For mains, we ordered mushroom linguine and chicken kebabs on a bed of rice.

This restaurant might be Derby's best-kept secret - and it's hidden in plain sight

by · Derbyshire Live

A lot of people will be familiar with the Cathedral Quarter Hotel in Derby's city centre, but fewer appear to know that a great restaurant is hidden inside the walls of the four-star venue.

The chill of the winter night was immediately forgotten when we stepped from St Mary's Gate into the warm building, which had formerly been a police station and later a police museum.

We were warmly welcomed by waiter Iresh, who sat us down on comfy armchairs in the quiet, cosy restaurant space after showing us the hotel's chic bar space just next door.

To start off with, my friend ordered a Daiquiri, while I opted for a Strawberry Mojito, which came out promptly. To my surprise, it contained no artificial syrups and instead relied on finely cut strawberries to bring out the taste.

The drinks were polished off quickly, and soon after, Iresh returned with a goat's cheese toast (£9.90), which we shared as a starter.

I was very much looking forward to trying the restaurant's food, especially since award-winning chef Buddhika Dayananda recently took over the reins of their kitchen after travelling the world with his unique, mouth-watering menus.

Our first taste of his cooking took me completely by surprise - the dish has to be one of the best starters I've had in a long time.

The goat's cheese was warm and soft, and all the items were of brilliant quality.

It did what a starter is supposed to do: leave us hungry for more, so I opted for the Trio of Mushroom Linguine (£12.80) whilst my friend ordered a dish named "Persian Way" (£16.90), which is a chicken or lamb mince kebab with rice, salad and tahini cream.

I didn't expect anything less after our starter, but the pasta was absolutely amazing - the mushrooms were fresh, and the sauce was cooked to perfection.

Coming from an Italian family, I am usually quite stern when it comes to rating pasta dishes, but the mushroom linguine was on par with, if not better than, some of my favourite restaurants in Italy (high praise, I know).

My friend was similarly impressed by her kebab dish, which boasted lots of fresh produce and, I quote, "some of the nicest kebab meat I've had in a long time".

After our mains, we could both sense the fullness kicking in, but did what had to be done - reach for the dessert menu.

My choice was the Dark Chocolate Chantilly (£8.80), a chocolate mousse, and my friend decided to round her meal off with a slice of cheesecake with berry compote (£8.80).

Despite being full to the brim, there was no way I was going to leave any of the chocolate mousse behind.

It was airy and fluffy, but very rich at the same time and was the perfect end to the meal - just like the cheesecake, which was light and still sweet enough to make for a great dessert.

After saying our goodbyes to waiter Iresh, who delivered brilliant service all night, we stepped back onto the cold street, wondering why this place was not packed yet.

I think it could be Derby's best kept secret. For me it ranks as one of the best places I have eaten this year.

Despite the restaurant being inside a hotel, it has a very calm and relaxing vibe to it and feels like an escape from the hustle and bustle in the city centre - I will definitely be back!

The restaurant, located next to the entrance hall, has a cosy feel to it.
Our drinks - a Daiquiri (left) and a strawberry Mojito (right).
The entrance hall, which leads to the restaurant.
The goat cheese toast, which comes with honey on top.