A question for you. Where's an ideal spot to have lunch on a gloriously sunny Saturday afternoon?

Last weekend Hack decided to take a leisurely drive along the South Shore to Paw Paws. It's a place that your critic has driven past countless times but, for some reason, has never taken time out to stop and step in.

The large open verahdah is certainly inviting ? so much so that we didn't even bother checking the decor inside. Sat in comfy chairs under an enormous umbrella, we had found the perfect spot to have a relaxing lunch.

So, what about the food? The menu at Paw Paws is pretty eclectic, offering everything from soups, salads and sandwiches to pizzas and more substantial plates of pasta, fishcakes and steak. Something for everybody then, which Hack has to admit, makes one feel a bit nervous. Would the kitchen be spreading itself a bit too thin?

Starving, I kicked off with a bowl of French onion soup with a bowl of seafood linguini to follow. My companions opted for the chicken curry (oddly paired with couscous instead of rice) and a pepperoni pizza, without pepperoni.

The soup wasn't half bad, and it was good to see bay leaf and fresh thyme floating in the tasty broth. But why was the giant crouton covered in Mozzarella cheese rather than something like Gruyere? Hardly very French. Was this a case of the kitchen skimping on ingredients just to cut down on overheads, without any regard for the customer? Hack suspects so.

Onto the mains. The pizza looked pretty promising ? a biscuit-thin crust covered in tomato sauce and smothered in a mountain of more Mozzarella. Unfortunately the base was surprisingly doughy and, well, inedible. Low marks again I'm afraid.

My seafood linguini was just about satisfactory, with shrimp and chunks of fish nestling in amongst the pasta. But Hack was only able to detect four rings of calamari on the plate while the accompanying lobster cream sauce tasted as if it had never so much as been introduced to a crustacean in its life. All in all, a bit bland.

Which was also the surprise verdict on the curry ? not something you expect from such a dish. Sure, some curries can be subtle in their use of spices but tasteless is not usually the word on the tip of your tongue when you're tucking into a vindaloo. Not only was it not well spiced, it also arrived at table lukewarm. Again, not something you want in a curry dish. Still, at least the accompanying poppadams were deep fried rather than the now more fashionably grilled.

Service was generally pretty good and our wait staff did a good job in making us feel welcome when we arrived and comfortable while we were there.

Nevertheless, we did have to ask for some chutney for the curry when it should have been provided automatically (perhaps they didn't appreciate just how bland it was) while I always find eating pasta easier with a fork and spoon rather than a knife. No knife spoon was offered.

These might seem like minor grumbles and I normally wouldn't raise them. Normally however I don't expect the bill for such mediocre fare to come in at nearly $80 ? without grats. That's $80 for a bowl of soup, a pizza and two pretty boring and not very generous main courses, with a few sodas thrown in. It's the first time in quite a while that Hack was shocked by the bill.

On a gorgeous sunny day Paw Paws is the perfect location to lay back with a glass of cold beer and watch the world drift by. But Hack suggests that next time you pop in, make sure that you've had lunch somewhere else beforehand.