I have had a varying relationship with Six By Nico over the last seven years. Back in Edinburgh in 2018, in only its second outpost (before it had lowered itself below Hadrian’s Wall), I was enthralled. The concept was simple - a themed six course tasting menu, changing every six weeks. And for a mere £28! I mused that if they’d open one in Bristol, I would probably go every six weeks just to check out each theme. Well, many, many other outposts later, they have finally reached Bristol. In the meantime, I have been a few times in Edinburgh, Cardiff, and London, and the Grace Dent review for The Guardian (“the Pizza Express of fine dining”) lives rent free in my head. I now treat it as an experience rather than a meal. Inevitably, for the Bristol opening, they are doing The Chippie, which I have now had simply too many times, because it’s their go-to when opening a new one or they’ve just run out of ideas. It’s interesting that it has changed subtly over the years, but not by much. It’s, yes, very much the Fisher Price version of haute cuisine - you cannot move for espumas and foams and gels. It’s, as a result, fine. The food prep exists on a conveyor belt in a way that is trying to ape the precision and reproducibility of Michelin star cooking but ends up closer to a McDonald’s assembly line. They’re not convincingly on top of Alasdair being vegan with the snacks, which is concerning to begin with but settles once the first courses come out. The thing is this - I don’t know how well Six By Nico can survive Bristol. The price is no longer £28, it’s £44. They’re now much bigger on the up-selling, with more snacks, add-ons, optional courses, cocktail pairings, etc. If I add in the cheese course for £9, that gets you to seven courses for £53. For 2 pounds more, I can go to BOX-E, arguably one of the best restaurants in Bristol, and have the same courses but immeasurably better, more interesting, and made with love and personal care. The same is true for any number of other places. All in, with the snacks, extra course, and the cocktail pairing (fair play, surprisingly strong), you’re knocking over a hundred quid. Will I be back at Six By Nico? Sure, why not. The mood might strike some time. But 24 year old Sam’s vision of collecting every theme like they’re Pokemon feels a very long time ago indeed.