The barking dog is one of my standbys for a place to eat when I'm out of ideas. It has a cool atmosphere and yummy, fairly straightforward meals. some of my faves are the club sandwich and the breakfast menu. Good hangover food! The restaurant has a nice outdoor area and a good selection of beers and wines. The bar is a nice place to go for Friday night drinks, or pre drinks before clubbing. It can get a bit crowded though, and the crowd can be a bit "popped collar", If you get my drift. Overall its a good choice if you want somewhere a step above a pub meal, but still casual and reasonably priced. I have been here for family events, with work friends, or for drinks with mates, and never had any bad experiences.
Had lunch there on a Monday, restaurant was about 20% full. Waited nearly 50 minutes for a club sandwich! Wait-staff said they "had others to serve", and that my daughter's steak sandwich (menu said scotch fillet, but rump was served) "needed to be cooked."!
Food was ordinary, staff inattentive and more interested in talking than working, and food badly overpriced.
Pakington Street has many, many places that offer better food, service, and prices than this place.