I have passed Joya many times due its central location, but have never ventured inside. When my sister and mum visited Bath it was only a quick walk from the train station to indulge in some Italian food.

It was Friday evening and I was wary that we had not booked, but we were warmly greeted and led to our table.

The atmosphere seemed to have a romantic touch that evening as we shared the dining room with couples at their candlelit tables. The décor was vibrant but unfortunately didn’t quite achieve a relaxing ambiance.

The service was quick and helpful and after browsing the extensive Italian wine list, we were brought our bottle of refreshing sparkling rose and tucked into some rustic Italian bread with olive oil.

The menu was extensive, from pizza cooked on a traditional stone surface to chicken or steak dishes cooked using a chargrill.

Our starter of tomatoes on bruschetta had a delicious mix of basil and garlic and was served with a salad garnish.

For our main course my sister and mum opted for the linguine with prawns and fennel, which my mum loved but my sister found the fennel too overpowering.

I chose linguine with chicken and pesto in a cream sauce, which was very tasty, but half way through I found the dish was becoming richer and was overpowered by the pesto, forcing me to leave the last quarter. One thing we all agreed on was the generous portions, so despite being tempted by the giant profiteroles a couple was sharing on the next table, we opted out of dessert.

After a lot of talking, while polishing off our bottle of wine, we realised we were the last ones in the restaurant but had not felt any pressure to leave.

The bill came to £62.75.