No Expert …but I know what I like – Food Blog, Restaurant reviews
Reviews, Guides & Maps
Made a pit stop at Peyton & Byrne in St Pancras Station. I just do not get it. What is the point of building up a brand as something a bit special, then cutting corners. Mass market coffee shops like Starbucks and Cafe Neros for example do not resort to using paper cups and plastic crockery for non take away customers, so why somewhere more bespoke like Peyton & Byrne has to, is beyond me. Invest in a dish washer or two please.
Marks out of 10
Food 4
Service 3
Ambience 3
The 5th View @ Waterstones in Piccadilly is a real find, an oasis in the heart of the West End. It has however now “been found” by a lot of people, and has grown to handle its success. It now takes up the entire top floor. The expansion is extensive, as well as a larger bar area and more seating, there is now an attractive Champagne and Seafood Bar, which can be booked for private functions. To find somewhere stylish and quirky that delivers good quality food and top notch cocktails in a book store is unusual to say the least.
The expansion also extends to the menu in the main bar and food area, which now includes a range of breakfast options.
Plus I do love their carrot cake, especially when served with one of their lovely cocktails, a real indulgence.
The Fig & Olive in Islington is a busy venue with a nice friendly buzz. The cakes displayed by the door (which are also available as take away), look stunning, and if the bakewell tart I had was anything to go by, tasted good too.
This is not just a venue for Coffee and Cakes though. They also have a varied menu covering everything from English Breakfasts to Sunday Roast, and a selection of wines and cocktails.
Food 5
Service 4.5
Ambience 5
We tried the Champagne Afternoon Tea at St Pancras Grand making use of the same half price offer we had used earlier at The Portrait (Normal Price £25.00 per person, with the deal £12.50). Off the two venues The Portrait easily won, with its buzzy atmosphere and friendly service. At the St Pancreas Grand, the room is certainly much grander. However the place was rather lacking in atmosphere and we had no qualms about not paying the discretionary service charge. Main complaints (apart from how dull The Afternoon Tea was) are:-
1. No one to greet us at the door.
2. Room was deserted of waiting staff on more than one occasion.
3. Very curt, disinterested waiter.
4. Getting a Tea Strainer took about 30 minutes and two attempts.
5. No offer of a top up on the tea (although the deal specifically mentioned unlimited tea), and we had 2 teapots between 3 people, so not exactly a fair distribution.
With service like this, if you were planning to catch a train…..you’d miss it!
Marks out of 10
Food 3
Service 2
Ambience 4
We have been to the Portrait Restaurant, in the National Portrait Gallery quite a few times now (for breakfast, brunch and lunch). It is on the top floor of the Gallery on the left hand side, going up the main escalator and taking the lift to the 3rd floor will get you there.
The place is normally busy and buzzing, so best to book. It also has a good view of Nelson’s Column.
We went for afternoon tea, taking up a special January deal of £12.50 per person for a Champagne Tea. A Bargain!
We had been planning to do a post on Age & Sons for a while. When it opened last year it was seen as a place that could put Ramsgate firmly on the Restaurant circuit. The chef is Toby Leigh formally of Kensington Place and gastro pubs The Anchor & Hope and Heston Blumenthal’s Hinds Head.
Age & Sons is actually more than just a restaurant. It is spread over 3 floors, the top floor is the main restaurant, the ground floor is a more casual dining area (laid out a bit like a french kitchen) and the basement houses a cosy rather stylish cocktail bar. It is not the easiest place to find. We arrived on an off season Saturday night to a fully booked restaurant whose clientele consisted of well heeled locals, out of towners, people from the yacht club and foodies like us. I particularly like this places eccentricities – the eclectic range of “Granny” style side plates, the squeaky cheese trolley. It is definitely not one of these manufactured venues with catalogue decor, it has it’s own style.
I started with sweetbreads and damsons. While full of damson flavour it did religate the sweetbread to merely a texture rather than a taste. For main course I went for Kentish lamb and my companion went for the pork (as far removed from the pork I had in Harveys earlier that day, as it is possible to get). The portion sizes were huge so this was more comfort/hearty food than any pretension of fine dining.
What is also refreshing is that in such a busy place the service was professional and friendly. Taking the time for example to enquire how we enjoyed some of the more unusual cheeses in our cheese course. On that front we particularly enjoyed the whiskey flavoured variety from Snowdonia.
On leaving we noticed just how buzzing the downstairs was. This really made for a great ambience and one that most restaurants would kill for.
Marks out of 10 – October 2009
Food 5.5
Service 6.5
Ambience 7
UPDATE : July 2010, Age & Sons now have a much larger outdoor space for drinks and food, it’s a good spot to relax in the sunshine. It even does tea and cakes (not a big selection – they only had muffins on our visit, but they were actually rather good, especially the marmalade and ginger one). They were also selling jugs of Pimms and Ginger Beer, which makes for a nice change from the normal Pimms and Lemonade option.
UPDATE : August 2011
We had a late lunch out in the lovely courtyard. Age & Sons has really upped its game. My Mushroom and Ricotta Ravioli was particularly good.
Marks out of 10 – August 2011
Food 5.9
Service 6.5
Ambience 7
UPDATE : August 2014
The Restaurant is now closed.