from Cambridge to visit it and were never disappointed.

An idiosyncratically shaped restaurant, Maison Bleue consists of two rooms linked from front to back by a corridor, with the kitchen and business area cleverly squeezed into the middle of the passage. The two rooms are bizarrely different. The front resembles a smart restaurant and the back has all these Euro-chic stylings such as a 'statement' cream leather step or banquette stretching around two walls, and several silver ornaments on the walls. Thankfully the burgeoning style argument we were having was interrupted by the arrival of the menu and wine list.

Surprisingly for a fish restaurant there is plenty for carnivores as well as an intriguing mixture of unconventional and classical fish dishes. The three course 'prix fixe' seemed good value with starters like cassolette of mushrooms and crayfish, terrine of halibut and lobster. Main courses featured a simple pan fried salmon, halibut and an interesting swordfish with stilton. Didn't we say it was unconventional! The surprising amount of meat also on offer included slow cooked knuckle of pork with lentils (tempting) and the ubiquitous chicken dish (which always seems to be corn fed).

We opted to really see what this place could do and we were amply rewarded. Spying the cheese board on the way in we decided to leave plenty of room for the cheeses later on. Hence one of us chose scallops with watercress and buttered pumpkin sauce followed by Dover Sole meuniere. The other, oysters followed by skate with beurre blanc sauce. The oysters provided a cabaret for the whole room and were outstanding. The scallops were good though slightly overdone and the sauce was arrestingly green but tasted fabulous.

The main course followed with the right interval and was jointly declared outstanding with much 'ooing and ummming'. Though we realised that capers are a classical meuniere additive (i.e. dipped in flour before cooking) we were surprised that their flavour overpowered a beautiful piece of fresh fish. Nonetheless we enjoyed it.

From the wine list we chose a medium priced Rully though we spent a long time looking at a very good list which mixed value with some very interesting French wines clearly chosen with fish in mind. There were a good selection of house wines by glass, carafe and bottle. Outside the house wine selection prices ranged from the reasonable for a decent Macon upwards and include Puilly fume and Fuisse, Sancerre, a Premier Cru Rully and the usual New World incumbents.

Resisting the urge for another half a dozen oysters we moved, by way of crème brulee, to the main event: the cheeseboard. Often considered the barometer of a good restaurant, the brulee was spectacular. The cheeses however were stupendous. We asked to taste them all and were politely accommodated.

Pascale and Karinne Carnivet have produced a high class and unconventional French restaurant at Maison Bleue with exactly the right level of service. We can't wait to go back for more cheese!