A cocktail bar is judged on two things: whether the Martini is cold enough, and whether anyone will make you something that isn’t on the list. The bar at RT Café Grill is a restaurant bar, which means the ice is good, the glassware is chilled, and there is a kitchen behind it if you want something to eat with the second one.
You don’t need a table to drink here. Walk in to the bar or, in summer, the garden bar on the terrace. The full list is here; this is what to order.
Start with the Martini list
There are five, and they are the reason to come. The Gin Martini is made with Pinkmead Estate Wild Samphire Gin, distilled on the banks of the River Medina a few miles from here, and stirred ice-cold with Vermouth di Torino Extra Dry. It is herbaceous and faintly coastal, and it tastes like where you are sitting. £14.
The Sake Martini is the one people don’t expect: Akashi-Tai Daiginjo sake with an umami vermouth, finished with cucumber, £16. The Vodka and Dirty Martinis are £15, and if you want it filthy, say so.
If you’re on the terrace
Spritzes, and something long. Aperol Spritz is £11, the Hugo Spritz with elderflower, mint and lime is £14, and the Apple Gin Spritz is made with Turner’s Apple Gin, £13. The Paloma at £10 is the best value on the list. There is draught Asahi, Peroni and Cornish Orchards cider by the pint or the half, and Island-adjacent bottles if you prefer.
The Island bottles
- Pinkmead Estate Wild Samphire Gin, from the Medina, served with samphire grass and juniper. £9.50 for 25ml.
- Wight Whisky, a single malt made only from barley farmed on the Isle of Wight. Light oak and dried fruit, a creamy honey finish. £9 for 25ml.
- Annings Berry Cider, by the bottle.
If you like a gin and tonic more than a cocktail, there are twenty-five gins on the list, from Monkey 47 to a navy-strength HMS Victory, all served with Fever-Tree.
Not drinking
The alcohol-free list is a real one, not a token lime and soda. Virgin Espresso Martini with Strykk and Lyre’s Coffee, a 0% Margarita made with Almave blue agave spirit, Lyre’s Amaretti sour with egg white, and Botivo over ice with soda. Alcohol-free beer from BrewDog, Asahi, UNLTD and Guinness, and 0% sparkling, white, red and rosé by the glass.
When to come
Drinks and bar snacks run from 9am to 10pm on the days we’re open: Tuesday to Sunday in spring and summer, Thursday to Sunday in autumn and winter. Walk-ins are welcome at the bar and on the terrace. If you want a table for dinner as well, book it, because the dining room fills before the bar does.
Wine is a separate conversation, and a longer one. The list runs to about 260 bins, and this is how to drink from it.
Questions we get asked
Is there a cocktail bar in Ryde?+
Several. The bar at RT Café Grill on the seafront serves cocktails from 9am to 10pm on the days the restaurant is open, to walk-ins as well as diners, with a garden bar on the terrace in summer.
Do I need to book to drink at the bar?+
No. Walk in to the bar or the terrace. Book if you want a table for dinner too.
What Isle of Wight spirits do you serve?+
Pinkmead Estate Wild Samphire Gin, distilled on the River Medina, and Wight Whisky, a single malt made from barley grown on the Island.
Do you make alcohol-free cocktails?+
Yes, nine of them, from £7, plus alcohol-free beer and wine by the glass.