I lunched in the sunshine with a new friend on the pontoon beside No 1 Folly Bridge Café and Brasserie. So excellent was the meal that six days later I was back with that same friend for dinner, accompanied by Rosemarie and two more pals, one of them the boss of my local pub, The Punter, where our evening had begun with gin and tonics. We traversed the pretty stretch of the Thames that separates the two establishments not by punt, as might have seemed appropriate, but in a craft just as fitting, certainly in its name. This was the Bacchanalia, a beautiful electric-powered boat belonging to Oxford River Cruises which now operates out of No 1 Folly Bridge. I had met the company boss Giles Dobson at my lunch and, knowing of my planned return, he generously offered to transport us in style.

So in the golden light of an August evening we slid smoothly through the sun-dappled water, the silence broken only by our conversation and the pop of the cork from the bottle of prosecco that was lubricating it. Rather than delivering us directly to his mooring, Giles prolonged our fun by taking us under Folly Bridge and out beyond the college boathouses before steering back to No 1 and the fine meal that awaited us there.

Awaiting us, too, was a cheery welcome from manager Eric Tondine and chef Chris Lamb, whom I had also met at lunch. My host Orde Levinson, who owns property at Folly Bridge, had agreed with me that it was refreshing to find in young Chris a chef so free of the egotism that disfigures many of his calling. He even admitted that he still had much to learn, sometimes by trial and error. The drizzle of honey added to the cold soup made with (already sweet) beetroot (£4.75) is a successful instance of this; so, too, is his unlikely pairing of seared scallops — a couple of beauties as served for my dinner starter — with slices of black pudding and white wine sauce (£7.95). Less touched with talent was his rather dull apple tart (£4.50) placed before Tom of The Punter — the only mild disappointment of the evening.

Another soup, a vivid green blend of spinach and watercress (£4.75 ), was judged another hit, with the proviso that it would probably have been even more enjoyable served hot rather than chilled. There were plaudits from our party as well for the tuna tartare (£7.50), attractively presented with black olives, chives and avocado purée on a carpaccio of cucumber; the home-cured gravadlax (£6.25) with marinated beetroot, horseradish cream and celeriac remoulade; and the grilled asparagus (£5.95) with Parma ham, parmesan shavings and a slice of aubergine.

My lunch main course had been the wonderful sea bass salsa (£13.95), so for dinner, in contrast, I opted for the lamb steak (£12.95), a juicy chunk of meat cut through the leg, with Mediterranean vegetables and a mint and caper sauce. Rosemarie had a whacking great bowl of moules marinières (£11.95), prepared in classic Normandy style with white wine and shallots and served in the Belgian way with hand-cut chips.

Yellowfish tuna steak (£12.75) with crushed rocket potatoes, aïoli and grilled asparagus went down well with Lisa, while Tom and Orde both opted for the vegetarian Capricciosa pizza (£8.25), — tomato, mozzarella, olives, mushrooms, red-pepper, aubergine and artichoke, on a lovely thin crispy base — which they rendered non-vegetarian through the addition of salami slices.

Throughout the meal we drank an excellent unoaked Argentinian chardonnay (Tanguero, £14.75). At its close, the appearance of a bottle of the French eau de vie Poire Williams was nicely timed to coincide with the poached Williams pear with ice cream and chocolate sauce (£5.50). Portions of tiramisu (£4.75) and chocolate mousse (£4.25) were also enjoyed.

It should be noted that though I have supplied prices throughout this piece, three courses chosen across the range of the menu can be had for £20. A splendid bargain, I’d say. A fine place.