Just when it looked like the flood of restaurants closing in Bristol had been stemmed, bang goes another one.

And not just any old restaurant, either. Howards had been one of the city's most popular dining venues since original owner Chris Howard opened it in 1976.

The restaurant scene in Bristol has changed a lot in those past 33 years and at the time, there was nowhere near the choice there is now.

Howard's may have been tucked away by the Cumberland Basin, but it drew people from all over the region for its up-market bistro food.

It was one of those places for special occasions and romantic dinners.

If you got the right table, you even got a great view of the Clifton Suspension Bridge.

Along with places like Jameson's, Michael's, Harveys and Bistro 21, not to mention Keith Floyd's restaurants, Howard's was part of a new wave of restaurants that helped to put Bristol on the culinary map.

A change of ownership five years ago marked the end of an era at Howard's and although it remained popular, it seemed to lose its identity and customers started to drift away, perhaps preferring to eat in some of the new Harbourside and Cabot Circus eateries instead of making the extra journey to Hotwells.

Whatever the reasons for its closure, the fact remains that another significant Bristol restaurant has served its last meal and it will be missed.

MARK TAYLOR