Located in the old Abbeydale Road cinema, the rather aptly named Picture House Social has got to be a welcome addition for anyone living in the S7 postcode. This little strip of Abbeydale Road already benefited from The Broadfield, Hop Hideout and Electric Candlelight, but Picture House Social, with its delicious cocktails, informal Italian snacks and ping-pong tables, adds some real excitement to the area.
I'd visited Picture House Social a couple of times already, but only for drinks. So, one Sunday, after a bit of a browse around the vintage (aka 'second hand') shops in the area, Gav and I decided to pop in for lunch.
With an Australian Riesling and a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc on the wine list, I've always been sorted when it comes to choosing a drink here, but this time I decided to take the barman's advice. He recommended a Grecanico from Sicily - something I'd never heard of, never mind tried - and oh my Lord, I'm very pleased I did. It's a beautiful wine - one that will have me coming back for more...
Of course there is more to life than wine and there's a great range of beers (thanks to Hop Hideout who supply them with an interesting selection) along with a stunning cocktail list (as to be expected from any Gatsby venture).
Onto the food and service is very simple here - as in there isn't really any to speak of. You order your food at the kitchen, take your ticket and return to collect your chosen dishes in five or ten minutes or so. Given the pricing, I think this super casual approach is fair enough and it must work nicely for those playing ping-pong or milling around in the busy bar area (i.e. those who don't have a table).
There's nothing casual about the team's dedication to the quality of the food though - I hear that many of the ingredients are imported from Italy - to ensure the end dishes are as authentic as possible.
We ordered some meat arancini (£3) to share along with a couple of pizzas; nduja (£5.50) for me and cavolo nero (£5) for him.
Arancini are served in pots, making for the perfect snack to share with friends. Packed with cheese and ham, they were tasty and pretty moreish!
Pizzas, however, were beyond tasty. They were GOOD. The bases were super thin and the toppings were evenly spread and balanced - there was a good base to topping ratio.
Nduja was my favourite of the two - hot but not overpowering - but the cavolo nero didn't disappoint - think fiorentina and switch the spinach for black cabbage and you're just about there.
A bloody brilliant lunch - and an absolute bargain at £13.50 (excluding drinks).
Really need to get to this place soon. Sounds great and only a hop, skip `n` jump from t`Broady!
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