Ask

Not bad. The service started off well but the second round of drinks was slow. Food was good — particularly the garlic bread speciale (and the portion size was bigger than expected). I had the Christmas special pizza as a main, with 12 toppings (and extra torn buffalo mozzarella). I was concerned that there might be too much going on with all the different toppings but they complemented each other nicely. I would done here again.

I know many people don’t like chain restaurants. Yes Ask is a chain. A delicious, fresh, affordable, fast service chain. I’ve seen quite a few of these places around Birmingham. My partner in crime had a few reward vouchers to redeem that were good for quite a few chains around Brum. But I nominated Ask.
We visited a large and easily accessible location on Hagley Road. It had a nice (and free) car park. As we walked toward the entrance I noticed a few picnic benches out front that would be lovely to sit out on a warm summers eve. Too bad summer is already over.
The dining area was a good size. We had no trouble getting seated. A server quickly greeted us and took our drink order. I always appreciate prompt service like that. The menu had a good variety of pizzas, pasta, and seafood. We decided to go for the antipasto board to share, a lobster prawn pasta dish for myself, and a fancy chicken pizza for my companion.
The cocktail menu was on the smaller size, but that didn’t stop me from trying it! I had the delicious Italian Twinkle which was a refreshing mix of Prosecco, elderflower, vodka and lemon. And since I’m a glutton for these fruity drinks I had another round. This time Moscato D’Asti with raspberries. Both were wonderful, sweet, and fruity.
The antipasto starter was alright. It was a mixture of a few things. Not my ideal choice, but nice to try. The rosemary and sea salt bread that came with it was lovely. My main was excellent. There were large chunks of seafood in it. The pasta tasted very fresh. The croutons were a bit odd because they seemed a bit soggy. Overall a really great choice. I would definitely choose it again! I actually liked it so much I wanted seconds!
Since there’s no unlimited pasta at Ask, I had to get a dessert to fill me ;) I chose the grande gelato. It wasn’t that pretty to look at, but what it lacked in looks it made up for in taste. It was a couple scoops of creamy vanilla gelato mixed with fresh berries, cream, and pieces of meringue. It reminded me of an of Eaton Mess, a better version though.
I had a great experience at Ask. Nothing but great food and friendly service. It wouldn’t take much to persuade me to return again.

Great food. Central location easily accessible on Hagley. Ample parking behind which is a plus off Hagley Road. Ok, so the food was absolutely excellent. However we were let down by being seated at a table that was clearly and visibly grubby and dirty without any effort to clean it before seating us.

I don’t like chain restaurants. I’m just gonna put my colours to the mast right there. Went here on 1^st October for a nice spot of dinner after a long day and to tell you the truth, I was pleasantly surprised. Not only where we given a seat out of the way of the main hustle and bustle, the menu wasn’t full of your typical Italian microwaved-​chain nonsense that you get at its competitors. What the menu has is well thought out, PROPER Italian dishes.
I ordered the calamari, followed by a sausage and truffle pasta which was simply scrumptious and the thing I enjoyed the most, was the fact that you could tell it was fresh.
Not the first time I’ve been, it’s one of those places you don’t go too very often, but when you do it’s a nice familiarity :)

I relish the rich flavours and hearty ingredients of Italian food but so many restaurants tend to offer an Americanised version of it! If you’re like me and you like traditional Italian cuisine with all the herbs and spices from the Mediterranean palette, just Ask!
Although I’m a passionate meat-​eater, there are few restaurants that can persuade me to order a vegetarian dish. At Ask, the Portobello mushrooms and Linguine Alla Genovese are divine!
If you’re inclined to go for healthier options (which I most certainly am not!) then the menu details all the main dishes and desserts that are under 650 and 350 calories respectively! I didn’t think gelati ice-​cream could fall under that threshold but turns out you could dig into devilish food minus the guilt!
Ask is a scrumptious restaurant with delicious settings and a finger-​licking menu that won’t break your bank balance!

I was a bit dubious about visiting this restaurant, but as it was a hen do I didn’t have a lot of choice in the matter so I smiled sweetly and got on with it.
And — shockingly — I had a great time! I opted for their Risotto Verde — and they happily made it without cheese for me, and it was delicious. Perfect to go with a crisp white wine — though I have no idea what wine we had as someone else ordered it, and my memory for names is shocking. We had a really long table that easily accomodated all 20 of us, and even though it meant I could only speak to those who were right next to me, it was still absolutely fine as we then went out drinking afterwards.
Well done Ask for offering an affordable and non-​hideous option for a hen-​do meal!

The service was okayish but must have waited 20 mins for the bill. I love their Chefs Salad, in fact all the food is nice & reasonably priced.

A disgrace to the Ask name. Very poor service by a bossy, brassy woman in charge of the dining room and an over efficient waitress. I was rushed through my meal and felt like i was an intruder. It was early evening and the restaurant was quiet, there was no need to hurry my meal…
The menu was standard Ask fare, but very uninspired presentation. The warm spinach and mushroom dip was an abomination, runny and tasteless.
A very disappointing meal at a very unfriendly restaurant.

Food fine, but nothing special. We ate spring vegetable risotto and an oven baked aubergine dish plus two different side salads. I know it’s cheap but grana padano cheese really is no substitute for parmesan and the rocket salad suffered because of it. Restaurant was cold too. Service was very friendly though.
More local food reviews plus pictures at

Ask is a great and very reasonably priced restaurant that is
often overlooked. the take away pizzas are phenomenal as well!
the service is always good and the atmosphere is great for any visitor.

If you’re looking for a good meal before going out on the tiles or even to the cinema, this is a genuinely decent place to go. The times I’ve been there the food has been lovely, especially the pizzas, the service has been friendly and we’ve had a very enjoyable night, the prices aren’t too bad either, little tip, best seats are round the outside, don’t like being surrounded when I eat ya see! Weird I know! Worth a visit early evening, thumbs up