REVIEW: Aruba's new Christmas menu and karaoke event

Aruba has launched its brand new Christmas dining menu and a series of festive events, so we visited their restaurant on Bournemouth Pier to give it a try.

Aruba is well-known for its summer beachside parties with great cocktails and a view of the sea but the restaurant feels just as special in winter.

We booked a table for two at 6.30pm on a Wednesday evening, with time to watch their new weekly Karaoke event ‘Rockaoke’ at 8pm afterwards, which takes place throughout December.

The Bournemouth pier venue has a cocktail bar, karaoke stage, indoor dining tables and outdoor balcony seating. The space had been decorated with festive lights and a large Christmas tree.

This along with Christmas music and warm lighting, gave the restaurant a cosy and relaxed atmosphere.

We were shown to a nicely presented and comfortable booth table inside, overlooking the sea and with a view of the Christmas tree.

Aruba’s new Christmas menu launched on Friday, November 18 and is available until Friday, December 23.

The new menu includes a choice of two canapé packages and a two or three course menu.

The canapé packages start from £17 and the set menu from £28 per head.

READ MORE: Aruba Bournemouth invests £50K into new Christmas events

We chose our three course options in advance. To start we had a chargrilled vegetable terrine and a chicken and duck terrine.

The vegetable terrine was made with red and yellow peppers, courgettes and aubergines and served with a rich tomato dressing and toasted sourdough.

The pressed terrine of chicken and duck came with red onion marmalade and herbs. Served with toasted sourdough.

The portion sizes were substantial and tasty but the terrine and sourdough was light enough to leave space for the main.

For the main, we had the roast turkey roulade and the slow cooked belly of pork. There were also cauliflower, beef and salmon based mains on offer.

The roast turkey roulade was a turkey fillet with pork, sage and onion stuffing wrapped in smoked streaky bacon. Served with seasonal greens, roast potatoes and rich gravy.

The main was cooked to perfection and tasted delicious. The combination of turkey, bacon and stuffing is a Christmas staple and I really enjoyed the seasonal greens which had a lot of flavour. The roast potatoes were perfectly crispy and the gravy was rich and more like a sauce.

Finally, we both chose the sticky toffee pudding cheesecake for dessert. The other options on the set menu were Christmas pudding, lemon meringue tartelette, sticky toffee pudding cheesecake, pecan and cranberry tart and a cheeseboard for one.

Our dessert had a digestive biscuit base covered with a layer of white chocolate baked cheesecake, with sticky toffee sponge and sticky toffee sauce, served with ice cream and berries.

The cheesecake was delicious and not too sweet with a sticky toffee sponge and sauce on top. The ice cream and berries balanced the course out and the portion size was perfect.

Following dinner, was a chance to experience Aruba’s new Rockaoke event, which featured a great live band with a singer to kick off the event and a chance for the public to take part.

The karaoke was entertaining and the dance floor and bar were busy. Visitors can come down to Aruba just for the karaoke event and drinks without ordering a meal.

Overall, we really enjoyed the experience. All three courses were lovely, as well as the service, which was attentive and friendly throughout the entire evening. The atmosphere was cosy and festive and it was nice to be by the sea - whatever the weather.

Booking online for dining reservations is advised via www.aruba-bournemouth.co.uk.