Rivington Grill

I was hungry for a steak and Gaucho was fully booked, so ended up here. A reasonably basic and maybe uninspiring menu but does what it says well, the best English.

I had the Bannockburn rib steak with chips, which was cooked as ordered and very tender and tasty. Service was good and attentive, and didn’t mind as we dawdled over the courses in no rush to get back to the office.

Nice, but for a steak I’d still call Gaucho first, but this is a great second choice.

I took some Spanish clients here for dinner and they were impressed, both by the airy, bright space (they immediately noted that the tables were not crammed together as they usually are in London) buzzy atmosphere and the British classic cuisine. Salad starters were well dressed and well balanced and the mains, we went for fish fingers and chips, roast chicken and bangers and mash, were simply, hearty and well executed. Our only complaint was that the portions of chicken were too large for anyone to comfortably eat and also that we weren't warned at the time of ordering that the chicken required an hour wait, only once we had asked the server what the hell had happened to our dinner. The highlight of the meal was a delicious, malty Meantime Stout ice cream with caramel sauce, yum. It's not fine dining but its good value for money, honest food.

Our party of 4 had a very mixed experience at the Rivington. The atmosphere was sadly lacking something and the décor a little stark. As to the food …….Our starters : Smoked trout and black pudding was good, Eggs Benedict ok, nothing special, but looked very lonely served on a big white plate, smoked anchovies, served from a tin, quirky but good and the Manx kipper pate very good. Our mains was where we had the real difference between the good and the bad, the Cornish lamb was delicious and cooked perfectly, the chicken was overcooked and dry, the stuffing was unappetising, the veal had very little meat, was overcooked, dry, full of gristle and the accompanying mushrooms & wilted nettles was swimming in oil and looked a mess. The desserts of honeycomb ice cream and hot toffee sauce were again ok, but nothing special. Sadly we won't be rushing back.

Underwhelming experience, The Cornish crab with toast and mayonaise had as much skill in its execution as a Marks and Spencers crab sandwich (thank God for the slice of lemon). The Game faggots with yellow split peas and chanterelles as a main should have been branded as offal balls with sickly sweet wine sauce and beans. The only redeaming meal was the Wild rabbit, bacon and mustard pie, but this was only because it happened to be better than everything else (nothing special). The service was adequate, had to wait a while for the card machine to turn up.
If you are looking for overbearing city suits and the odd celebrity together with bland over-priced food, then this is the place for you. I didn't try the steaks but there's no real skill in grilling good meat.
Sorry for the harshness.