If someone was meeting you at the lower end of town for lunch and fancied a bar meal with a beer in comfortable, smokefree surroundings, where would you take them - given that people usually have limited lunching time at their disposal?

A favourite watering hole until a few months ago used to be the City Vaults behind the Wool Exchange, which met all those criteria, including a decent-sized no-smoking room.

But then it went through a bad patch, as many places do from time to time. On a couple of occasions food wasn't on because there was no chef. Then food was on but the bar staff were so few that you had to queue for too long.

Yates's in Queensgate was given a trial. The food was OK, the service reasonable enough. But the nosmoking area isn't far enough from the smokers.

So allegiance switched for a while to the Tyrls Green, the Lloyds Bar on Centenary Square. It's comfortable and roomy and smoke-free upstairs, and if you don't mind queuing at the bar it's OK. The last time my wife and I lunched there, however, it was 50 minutes between food order being placed and food arriving (after we were warned there'd be a 15-minute wait), which isn't acceptable even at the modest "BOGOF" prices they charge.

So where do you go when you want somewhere to eat that meets the description in the opening paragraph, given that you have limited time and it's raining heavily, ruling out a walk up to one of the several establishments in the North Parade area which are being well talkedabout?

We'd heard that the City Vaults was under new management and had a new menu, so it was back there that we went the other Friday lunchtime to put it to the test.

It was quiet when we arrived around ten past 12. We bought drinks (the prompt and courteous service was promising), sat at a table in the non-smoking area, studied the menu and ordered by just gone 12.15 - a tuna mayonnaise melt for me, a crispy bacon and mushroom baguette for Maureen, both with chips.

At 12.35 I went to inquire as to the whereabouts of the food. At 12.45 it arrived. My tuna melt was stone cold whereas surely they're usually warmed through at least a little bit by the process of melting the cheese? The chips, though, were hot, crisp and tasty.

Maureen's bacon and mushroom baguette was also smothered with melted cheese, which was not announced on the menu. As she detests cheese and in fact can't eat it, this wasn't good news. It had to go back. An apology was forthcoming, with a promise that the replacement would soon be with us.

While I ate my cold melt Maureen waited and shared my chips.

Eventually, when mine was nearly finished, her correct order arrived.

No cheese on top this time. However, the bacon and mushrooms were cold and the chips (she reckoned they were the ones she'd returned) were lukewarm. Highly unappetising.

Back they went too, with a request for a refund - which was duly given, along with another apology. We had to assume that we'd picked an 'off ' day for our visit.

The problem there, as elsewhere, appears to be one of staffing. In so many establishments there just aren't enough staff to do the job properly, either behind the bar or in the kitchen. Whether it's out of choice, to keep down costs and maximise profits, or because there simply aren't enough suitable people who want to do the jobs, I can't answer.

But either way, from a customer's point of view it's highly unsatisfactory. Which bring me back to the questionIf someone was meeting you in central Bradford for a relatively speedy lunch and fancied a bar meal with a beer in comfortable, smoke-free surroundings, particularly at the bottom end of town, where would you take them?

CITY VAULTS Piece Hall Yard, Bradford 1 Tel: 01274 739697

  • Our writers comment on what they find during a single visit. They accept standards vary from day to day. In the interest of fairness, they do not reveal their identities, and they pay for their meals in full. Each venue is judged against other restaurants of a similar type.