POSING palaces are springing up all over York and this glass-fronted designer bar in the city centre is the newest kid on the block. The Ha!Ha! Bar and Canteen opened in New Street a few weeks ago, hot on the heels of the Pitcher & Piano, Kites Wine Bar and the Slug and Lettuce.

Together they've brought a dash of glamour to the city centre, giving us a good reason to dress up for a night on the town - no bad thing in my book.

Increasingly we live in an age where style counts for more than substance, so it was with great interest that I accepted my assignment to road test Ha!Ha!'s menu.

I'd been in the bar before for a late night coffee and liked its look. It has big comfy leather sofas in the window area with lots of tables stretching back to the kitchen at the rear of the venue.

Decor is very in vogue: lots of wood flooring, tan leather and stainless steel.

Reassuringly though, in trying to be fashionable, it isn't threatening, and it's certainly not pretentious.

It's a perfect spot for a long, lazy brunch, or for a leisurely lunch with some good friends, where you can catch up on the gossip, read the daily papers and people watch.

Oh, and you can have some very nice food too.

We went for lunch, mid-week. It was about half full and the waiter - Neil - struck just the right balance in looking after us.

After giving us plenty of time to study the menus (there's one for brunch, one for puddings, sweets and coffees and one for 'proper food') - we ordered two soda and limes and picked a main course.

There was a fair selection: from the humble bacon buttie at £3 to bruschetta with tomatoes, mozzarella and basil at £4.50 and more substantial dishes like chargrilled rib eye with chips, roasted garlic and shallots at £10.

Vegetarians are well catered for too, almost half the menu is meat free.

My dining partner Nick chose Romesco Roasted Chicken Breast on a Salad with Crispy Roasted New Potatoes at £7.50. I went for Chargrilled Grouper with Wilted Spring Vegetables, £8, after Neil helpfully informed me grouper was "a bit like monkfish but tasted like chicken".

We also ordered chips to share - and I was glad we'd picked the thin rather than fat variety as they came with a divine mustard mayo which was a highlight of the meal.

Which isn't to denigrate our lunch. And I'm sure Ha!Ha! will be delighted that its condiments pleased so much as it actually sells most of them to punters as a gimmicky sideline.

Incidentally, Neil told me, the mustard mayo is made from adding Ha!Ha!'s Yellow Devil Sauce, on sale at £2, to bog-standard mayonnaise.

My grouper did indeed taste like chicken, and very nice it was too: perfectly chargrilled on the outside, and fall-away delicious inside. The spring veggies were another hit: baby carrots, asparagus, French greens and corn in light soy sauce. It was very simple, allowing the subtle flavours to speak for themselves.

Nick's meal came served in a huge bowl: a wonderful-looking salad, full of green leaves, pepper slithers and chunks of tomato crowned with a big hunk of chicken.

Nick was disappointed with the poultry, finding it a bit dry, although the salad was fresh and filling, and perfectly dressed in a sweet, light sauce.

For pudding, we shared chocolate brownies with 'very vanilla ice cream', for £3.50. The three small squares of brownies were warm and melt-in-the-mouth delicious, with a thin layer of chocolate sauce oozing out as you cut into them. The ice cream was very yellow, in a Cornish kind of way, and sensationally creamy. A winning dessert.

We finished with two caf lattes, which drew our only real gripe. They were served in tall glasses with no handles and when they cooled down enough for us to drink them, we found the coffee too bitter.

Like other fashionable outlets, Ha!Ha! veers towards the pricey end of the market - our bill came to £26.60 - but having dined at the Slug and Lettuce and the Pitcher and Piano, Ha!Ha! is the best of the three. And that's no joke.

Ha!Ha! Bar & Canteen, New Street, York. Tel: 01904 655868