Elizabeth Mackley soaks up the atmosphere – and the sounds of the Geoff Mason Quartet – at Baker Street Baker Street Wood Street, Old Town, Swindon SN1 4AB.

9.30pm and Friday to Sunday, 12pm till 6pm.

Tel: 01793 978011. www.ilovebakerstreet.com

It’s always been an ambition of mine to wind up in the dark corner of a smoky exotic bar, sipping something short along to the soothing sounds of a modern equivalent to Miles Davis.

Take away the smoke and make the exotic somewhere in Swindon’s Old Town and you’ve got Baker Street, which every Tuesday opens its doors to jazz fans who come from all over town for a sample of the live music and cocktails.

Baker Street, with its old-world-meets-modern-decor-pub feel is one of those casual places perfect for meeting with friends and relaxing after a long day’s work, with a menu perfectly matched for hungry souls on meagre budgets.

The five of us sauntered in while it was still fairly quiet, settling ourselves in a booth by a window, and consulted the menu – a laminated piece of A4 left neatly on the table.

The menu isn’t huge, and revolves mainly around different sorts of burger and meat meals, so it’s not ideal for vegetarians and vegans.

But if you’re looking for simple, home made pub grub this is one of the places to check out.

Options for starters, which range from £3.45 to £4.45, include breaded mushrooms, chicken wings and nachos. Particularly hungry ones or sharers can order sharing platters piled with salami, chorizo, parma ham, olives, hummus, pickled vegetables, sun-blushed tomatoes and warm rustic bread, or chicken wings, breaded mushrooms, onion rings and mozzarella sticks with garlic mayo, BBQ sauce and sweet chilli dip for a finger-licking treat.

We opted to head straight for the mains, which offers a more varied choice of wares, ranging in price from £5.95 to just under £10. I ordered a steak and chips while my friends chose gammon, eggs and chips or opted for a burger.

Ordering my steak rare, I waited, mouth watering, for the meal to arrive as we settled down to the smooth sounds from the double bass and trombone of the Geoff Mason Quartet. It was brought out by the very friendly waitress-cum-barmaid, who was more than happy to keep us well-watered with drinks from the bar.

The food came out, not too hot and not too cold, and my steak had been left beautifully (maybe a little too) pink in the middle, garnished with a circlet of chips and salad.

Good-looking as it was, I would have benefited from a steak knife, and I did find it to be a little cold in the middle.

My friends told me that while the burgers were tasty they did look like they were bought from a shop and not homemade, but the gammon, egg and chips that came with it was very tasty.

To finish off the meal we chose to swap a dessert for a sweet cocktail, which cost around £6 or £7 depending what tickles your fancy.

All in all, we had a wonderful evening.

The food could have done with some minor improvements but the ambience, entertainment, friendly staff and the good prices mean Baker Street is a place I’ll be relaxing in for many more Tuesdays to come.