Carluccio’s

After standing in the middle of Silverburn for 10 mins, trying to decide where to eat, we finally opted for Carluccio’s. I’ve never been to any of their branches, but figured you can’t go far wrong with Italian.
The staff were great: efficient, fast and friendly. We were able to get a seat outside the restaurant, but as it’s also inside the shopping centre, it was a great place to sit and relax.
They have a very limited beer selection. The Mr and I had a craft beer — which was around a half pint, and very expensive (£5.95 a bottle).
I had the vegetable soup for starter — if you get this, don’t be put off by the extremely lurid (almost radioactive) green colour. It was good. Very good, and I’d happily have it again. For me, the main was chicken milanese. A couple of big slices of breaded chicken and salad, with garlic and basil potatoes. Quite a basic meal, but it was great. The others had carbona and a fish thing — and everyone was happy.
Pricewise, the food was in the moderate range — the bill worked out just over £20 each.
I’d be quite happy to go here for dinner again — the reason this gets 4 stars is purely down to the limited drinks selection.

I dislike thyme, not the thing that puts lines on your face or pounds on your butt, but that horrible herb that tastes a bit like mould. I had it in my main course here, but it was okay, I could handle it, it was subtle, the pasta with italian sausage sauce (Penne Alla Luganica) was nice. The sauce was creamy, rich and spicy, and most importantly sausagey, and the pasta was cooked just right. That combined with my mushroom risotto balls for my starter made for a pretty good lunch — although there wasn’t enough sauce for the huge balls!
The service was very friendly and sociable, and the surroundings pretty much like the one in town. I could have done without the construction machinery soundtrack but I went there with ears wide open, expecting it while they complete the shopping centre annexe. As chain restaurants go Carluccio’s are amongst the better ones.