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The Don two stars

Address:The Courtyard, 20 St. Swithins Lane, London EC4N 8AD
Tel:020 7626 2606
Email:
Website:Visit The Don website
Price: £46.00Wine: £16.95Champagne: £37.50
Opening Hours:Mon-Fri 12N-2.30pm 6-10pm

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Ensconced in a peaceful courtyard in the heart of the City, this dependable old-stager is a long-standing favourite of Square Meal readers & continues to win hearty praise, with quibbles a rarity. If comfort & formality are a priority, then head for the bright, lofty ground-floor restaurant. Lunch here might start with classic Marseillaise soupe de poisson or perhaps a tian of Portland crab wrapped in courgette & carrot & served on avocado mousse. Next you could choose Shetland salmon Wellington with mushrooms & celeriac, or roast loin of New Zealand venison with fig & walnut Tatin & juniper jus. Food is simpler & the ambience more informal in the brick-vaulted cellar, though some find the intimate, subterranean space on the dark side. The award-winning wine list runs to 350 bottles, with an impressive contingent of port & sherry nodding to the building’s original function as HQ for Sandeman.

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Reader reviews of The Don:

Penelope S.
Reviews: 1

Penelope S. ( 50s, Female )

I am a busy person but feel I should congratulate the team at the Don for continuing to deliver excellent food(I love the scallops en croute and tournedos rossini)in such a professional yet friendly manner.The service is consistently good and this is one of the few CITY restaurants I visit where I know I can be sure my clients and I finish on time if we have any time constraints.The staff are responsive and very efficient yet the quality and value is maintained.The table spacing is excellent so I have no concerns when discussing business.I love the building and recently was invited to a dinner in the private room(a vaulted old port cellar in the basement) which was so atmospheric and special.I congratulate the team there and am impressed that over the years the high standards and,in my view excellent value for money with good portion size, continue.The Don deserves recognition ..its more glitzy rivals may come and go ..yet it continues to present an excellent choice for lunch or dinner when food service and ambience really count.We may try the new openings around but we always come back and continue to be very impressed!

15 January 2010
Overall:9
Food and Drink:9
Service:9
Atmosphere:9
Value for Money:10
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Marianne H.

Marianne H. ( 30s, Female, United Kingdom )

I was amazed upon visiting this place after hearing for so long about its reputation. Stuck down a frankly dangerous flight of stairs in a dingy underground cavern with no natural light we paid what seemed like a lot of money for a very average meal indeed. Being a French restaurant one might imagine that they would be able to cook steak well; embarrassingly in front of my business associate guests, this turned out not to be the case. I won't be paying a return visit nor recommending it.

April 2009
Overall:4
Food and Drink:6
Service:6
Atmosphere:1
Value for Money:4
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Derek H.

Derek H. ( 30s, Male, United Kingdom )

There must be something wrong with me. Two years ago I posted probably the only poor review for The Bleeding Heart in the past decade, and now I'm going to something similar to The Don.

Maybe it's the expectation, but my visit left me feeling like an ever so slightly average shag. You've tried to like it and you've performed some moves, but you just can't help feeling underwhelmed.

For a start the interior was all cooky, rather than the big booming City hall I'd hoped for. Tables were too near each other. Then my table had a pronounced list, so that each time I moved my arm, it jiggled my glass. Maybe I'm sounding like a junior grade civil cervant here, but at a restaurant where praise has been so lavish it's the small things which count. Then the sound of the flash frying twice made conversation all but difficult, resulting in a slightly embarrassed pause. Again, not a major problem, but they all start to add up.

The food, admittedly, was excellent – rabbit with wild mushrooms, bacon and lentils, however, the service was next to useless – constantly over-bearing and at one point, with the client conversation at a delicate junction whereby they could leave at any point, the bloody stupid waitresses asked us all three times whether we wanted any more water.

Sorry – not impressed. There are many other places for similar prices where the food is as good, but the overall experience far superior. But then again, maybe it's just me…

February 2009
Overall:7
Food and Drink:8
Service:3
Atmosphere:6
Value for Money:5
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Melanie E.

Melanie E. ( 30s, Female, United Kingdom )

Possibly my favorite place in London; I have been coming here for years.
The service is faultless – ensure on booking however you distingusih between the bistro, the main restaraunt and the more intimate restaraunt and where you would like to be seated.
The menu is really imaginative – without being overly fussy. Flavours are not drowned and too complex – but all the same some superb dishes. The chef used to be at the Bleeding Hart, Hatton garden – and moving here has really established it as a great place to dine.
The wine list – as part of the Bleeding Hart sisterhood – is fantastic. And you can be assured of a sip of a few before you make a tough choice. On the other hand – if you just want a glass of house, it's going to great wine, which has been breathing, is at the right temperature, rather than thinly disguised paint thinner as is so othen the case.
Finally the Maitre De – A great man. A perfect choice, knows his wine impeccably, he and the chef work perfectly, and the place runs like clockwork as a result.
In a word – go.

October 2008
Overall:9
Food and Drink:10
Service:10
Atmosphere:9
Value for Money:9
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