Joe Allen

Best fish dish I've had in recent years!

Pre theatre meal deal was amazing value for money. The staff were aware of our time restraints but they made it a pleasant and relaxed visit. My mailed request for cake and candles (ours was a birthday celebration) was all in hand when we arrived.
This was my first visit and since there was something for all diets on both the set menu and general menu and was reasonably priced, Joe Allen's will be my first choice any time I visit Covent Garden. The restaurant setting was a trip back into my youth!! Wonderful.

We have been going to Joe Allen for 25 years and have gone 3 times since it was taken over. We have been very disappointed each time. The Joe Allen classic of ribs was literally ‘tough’. Last night we tried the sirloin and was equally disappointed. Sorry guys, we have tried to make it work since the takeover but no more. We won't be coming back… Tim

Great Eggs !!

Throughly enjoyed our pre-theatre lunch in this restaurant. The eggs are really special – despite them being only eggs ! The service is awesome and the surroundings are really entertaining. Good atmosphere – obviously they get a regular crowd on a Saturday which made for a pleasant ambience. Only downside was the loos were a bit nasty which is a really shame as I would really recommend this place.

Like a lot of people, I have visited Joe Allen on and off for a number of years. Some times its good. Some times its bad. The problem is that the bad times are now outweighing the good times by avery long way.

I attended with a friend on a busy Friday night. My friend was a bit late and I went directly to teh table to wait. It took a full ten minutes before any of the many waiters and waitresses came over to ask if they could get me drink. When my friend eventually arrived, the waiter came over within seconds to ask if he could take our order! This is even though I know he saw her sit down.

All of this might seem petty and, to be honest would have been forgiven if the food was anywhere halfway decent. It wasn't. I had the chicken wings to start. My friend had the goats cheese. Both arrived lukewarm. My wings were covered in an insipid tomatoey sauce and just were not very nice. The goats cheese dish was just poor. The mains of sirloin stak and corn fed chicvken were not much better. If I had been served such a steak at one of the many chain tourist trap steak restaurants – you know the type I mean – I would have been disappointed. It was rubbery, tasteless and over cooked. The chicken by comparison wasn't all that bad. Not good, but not bad. Why we perserved with desert escapes me but we thought it couldn't get any worse. The cheesecake was one of the worse I've come accross. Don't get me wrong, I am no expert but it really was a waste of time. The pecan pie was ok but, again, I am no expert.

All in all, the atmosphere was good but its going to take a few years for me to forget this experience suffieciently to come back. Lets hope teh new owners make some changes.

Where better to celebrate four more years of Obama than a restaurant that oozes Americana, from every inch of its being? We chose Joe Allen, with its old-school Caesar salads and walls dripping with Yankee kitsch and memorabilia. The restaurant had a buzz that night, as Democrats painted the town and murmurings of praise for the States were unusually common. But there was a spanner in the works. A state of emergency was declared among beef patties in the borough of Westminster, that very night.

We ordered the (not very) secret burgers off-menu, and our waiter’s face became sullen. In grave tones, he relayed the statement he’d be forced to relay umpteen times for the rest of his days. ‘I’m afraid I must tell you that, due to recent ruling by Environmental Health, burgers can no longer be served medium rare.’

Full of wine and good cheer, it took a few moments to sink in. Sensing our bewilderment, and with a genuine air of apology, he repeated himself. (We may have tired of the presidential campaign, but our moral outrage at this baffling legislation was such that we were rendered temporarily mute). So it transpires that upmarket burger bars from Paddington to Pimlico will no longer be able to surprise and delight with happily pink and juicy morsels.

When we finally digested the news, we persevered with the orders (as did the waiting staff, in respectably mournful mood). We found our burgers to be good, but not great, for which the chefs can’t be blamed. The homemade brioche was gorgeous and each was positively soused with melting cheese, but the very mechanics of decent ground beef can’t withstand such a toasting by sustained, Health and Safety-approved temperatures. Chunky skin-on chips and skinny shoestring fries were alright, but the great injustice was that a damn tasty burger was effectively given forty lashes on the grill.

Service was slow but friendly, with one exception: a curt, slightly snappy waitress who seized plates from our grasp without a hint of patience. (Republican, perhaps)? In all honesty, the wall to wall toot was knowingly naff and the toilets were downright grotty. But I got what they were getting at, and it would’ve made a worthy side step from restaurants of TGI Friday’s ilk. I’m just left wondering what will become of the EHO’s ruling given the meaty turns London's restaurant scene has taken this year.

Despite being located in the heart of Covent Garden's Theatreland, Joe Allens is not somewhere that you are going to happen upon accidentally. Marked from the exterior by only a small understated sign and New York style door umbrella you wonder what you are descending into as you walk down the rather gloomy stairs towards the inner door. JA is the sister restaurant of the same named New York restaurant and is something of a blueprint of the American outpost. I‘m reliably informed that when the London outpost opened in the 1970s a New York Style bar and restaurant was a novel addition to London, alas that is no longer the case and, in terms of decor、JA looks tired.

Posters from theatre shows of eons past plaster the walls and many of the restaurants patrons are likely to have trodden the boards in years gone by. Over the last decade I don't think that I have ever been in Joe Allens and NOT seen someone that I recognise from the television or stage. That said it is far from being a pretentious, starry s'leb type of venue.

Many other reviews of Joe Allens don't view the food terribly favourably, I tend to agree. If you are all about the food experience and want novel, inventive dishes cooked well at a good price then turn around and walk away as this is not for you. If you want an atmospheric post-theatre fill you up with good company and good wine then stay right where you are. I'd like to be able to report a more diverse selection of dishes from my most recent foray into the Joe Allens menu but alas I cannot because why would you order anything else when you can eat one of their burgers? A, E and I (missing only ‘O’ and'U') all ordered variations on a theme of burger, cooked medium or done through with either cheese, bacon, none or both. My burger was pretty rare, thick and juicy and of a level of greasiness where it is safest to keep a napkin fairly close to hand throughout. Served with raw red onion rings, plenty of gherkin and a sweet sweet bun, for me its how a burger should be, bun, for me its how a burger should be.

Looking around it is clear that the “secret, off menu burger” at Joe Allens is definitely not secret (in fact they now seem to mention it on their website whilst still referring to it as “secret” hmmmmm). I reckon that around 40% of the orders on tables surrounding mine involved burger.

I'm not a big fan of the super crunchy fries that seem to attract adulation at the moment in cyberspace so the salty skin on fries with a big pot of mayonnaise worked well for me.

All washed down with a perfectly drinkable bottle of Siglo Rioja. Very satisfying indeed. The cocktail list is pretty extensive. Personally no visit to JA can be complete without a “Geronimo”, something you definitely need to cry if you even think about ordering more than one. Served in a chilled wine glass, the Geronimo is a mix of vodka, wine glass, the geronimo is a mix of vodka, frangelico and creme de cacao and is a sweet blast of hazelnutty deliciousness, searing your mouth with alcohol and warming the very cockles of your being. Yes, I like it that much.

It would be a crime to write any post on Joe Allens without mentioning the legend that is Jimmy the pianist. His knowledge of the London theatre scene is virtually unrivalled and he loves any morsel of theatre gossip that you may have. Having now tinkled the ivories at Joe Allen's for several decades he counts many friends amongst the restaurant's clientele and his playing is often punctuated by long pauses to chat to any passing actor or actress. Bearing a twinkle in his eye and a viciously sharp sense of humour, no visit would be complete without him.

To sum up, its no gastronomic paradise, but JA delivers exactly what you sometimes need. A late night greasy burger, some good drinks, a friendly face and a tinkling piano in the corner. To utterly misquote the film line that never was; “play it again Jimmy” and whilst you keep on playing I will keep coming.

Various visits, most recent Jan 2012

Whilst not a regular customer over the years I have been to Joe Allen many times and previously enjoyed the experience. My most recent visit will be my last. I had actually switched the venue for a post Christmas staff celebration as I thought it would be better than a previous selection, this was a mistake.
Obviously the restaurant is something of a tourist trap and the prices reflect it. I can immediately think of several restaurants within five minutes walk that offer the same sort of menu at much better value. I suspect the site rules prohibit me from mentioning them but I would seriously suggest researching better alternatives.
We had theatre tickets and made this clear from outset, despite this we had to wait for ages to order and some of the drinks never arrived, although they seem to find their way onto the bill. The food is actually excellent but sadly the whole place is let down by the awful waiting staff.
They tried to clear the starters was one of our party was still eating and equally failed to remove my starter plate before my main course arrived, when I offered to swap plate with the waiter for the new course the attempt the irony was clearly lost on this miserable individual.
The final insult was when after a really sloppy performance the service charge was applied twice. For the first time in my life I was planning to refuse to pay the service in a restaurant, when I found it had been doubled I was speechless. It is a great shame that a once excellent establishment is clearly on the way out.

Although it has been tucked away on Exeter Street more years than I care to remember it is not often that Joe Allen fails to hit the spot. They were probably one of earlier pioneers of ‘table turning’ but they usually do it with such finesse that one doesn't feel annoyed. They also go to great lengths on making the booking to be sure you understand how long you have the table for.

Sunday bruch/lunch is always fun and extremely good value. The regular changes to the menu avoid becoming over familiar with it as there is always something new to discover. The old faithfuls like the Caesar Salad, Eggs Benedict and the, never advertised, burgers are extremely good. the french fries are wonderful and one should enjoy them with the homemade tomato relish.

The pre and post theatre menu works really well if yuo are on a budget. For people who like to watch other people there is usually someone in there who you might recognise.

In a city like London a restaurant cannot survive in the way Joe Allen does, without having that certain something. Most times it is a very good meal, well served and accompanied by an interesting wine list.