desserts were all well defined.
How anyone can be expected to even dent the alleged selection of 120 different courses was beyond me, especially as the offer included dry congealed rice, cheap parts of chicken (i.e. wings and legs), dry meatless ribs, oily curries and dry breads. Many dishes weren't even labelled, so we never did find out what they were.
The desserts looked like they were straight from school dinners at Markeaton junior. Jelly, soft whipped ice cream, sponge cakes, copious amounts of slightly bruised apples and wait for it……bowls of Dolly Mixtures! My god, do they do kids face painting aswell? I’ll have Lion-O! (the Thundercats, remember?)
I started to wonder who would actually come here. I knew you certainly wouldn’t want to bring your new lady here on a date (unless you didn’t want to see her again of course), my mother certainly wouldn’t and couldn’t eat this much and £12.90 is in my opinion too much for students. It began to dawn on me that there were quite a few people in here who liked to eat a ‘lot’ of food, so that’s who’s gracing the doors of Derby’s latest eat-as-much-as-you-can venue! This isn’t for me and is a million miles away from decent grub. Vast amounts of poor quality food, non existent and non required service, but a dramatic venue. I predicted last year that Goji wouldn’t last and I’m going to stick my neck out and say that in this day and age, when consumers are more concerned about the quality and provenance of the food they put inside their bodies, there just wont be a place for the Wokamnias of this world, especially at £13 a pop!
Pizza Express: freshly made pizza, plus a starter for £13…….. it’s a no brainer!

Food: 2/10
Service: self service
Venue: 7/10

Tel: 01332 331155
www.wokmania.co.uk (it hasn’t been updated for nearly a year!)

Food glorious food........ or is it ?

January 2007
It's a cold damp Wednesday in January, I've just come back from Zizzi pizza in Derby (a chain!) with my mum and sister. My bowl of crab, pea and lemon oil spaghetti wasn't the worst in the world, but I knew it could be better. Why do we always end up at Zizzi or Pizza Express? I've decided, enough is enough !
Why is it that there are more crap places to eat, than good places. Where the hell do you go for dinner in the week that's not Indian, pasta or Chinese & isn't a chain (i.e. not independently owned). Why does most pub-grub fall short? Why is the only noise you hear coming from the kitchen that of a microwave "ping" and not a head chef shouting "service"! On this site we're gona find, with your help, the best places in the Derby area, let's say within a 15 mile radius, to eat, drink and shop for Decent Grub (including Nottingham?).Where do you get a traditional home cooked pub lunch? Where do you go for an impromtu dinner mid-week, that's been cooked, not just re-heated, and under a tenner? Where can I get a decent Gin & Tonic? (plenty of lime and ice, in my opinion) A decent cup of coffee and a perfectly pulled pint? Where can I buy organic & local produce? and where can I eat it? (now there's a challenge!) Where can you enjoy real ale with a hearty plate of localy produced sausages & mash? And where are those potentially Michelin star rated restaurants and chef's working away to create gastronomic perfection (come on there must be a budding Heston out there somewhere) The area does have some good places to eat and drink and there are plenty of people who are trying. But Derby doesn't even have an independent delicatessen anymore, for cryin out loud, Belper does! So let's find the local champions of good food, lets shout for Decent Grub! In fact tell me all your foodie thoughts and experiences from anywhere in the UK, I'm sure you wana tell em and I'd love to hear em.
Hopefully next time you fancy a plate of Decent Derbyshire Grub, you'll know where to look! From sausages to sushi, tell me about every mouthfull, everyplace, everywhere. I want your opinion on my reviews and your ratings out of 10, for food, service & venue. Let's see who gets the nod and who gets the knock? and hopefully together we can create a directory of the best!
.......... All I ask, is that it's Decent Grub!
Hey Ho, let's go ! ("Blitzkreig Bop", Ramones, 1976)
Martin, 9.10 pm, Wednesday 10th January 2007

PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL REVIEWS ARE JUST MY OWN PERSONAL OPINIONS AND AS WE ALL KNOW, RESTAURANT QUALITY AND SERVICE CAN CHANGE ON A DAILY BASIS. PLEASE TRY ALL THE ESTABLISHMENTS FOR YOUR SELVES AND LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK. ENJOY.........
MARTIN (decentgrub.com)