It must be said that having a fine dining restaurant at the heart of the Rhondda might be a step away from the norm, but it's doesn't mean it's out of place or unappreciated.
Colliery 19 is found at the centre of the Rhondda Fawr at Llwynypia's Coleg Y Cymoedd and is a student-run restaurant with a stunning menu that, at a pinch under £15 for three courses, was screaming to be sampled.
The trip up to the campus was definitely worth it, and if you live nearby and love great food, it's even more worth it. Mind you, I think a few locals already know this as at their Thursday lunchtime sitting it was more or less full.
Read more : New mining-themed restaurant in Rhondda where your meal is cooked by chefs of the future
With menu changes around every fortnight, you'll have a little over a week to try the dishes we sampled before the students embark on new culinary adventures.
I love that after a while off, students are able to get their hands onto practical cooking and meeting and greeting the public through venues like Colliery 19 once more and to watch them be taken through their paces via the kitchen viewing window and out front as the servers, was really heartwarming - such professional and social skills are priceless.
The current menu featured dishes like smoked mackerel veloute, game terrine, scallops and arancini. These were followed by a healthy choice of mains including sous vide fillet of pork, hake, duck and cannelloni. It really was hard to narrow it down but we went for the sauté scallops and mushroom arancini. I mustn't forget that we were served freshly made leek and cheese bread with a Djion whipped butter, too.
The fresh bread was gorgeous. Served warm, it was bouncy and light and while not overpowering with the flavours they were in focus, the butter was like air, too.
Presentation of the scallop, which came with vanilla cauliflower pureé and honey-lime dressing, was fantastic as, I should add, was the taste.
The attractive blackened seared top and bottom belied a marvellous smooth interior of the scallop, while the pureé and dressing provided a gently sweet and tart mouthful. Gorgeous, could have eaten at least one more!
Two arancini came with lentil vegetable compote and a basil pesto dressing. The consistency of the arancini was great, crisp on the outside and the rice inside was firm but soft - arancini can often be either too dry or too sloppy, these were neither - but they just needed more mushrooms to make them a winner, a little bland sadly. But, the compote and dressing were great flavours and added that extra tasty boost to the second starter.
Onto the mains. While I chose the roast fillet of hake with cherry tomatoes, olive and celeriac pureé and tempura samphire my friend opted for the pot roast duck breast. This came with vegetable royale, mini duck leg samosa and hoisin sauce. Both came with a serving of al dente veggies and roasted veggies, the latter were perfectly done.
My hake was exactly what I needed, it was a decent-sized piece of substantially textured fish, and cooked beautifully. I'm a big fan of good quality fish speaking for itself, with no fuss and this did that. The accompaniments were fresh, tasty and yet didn't overwhelm the main star on the plate.
The duck was the star of the savoury show, mind. The duck breast was fantastically cooked, tasted amazing and you could cut through it like butter. Really good. The accompanying samosa and veggie element - like a little vegetable souffle - were lovely sides to flesh out the plate, but the main bit of meat was 10/10.
A really well-thought-out dish, great flavours and brilliantly cooked.
We definitely had room for dessert and opted for the tart au citron and the pear and fennel mousse.
The former had marscarpone ice cream, basil macaroon, lemon gel and a lemon and thyme meringue. A solid dessert with a tart lemon flavour complimented by the charred meringue and the coconutty macaroon - all the elements bound nicely to make it more than just your average lemon tart.
I really liked my dessert. The effort to make both desserts look great paid off.
The mousse was encased in a mint green coloured shell and around the top a crown of Japanoise sponge dotted with jewel-esque pear, blackberry, honeycomb and the schnapps gel. I would have loved it to taste slightly more of pear and fennel, but other than that it was an accomplished, delicate dessert the students should be proud of.
Other elements of our dining experience were very enjoyable, too. I've been to a couple of these student training restaurants and I can safely say Colliery 19 has a chilled vibe, is aesthetically pleasing as if you were in a simple, chic restaurant and the, slightly nervous but ultimately efficient serving staff made for a lovely experience.
The crockery, cutlery and glassware were also brilliantly chosen to match that of a professional bistro and local, mining themed artwork adorned the back wall.
I think what you get inside Colliery 19's building completely would turn on its head any impression you'd formed from seeing just the outside - a pretty perfunctory educational unit. And as well as having a pretty good bargain of a three-course meal (£14.95), you'll also be contributing to the future of Wales' wannabe chefs and hospitality workers, which can only be a good thing.
Details: Colliery 19, Coleg Y Cymoedd, Rhondda Campus, Llwynypia CF40 2TQ. Book at www.facebook.com/Colliery19
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