IT was that time of year again. The time when my husband bends over backwards to take my mind off the fact that I am another year older but, alas, no wiser.

And this time we chose Le Mont. At 35 metres above ground level, the views from the restaurant are absolutely stunning - Manchester's night-time skyline is pretty impressive - and, with only 17 or so tables (all positioned right next to the floor-to-ceiling windows), the service is second to none.

There are two levels to Le Mont, non-smoking on level five and smoking on level six, and each floor has a small lounge area where you can enjoy a drink while looking at the menu - which incidentally is in French (but, thankfully with English descriptions underneath).

Hors d'ouvres on offer include Legumes a la Nicoise (tuna, quail egg, marinated peppers, mushroom, artichokes and Tourangelle beans) £8.75 and Terrine de foie gras £9.75. I chose the delicious asparagus mousse (£9.25) which came with hot poached quail egg, truffled hollandaise, asparagus crudite salad and parmesan croutons, while my husband went for the warm Rosary goats' cheese with walnut and parsley gratin and vinaigrette dressed Waldorf salad (£8.95)

Both dishes were gorgeous and my asparagus mousse was light, creamy and melted in the mouth. We were offered complimentary home-baked bread rolls, and we both selected the sun-dried tomato ones which were out of this world.

We could have gone for Gratinee Normande (£5.50) a velvet cream, white onion and cider soup, gratinee with Gruyere cheese croutons or fresh ravioli of salmon and crab, set on cucumber tagliatelle and tomato concasse (£9.50).

The main courses are equally impressive with poached fillet of brill with herb mousseline and saffron sauce (£21.50), roasted pigeon with apple, celeriac and potato rosti (£22.95) crispy fried vegetables, aubergine puree, pilaf rice and ginger cream vegetables (£14.25) or nut of sirloin set with celeriac puree and Madeira sauce (£23.50) - Le Mont is proud of its specialist meat menu and its specific breeds are from Cumbria and the Trough of Bowland.

Being a fish lover I decided on the grilled wild seabass fillet (£19.95) which came with a parsley and crab potato cake and was drizzled with the most delicious, creamy lemon butter sauce. Don't be fooled by the apparently small portions here. The dishes are presented beautifully and seem to be on the small side - but they are not.

No matter how gorgeous my fish was - and it was - I simply couldn't finish it (all those bread rolls you see). I did make a stirling effort but was beaten at the last few mouthfuls.

My husband had recently started eating meat again after being vegetarian for 10 years and, my, how he has embraced his return to being carnivore.

To this end he perused the meat section of the menu with gusto, finally deciding on the grilled T-bone steak with shallot and cassis butter, green beans and big chips (£29.95). I don't eat meat so I had to take his word when he said it was "absolutely delicious" - I'm convinced he has taken to eating meat so he no longer has to endure me trying his dishes whenever we eat out.

But I wouldn't have been able to sample it anyway because he demolished the lot.

Because he was chauffeur for the evening, we decided on a half bottle of wine for me and the Australian Shiraz (£13.95) I chose was just as described - full and fruity. We also had a bottle of sparkling mineral water at the table (£3.95).

My husband was way too full for dessert, but not me and I decided on the cheese and biscuits (£7.95). Crispy home-made biscuits sat aside a selection of cheeses - Roquefort, Whitehaven, Wensleydale, Lincolnshire Poacher and Soumaintrain and, although I could only manage a few bites of each, my favourite was the smooth, soft Whitehaven.

Had I felt the urge for something sweet I could have chosen poached peach set in vanilla syrup jelly or gingerbread rhubarb and peppered strawberries or even roast banana set on a coffee cream eclair with bitter chocolate sauce and white chocolate and rum sorbet (come to think of it, why on earth didn't I choose that one?) All desserts are £5.95.

Our bill came to £101.85 (an optional 10 per cent service charge, which we happily paid, was included) and that included a couple of drinks in the bar before dinner.

Le Mont has had mixed reviews among restaurant critics, but I found the food delicious and the staff polite and extremely efficient and knowledgeable.

Le Mont at Urbis, Levels 5 & 6, Cathedral Gardens, Manchester M4 3BG

Tel: 0161 605 8283

Opening times: Lunch, Monday to Friday noon - 2.30pm. Dinner, Monday to Saturday 7pm - 10.30pm

Star Rating ****