The staff are welcoming. The gingham tablecloths and candles in a bottle plus giant chalkboards with the menu were very much a look back in time to previous incarnations by the owner, flamboyant French chef Pierre Levicky.

Chez Jules is certainly affordable. It’s also comfort food. Take Pam’s starter, French onion soup with cheese croutons.

It’s priced at £1.90 and it was a wonderful, warming starter with temperatures of minus three outside. The heavy concentration of cheese, however, made it difficult to eat.

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My grilled king scallops, Stornoway black pudding, pancetta and garlic butter was disappointing. The fusion of flavours did not work particularly well with the garlic butter tending to dominate, taking away from the subtlety of the scallops.

It was at the top end of the starter price range at £5.55 and we could have plumped for oysters at £1 each or a chicory, walnut and blue cheese salad, vinaigrette at £3.25 or steamed mussels in white wine with onion, garlic and herbs at £4.40.

On to the main course. We were tempted by the slow cook chicken in red wine with bacon mushroom and thyme plus gratin Dauphinois at £16 for two people or a braised pork knuckle, farmhouse bacon, smokes sausage, sauerkraut and potatoes at £17.80.

However, after much pondering, we went our separate ways. Pam plumped for a chargrilled fillet steak. No sauce although it could have been served with a garlic sauce or au poivre. It arrived cooked to medium rare perfection. The chips were also top notch as was the simple lettuce salad coated with a fine dressing. Price: £14.90.

I stuck to seafood. I contemplated a whole grilled fish with aioli at £9.90 and the whole dressed crab with Gruyere, mustard and brandy at £14 but eventually plumped for bouillabaisse for one at £11.90. It was a treat. Salmon and mussles mingled with crab, tomato, red pepper, garlic wine and potatoes. Superb.

Desserts were too tempting to pass up even if we had eaten well. Sadly, prune tart was not available so we decided to try the crepe of the day, particularly when we heard that it came with a rich banana and toffee sauce.

The accompanying ice cream added to the flavour and the sauce was as good as it sounded but we were disappointed in the rather flavourless pancake.

Forget the grease marks on the menu, the crumpled wine list and the crockery which could have been cleaner.

Chez Jules would be ideal in a crowd looking for an affordable meal but don’t look too closely. And, the rose house wine - £10 a bottle – was, how do you say, forgettable.