Hawksmoor – Best of British

  1. The first rule of Hawksmoor is make sure you are really hungry!
  2. The second rule of Hawksmoor is make sure you are really, really hungry!!
  3. The third rule of Hawksmoor is make sure you are really, really, really hungry!!!

We foolishly made the mistake of having breakfast a few hours before going for Sunday lunch at Hawksmoor in Seven Dials. Lets just say that the portion sizes were more than generous.  We ordered a glass of Chianti Classico and Pinor Noir.  Opted to skip starters and rather than have a steak,  decided to go for the ‘lighter’ option of the  Sunday Roast at £17.50.   When it arrived the Roast Beef was almost off the side of the plate and about 3/4 of an inch thick, served with a large yorkshire pudding, roast potatoes, parsnips, artichoke and a full bulb of roasted garlic.  Accompanied by a gravy boat and some horseradish.

The beef was tasty, moist and beautifully cooked, the vegetables were very good too, including what tasted like triple cooked roast potatoes. I can’t say that we cleared our plates, we didn’t, but that was not because we did not enjoy it, just that we physically couldn’t.

Although strangely we did manage to have dessert (different compartment I guess). For dessert I had the peanut butter shortbread with salted Caramel ice cream.  My light weight companion just went for the cornflake ice cream accompanied by a generous glass of Tokaji.

They have also recently added some mini macarons to the menu. A nice accompanyment to coffee, we had no space, but our neighbours said they were really good and well worth keeping on the menu.  Guess I will just have to go back and try them 😉

Marks out of 10

Food 6

Service 6.5

Ambience 6

 

 

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Detroit – Spirits

Met up at short notice with a friend for drinks in Covent Garden. Where to eat?

  • Passed by Dishoom, looked interesting but my friend was not a fan of Indian food.
  • Next door was Jamie’s Italian (part of the Jamie Oliver chain – I am wary of celebrity chef chains following our Abode experience), plus it had a huge queue outside – No Way.
  • Thought we would try the new Hawksmoor in Seven Dials just 3 days after it opened, on a walk in – No Chance.

Getting desperate. I vaguely remembered an OK basement cocktail bar I had been to years ago. Did it still exist? Could I find it?. Yes Detroit was still there. So we wandered down into the cosy bar with its alcove tables, and ordered cocktails and bar snacks.

It all worked out in the end, seriously good chips and rather nice cocktails. I would highly recommend the Strawberry and Cream cocktail. I had a few of them, but at £6.85 each they did not break the bank.  Nice atmosphere, with friendly staff and unobtrusive music – could actually have a conversation!  Next time I won’t leave it quite so long before I return to Detroit.

Marks out of 10

Food 6.1

Service 6

Ambience 5.8

 

 

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