I have clearly timed career moves badly, because in the hungry wait for Wellington on a Plate I was unemployed and spent large parts of the day dreaming about where and what I would eat, but now it’s on, I have a temporary job and it’s not in the CBD. Disaster!

However, it turned out that the suburbs are where it’s at when I rolled into Floyd’s in Island Bay. It was a cold day (although before this current snow weather), and the light colours of the interior are a bit stark on a grey day, but I was welcomed warmly. I was guided to menus, water was brought in an old fashioned cream bottle, the table was checked for wobbliness, and I was asked if I wanted the paper – as it turns out I was much happier with one of their many current issues of Who. Less than ten minutes after I’d ordered, my Island Bay Butchery pork spare ribs with pickled cherries were placed in front of me.

The speed at which they came out was much appreciated for a weekday lunch option. The meat wasn’t exactly falling off the bone like ribs can sometimes be, but much satisfied gnawing was had. The cherry sauce was surprisingly spicy, tempered a little by the parsley, and I really appreciated the fingerbowl, and that new napkins appeared like magic. Shortly after my bones were clearly away, I received my olive oil-poached cod on a green bean, black olive and caper salad with Haewai Meadery mead vinaigrette.

I suppose the word “salad” should have clued me in, but I was still a little suprised that the fish was cold. There wasn’t an overwhelming olive oil taste either, which is probably a good thing. The lettuce and beans were astonishingly fresh and full of flavour, and if I’d been a caper fan, I would have been happy to discover them in berry form as well as the conventional buds. Thi s would have been a great meal for a hot day. Luckily, the Pencarrow chardonnay along with the excellence service warmed up my belly.

Having a fish salad felt so virtuous that I got a piece of caramel slice to take away, and it was lush. I will definitely be returning to Floyd’s in the future for their regular menu, and they’re a shining beacon of just how good service can be in Wellington.