Great food and super friendly service! For a hotel-restaurant the atmosphere is very nice. And combined with the food served and service delivered, I only can score this restaurant with the maximum 5 points!

  Style AND Substance Having had a couple of truly mediocre meals in Belfast hotel restaurants recently (the Great Room at the Merchant and the Seahorse at Grand Central), I wanted to share the absolutely lovely dining experience that... Read more I enjoyed at Novelli City Quays in the AC by Marriott last Sunday night (14 October 2018).

I was meeting one of my girlfriends for dinner for a long over due catch-up and having heard good reports about Novelli City Quays decided to give it a whirl.

We weren’t disappointed when our taxi dropped us off at this sparkly, cool and shiny new hotel right on the waterfront and the layout of the sophisticated dining space takes full advantage of the river frontage. We were given a big table overlooking the water which also had the benefit of a clear view of the kitchen and the pass where we observed the buzz of the chefs hard at work.

I had phoned ahead and ordered a bottle of fizz for us to kick-start our evening and this arrived promptly after the hostess guided us to our table in a great big champagne trug full of crushed ice. It was perfectly chilled and kick-started our evening off beautifully.

I really enjoy perusing menus and as my GF is vegetarian I had the advantage of studying the stand-alone vegan menu which which is extremely impressive.

I had the goat’s cheese starter whilst my companion had the wild mushroom tortellini. Both dishes were delicately presented and were delicious - the creamy goats cheese was complemented perfectly by the tart acidity of the accompanying beetroot jelly. I only managed to scrounge a little of the tortellini, but it tased superb and I fully intend to order it on my return visit.

For mains, my GF had the chick pea curry which looked smelled and tasted gorgeous. She is a really fussy, high-maint diner so it was a good sign when she finished the lot. A perfect choice for a chilly, autumn evening. I had the sea bass with cod cheeks and clam broth served with potato galette, spinach and salt-baked carrot. The fish was cooked to perfection, beautifully moist and flaky. As our eyes are way bigger than our bellies, we also ordered the twice-cooked chips and the Dauphinoise potatoes. These were both excellent and whilst we could never have finished the generous portions, I am glad we ordered them and sampled just how good they tasted.

My GF cried off pudding, but I soldiered on ordering the Gateau St Honore, a decadent French classic of puff and chow pastry, caramel and whipped cream. Wow! It was a delight. I want to go back just for that pudding.

Service throughout was top drawer. We had 2 very attentive and efficient waitresses looking after us - they also enjoyed a little “craic” with us during the meal which was really charming and prevented any stuffiness of stiffness table-side.

The evening with my GF was a blast - we had a great meal in what I absolutely consider to be the best hotel restaurant in Belfast. I’m already planning my second visit - mushroom tortellini, lamb rump and that St Honore (again)…

So thank you Novelli City Quays for turning a wee catch-up with a GF into a really glittering and sublime dining experience. Read less

  DINNING AT NOVELLI Restaurant. My partner Billy and I had a change of plan's. So we decided to dine at Novelli for starters we both had the Onion soup which was delicious. Both main meals a half chicken and... Read more a sugar pork were very tasty to finish off we had the tarte tatin which was to die for. As for all the staff I met they were all very pleasant and helpful. And we would recommend that you give it a go. We will return. Read less

  Fabulous local ingredients cooked to perfection with attentive, friendly service I was lucky enough to visit the restaurant on Friday 15th feb with my husband after winning a st valentines meal for 2.

We were shown to our favourite table with great views and... Read more served by Stefani, who was very knowledgeable about the food and drinks. I find service is always fabulous from all members of staff who are all very professional and approachable making each visit a pleasure and one of the reasons I choose to visit Novellis.

A beautiful menu it really was difficult to choose what to order,we opted for the Artichoke veloute with porcine mushrooms & as I’m a huge fan of JC’’s French onion soup I was delighted that it was on a par with it, perfectly seasoned and delicious. My husband chose the tarte fine of aubergine, tomato, courgette & celeriac with an olive & pest pistou. Presentation was beautiful and it was thoroughly enjoyed.

We chose a lovely chateaubriand served with mushrooms, vine tomatoes, twice cooked chips with peppercorn sauce for both of us. Served on a wooden board for us to share it’s hard to resist quality beef from Peter Hannan cooked to perfection it was melt in the mouth.

With not much room for dessert I chose the caramelised pear & white chocolate galette with popcorn cream, very light and beautifully presented with my husband opting for a cheeseboard, again, great cheeses served with fruit, local cheese biscuits & chutney. We had a couple of glasses of Prosecco and I thoroughly enjoyed a couple of cocktails too! Looking forward to our next visit as the ambiance, friendly staff combined with quality ingredients cooked to perfection makes each visit a pleasure Read less

  Wow ! First stay here for work meetings near by.

Hotel is very modern and finished to a high standard.

Fabulous restaurant/ breakfast area.

Lovely seating outside, with a fantastic view.

Room was finished to a good standard... Read more and clean.

Drinking water / bottled water would of been good!

Shower was fantastic !

All in all a lovely hotel and recommended- only negative comment would be the reception staff weren’t up to scratch yet as only been open a few weeks. However cleaning staff and restaurant staff were on the ball and very good. Read less

  Lunch 29/12 Visited today for lunch with the family and the experience was nothing short of outstanding.

My wife and I shared the charcuterie sharing platter to start and then my wife had steak and I had the... Read more catch of the day (John Dory) and both tasted outstanding. Our daughter had the fish bites from the children’s menu which was fresh, huge and devoured!

Our waiter was Billy who is an absolute credit to the restaurant and had an excellent manner with all. It was on his recommendation that we followed our lunch with the tarte-tatin which was one of the tastiest we have tasted. There was another member of staff who took our drinks and food order (cant remember his name) and he also is a credit to you.

Will definitely be back!! Read less

  Excellent service, friendly staff, delicious food. Stopped here for lunch with my family. The location was fantastic with views over the river and across to the titanic quarter. The staff were really efficient and friendly, the service was fast and we... Read more all felt relaxed. The menu choice was great and the food delicious, can't wait to go back. Would definitely recommend this restaurant to a friend. Read less

  1st time visitors We finally got the chance for our first visit to Novelli at City Quays on a lovely Belfast afternoon.

We had a meeting in the nearby Cathedral Quarter and decided to try out the latest hotel... Read more in the Belfast area.

Very pleasant greeting from the staff on entry and shown to a table with lovely views over the lagan river and onwards to Titanic Belfast.

We both chose from the Prix Fixe menu and i have to say the Monkfish was perfectly cooked and accompanied by spinach/chickpeas/saffron rice, lovely combination. My colleague had the Rotisserie Chicken and past comment on how succulent the meal was.

We both had the Novelli Baked Tarte Tatin to finish, wasn't disappointed!!

The staff were very attentive but not "in your face". We had a couple of drinks outside afterwards and will definitely be back again soon. Read less

  Excellent meal and fabulous service This was our second visit to Novellis and it didn’t disappoint. Normally I am not a fan of hotel restaurants, as they can be very hit and miss. All four of us were delighted with... Read more our choices for starters, main courses and desserts. The meats were all cooked to perfection and the squid was cooked to perfection also.

While I am usually a fan of starters over desserts, this is the only restaurant where I believe the desserts are the stars of the show!!

Our waitress, Stefania, was fantastic - attentive, polite, friendly, helpful and couldn’t do enough for us. She is an asset to this restaurant!

I’m sure we will be back again 🙂 Read less