[weetoon, 10.03.2008] Howies has a style all it's own and sticks to it. It has done "well" with its "well-stocked bars" and its "café-style tables". The menus comprise both "standard" and "novel" food. The St Andrews Howies has a similar formula, but with a "bar/diner feel", which is seen particularly in the "nightclub-style lounging area" which has "sweeping bank of long, contemporary sofas".

Everything is pretty much "no-frills" here, from the napkins ("paper") and the tables ("bare") to the "down-to-earth" menu. Starters range from the "familiar" to the "more interesting" but disappointingly "insipid". The main course, on the other hand was "well turned out" for one dish, and "satisfying" for another. The sweet course, their 'infamous' banoffee pie was indeed "desperately sweet", and the other choices were "the usual suspects". The author's conclusion was that the restaurant was "keenly-priced" and offered "rapid-fire" service but was not "challenging", neither was it "truly delighting". The "cool, contemporary and classy" decor was a positive point, whilst "staff drinking at the bar" definitely was not.