I've been back from my lunch break for a while now, but I still feel stuffed. Yes, for once I got food.

It was around 11. I was flicking through my to-do list and one of the pieces I had was about a local charity having an event at their allotment on Windle Hall Drive. I remembered that Jason was looking for a suitable work placement that he could do while on his horticulture course and realised that he could volunteer at some of the various charity-maintained allotments about town.

I texted him with the suggestion, he said it was worth considering (I'm not sure if it's suitable for his course but you never know) and then he invited me to the Moonlight Grill, where his mum and stepdad were going for lunch. It's a new place on North Road, having opened about three months ago in what used to be a gay bar.

'Why not?' I thought. I was feeling peckish and I'd missed him yesterday - it would be nice to see him again, even if it was only for an hour.

We agreed to meet at noon. It seemed like as soon as he showed up, the day became gloriously warm. The air had been mild, almost chilly as I waited in Hardshaw Street. I spotted him approaching and he tried to hide behind the solicitors' place - it's this running joke we have; when we meet up I always see him coming from the window near my desk, so he's trying stealthy approaches now - and as soon as we met up the sun came out, deliriously hot.

So we met outside the Star office at noon, nipped briefly to Lloyds so I could withdraw money for lunch and my new bus pass tomorrow, and headed for North Road. The roundabout by the YMCA building was nightmarish as usual but we just about survived, and then found the Moonlight Grill - a restaurant with a charming blue and black façade on the corner by the church.

When we arrived, Maria and Tom had yet to show up. A large table had been taken by a party of about eighteen ladies celebrating a birthday, but apart from that the place was empty. We found a table for four, and when our own group was complete, we ordered. This was at about half twelve.

I ordered tomato soup with cheese and onion sandwiches, followed by fish and chips, followed by chocolate fudge cake with cream. It cost a tenner because I was having essentially two meals and a dessert, but by god you get your money's worth there!

The soup came in a huge bowl with a portion literally big enough for two people. The soup was gorgeous and spiced, piping hot with succulent vegetable pulp. The sandwiches? Two soft white barms cut in half, buttered thickly, with mature cheddar and raw red onions.

The fish was probably a whale, it was that big, and the chips - blimey, I've never had chips so good. They were home-made, firm and moist on the inside but crispy out and cut thick. I was stuffed at the end of these - I nearly cancelled my dessert order. But I'm glad I didn't because as soon as I clapped eyes on that fudge cake I was starving all over again. It was moist and rich... my only regret was there wasn't more!

I got back into work at half one. Oops. It's my own fault for going and ordering so much but it was worth it. The staff there were fantastic, as well - not like a lot of restaurants where they're just robots getting your food for you, or Wetherspoons where they're also programmed to be nice and have a selection of polite key phrases to rattle out when they deliver your food. We actually bantered a bit and they felt a lot warmer, more human, than most restaurant staff. We were treated brilliantly.

So the food was wonderful, the service was great... I'm definitely going to go there again!

The weather was still beautiful when we emerged, and Jason walked me back to work. It was lovely being with him, even if it wasn't for long. I'm really looking forward to having him over on Friday now, though I'll have to tidy my room up again!