CityLife

Panacea

Panacea

I WAS expecting the new Panacea in Alderley Edge to be slightly pretentious, but I was surprised that it didn’t completely blow me away, given its multimillion pound investment.

Even so, the design ­ by the revered Bernard Carroll ­ is impressive.

Sleek, polished and slightly masculine, the environment is finished with expensive touches like interior-lit marble surfaces, intricate wooden panelling and contemporary lighting.

A reception area splits the 100-cover restaurant from the bar, which leads through to a rear dancefloor. Downstairs, little space between the bar and four high tables opposite renders the bar a little cramped, but an additional bar upstairs offers relief from Thursday to Saturday.

The cash-rich clientele are a prime target for the champagne options ranging from Veuve Clicquot at £60 to Dom Perignon Rose 98 at £1,200, bottles of spirits like Belvedere vodka, £150; and the champagne flutes at £9.

The service, which includes table service, was impeccable. The series of over subscribed gestures are indicative of the bar’s astute and aspiring clientele. Do I really need a pink plastic, hole-punched ticket for my umbrella? Do the drinks that have been sat on the table for 10 minutes really need napkins under them now? And is it necessary to have a cardboard sleeve for my receipt that reads ‘knowledge’ on it in gold?

Probably not, but if you buy into that kind of special treatment on a night out, you’ll no doubt leave feeling a million dollars.

London Road, Alderley Edge, Cheshire, SK9 7QD (01625 599200).