With the superb Brasserie, the hotel Aviator by TAG in Farnborough could have been forgiven for resting on its laurels a little. Having experienced the luxe charms of that restaurant earlier in the year, the golden-era Hollywood ambience and dazzling cooking from Head Chef Adam Fargin combine to easily beat off most other restaurants in the area. But life isn?t all about precision cooking and designer dining.

Enter One Eleven, Aviator?s relaunched love letter to the American sports bar and diner. Where the Brasserie is all elegant, gleaming curves and silk chocolate tones, One Eleven offers a neon-industrial playroom perfect for an informal catch-up with friends or to watch the game over a pint and a hotdog. Costello to the Brasserie?s Abbot, having this odd couple together under one roof makes a perfect, pleasing kind of sense.

I went for Jambalaya, lured by fond memories of the real thing I?d experienced on a road trip through the American Deep South a few years back. That dish then was an intoxicating, fragrant casserole of prawns, chicken and vegetable tumbled in a piquant sauce that sang with a swampy mojo you could find nowhere else. Happily, the Jambalaya served by One Eleven recreated it almost perfectly, with a sauce that was all kinds of fiery, fruity and smoky richness and, for me, a big hit of euphoric recall. Bulked up with peppery sausages and sticky rice, it?s One Eleven?s dish that I will probably forever taste in my recollections of that distant Southern adventure.

My friend had opted for the red, white and blooming tasty option of One Eleven?s all-in take on the American hot dog. The rudely, brilliantly named Pig Dog offered a fat sausage in a squishy, juice-soaking brioche bun crowned with pulled pork given a little crispy frazzle at the edges, all drizzled in BBQ sauce. Had I not been in the throes of a deeply nostalgic food glaze thanks to the Jambalaya, I don?t think I could have been held responsible for my food envy at that moment.