Can hotels make the food grade?

I was lucky enough to be invited to dine in the new Park Inn in Manchester last night with fellow foodie blogger manchesterisace.
All glass and funky furniture and primary colours, this is a slick looking hotel which is sure to attract plenty of overnight guests from the Manchester Evening News Arena opposite.
Our evening began with a chilled glass of white on the terrace overlooking the apartments of Manchester's Green Quarter (not much green or trees in evidence although still plenty of mud and diggers and the ubiquitous glass and chrome apartment blocks which have taken over Manchester like a plague in recent years).
All very pleasant. The sun was shining for a change and we enjoyed a happy half hour chatting to General Manager Neil Raw and bubbly Director of Sales and Marketing Jill Browton.
Neil then asked if we'd like to head into the dining room and, rather suprisingly since my fellow diner had been asked to write an official review, we were then joined by Neil for dinner which, while he was pleasant and charming company, we both found a little odd.
Sadly we were the only three diners in the ultra modern restaurant overlooking the ring road and defined by some of the brightest orange dining chairs I have ever seen.
Adorning our side pates were small rubber replicas of a branded mini the hotel has parked outside the front entrance and which apparently Jill uses when she's zipping around the city. Cute and I get the real version but my only thought on the replicas on our side plates really was 'Why?'. Mind you I still pocketed them both to take home to my two young boys so, if nothing else, they would be children pleasers I guess.
So onto the food. We glanced through a decent looking menu offering a range of starters, mains and desserts as well as some well though out lighter dishes and snacks.
On the recommendation of Jill my friend chose the Tiger Prawns which I may have ruined for her slightly by then asking everyone if they had seen the latest episode of Blood, Sweat and Takeaways.
I chose the blackened salmon salad with corander, lime and avocado and it was superb. Practically large enough to be a meal in itself, the large chunk of salmon was moist and beautifully cooked, the salad fresh, zingy and packed full of favour, all presented beautifully to create a true visual feast.
Indeed presentation is sonething they do rather well at the Park Inn if our meal was anything to go by. We were greeted with a selection of gorgeous, warm seeded rolls served in their own paper (?) lined basket on taking our seats and this, along with great service, was certainly most welcome.
Onto our main courses and my companion decided to go for the posh fish and chips option which she said was great. Neil ordered the sirloin steak, medium rare, which certainly looked fantastic and came served with three huge onion rings sat on top and a side serving of sauce, Neil choosing the horseradish option.
Being a mum I am subjected to dodgy burgers more often than I would like but seeing the gourmet burgers on offer on the menu accompanied by fat chips I suddenly really fancied one so opted for the Cheddar burger with aged Cheddar, tomato and pickles.
It looked stupendous. My lovely big fat chips came served, like the bread earlier, in their own paper lined bowl (apparently there's a debate going on as to whether they are in fact fat chips or wedges but who cares, they were great!) and the burger looked a beaut. You need to like your seedy bread here though as, once again, the bun was packed full of seeds like the earlier bread rolls. Luckily I do!
Cutting my big boy burger in half I then put down my knife and fork, picked the fella up with my bare hands and took a huge bite, much to the delight of the GM who said he hates seeing people trying to be smart and eat burgers with a knife and fork. Hear hear!
Expecting a taste sensation full of mature cheddar, fresh tomato and pickles and juicy beef I can honestly say that I felt suddenly very disapointed. This handsome looking burger just did not live up to expectations.
Size wise it was great. Substantial but the burger itself was cut relatively thinly which meant I could clamp my chops round it in one bite (a challenge too far in some gourmet burger joints).
It looked fab. The tomato and pickles were zesty and fresh and it had all the makings of a classic. But something just wasn't quite right.
Deconstructing the assembly on my plate I tried each ingredient separately to find out where the problem lay. The cheddar was certainly lacking and though described as aged I would definitely question its maturity. But I think it was the burger itself that was cuasing me offence although I found it hard to work out why. It was definitely dry and I would have certainly preferred something a bit juicier in my bun but this wasn't the main problem. To be honest it just tasted odd. Almost stale. But it wasn't!
Thankfully the generous size of my delicious starter and the proportions of the burger and chips meant that I could politely leave half of it on my plate delclaring to Neil that I was just too full to manage any more.
Unfortunately this meant I also had to pass on dessert but would have liked to try something from the small selection on offer, especially the maple caramel cheesecake.
Our meal was rounded off by a double espresso and some more pleasant chat with the friendly and likeable GM Neil.
On reflection? Shame about the burger but otherwise a pretty good dining experience for a new city centre hotel restaurant. Presentation was fantastic, service was smooth, the company was pleasant, the salmon starter was superb and the orange chairs were very simply just very bright.
With a few more diners and a bit more atmosphere this could be a good place to grab a bite either before or after a gig at the MEN Arena and I would certainly give it another go. I'd probably order the steak next time though.