The Chancery

Came to The Chancery for Valentine's day dinner. The food was absolutely spotless, dishes really well presented with a little twist to make them special. The service wasn't bad and wasn't intrusive which is exactly what you want fo a romantic dinner. Would definetly go back and will talk about it to people around me.

I received an email advertising a 50% off deal. I'd enjoyed the Chancery before for special occasions, so I was happy to book again and looked forward to it.
The good points: the food was consistently tasty. Wine was delicious and a perfect complement, helpfully suggested by the sommelier. Service was mostly unobtrusive and efficient. Atmosphere was nice.
The bad points: (single) toilet door lock was broken, leading to unnecessary embarrassment, along with lack of apology or apparent sympathy. Bill when arrived failed to take off discount which was sneaky and meant one had to ask, which was embarrassing. Discount once applied was applied AFTER service had been added to total bill – also perhaps slightly sneaky. However, far more important than any of those minor quibbles was the glaring issue of portion sizes. We are not massive eaters but these were really tiny. We could not help wondering whether “50% off” really meant you only get half the food you'd otherwise get. For that reason alone, it was disappoining overall, and even at the reduced price of £70 (total would have been £100) for two, we felt like we'd been ripped off, or just naive for having booked in the first place.

My dad and I came here last week as a mid-week early evening dinner, I think we had the first sitting because we were the only people in there! It felt slightly strange being the only people in a restaurant and I wasn't sure how the evening would subsequently pan out. I would therefore suggest not sitting down before 7 / 7.30pm. Before I say much about the food let me first say that this worry soon passed as the restaurant filled up and the atmosphere grew. The acoustics were such that you could hear a buzz of conversation but your own conversation was not drowned out.

We were offered cheese straws and olive breads whilst we browsed the menu. After we had ordered (we chose to not have a starter) we were given a complimentary ‘shot’ of something lovely and creamy looking. Unfortunately, I cannot have certain creams so I passed mine to my dad, who said it was delicious and the chef very kindly made me a tiny fig and parma ham salad which was divine. The wine list is excellent, although there isn't anything below £15 unless you have just a glass. We were dining on a TasteLondon card and it was easy to see where they make their money, the wine is certainly not budget! We ordered Duckbill Reisling from Australia which was £18.50 a bottle. It was good but I've tasted whites from local wine cooperatives in the South of France which taste stunning and those bottles cost a few euros, but I am as a result difficult to please on this one! I have researched and the wine we ordered appears to be sold for around £9 in the shops/wine merchants. Restaurant mark-ups always get my goat.

We ordered for our mains: Crisp fillet of sea bass, scallops, pea and broad bean risotto and white wine emulsion; and Spiced saddle of lamb, crisp spring roll, butter bean, baby artichoke and mint vinaigrette, and we had a green side salad. The portions were modest but perfectly sized for our appetites, and utterly delicious. Really melt in the mouth. I really cannot find a fault in it whatsoever. I would say to anybody who likes a big big meal to have a starter as well as a main, but for us this was perfect. We felt full and satisfied but not bloated. We were then given a complimentary petite assiette of palate cleansing sorbets – again, stunning.

For dessert we had: White chocolate and rum mousse, short crust biscuits, cherry compote; and Poached peaches in vanilla, meringue, mascarpone cream and apricot sorbet. Again, perfect portion size and faultless taste. Not too sweet, not too heavy – just perfect. We had a decaf coffee and a mint tea. It is worth noting that The Chancery have a full selection of the best decaf teas and coffees – we were very pleasantly surprised!

Apart from the faultless food, the service was also brilliant. There had been a discrepancy with the TasteLondon card at the booking stage but they rectified it instantly and without fuss. The air conditioning was also slightly too chilly and they turned it down straight away. The only mildly negative comment I would make would be that our conversation seemed to be interrupted a fair bit by our waitress coming over and taking our plates away almost as soon as we had finished eating. She didn't speak to us much which was fine but still, its hard to carry on talking when you've got someone literally in between you. I've always felt that a good meal is complimented further by not noticing your servers, after all they are a part of your dining experience in so far as they are NOT part of your dining experience if that makes sense.

Our total meal, with wine and coffee/tea and service charge came to £82 which I felt was reasonable, but remember this was with our 50% off food – I am not sure I could as readily come here without that discount.

I would recommend everybody living in London or working near Chancery Lane/Holborn/St Pauls make a special trip to The Chancery. It was one of the best meals out I've had in ages.

Alittle gem not far away from Hatton Garden!

Entering The Chancery on a quiet Tuesday evening gives one 2 immediate impressions. Firstly it strikes you as being very functional in design and layout. That is not necessarily a bad thing. Secondly, it is very quiet, or was the evening we were there. I imagine that because of it's location it will be more heavily reliant on a lunchtime trade than an evening one.

The fixed price menu was very good value. I thoroughly enjoyed a minestrone soap with tagliatelle, my friends told me that the scallops were very good and nicely brown on one side. For main course 2 of us opted for the steak and hand cut fries. The steak, for some reason, was sliced as you might find served in a stroganoff. It was very well cooked, medium rare, and therefore didn't need to be presented in this way. The hand cut fries were excellent and certainly were viewed enviously by my fellow diners.

Only 2 of the party opted for desert. The selection of ice cream listed on the menu seemed to cause some confusion when our waitress was asked what flavours there were to choose from. I undersatnd that what did arrive was very good.

It was a very enjoyable evening and ideal if you want a quiet dinner with a colleague or client. If you were looking for somewhere with a little more atmosphere you might find it a little too quiet. The value for money, bearing in mind, it's location at the edge of the City and in the legal environment of Chancery Lane, was very good. It is quite tucked away and may not always benefit from a passing crowd. I think you would need to know it is there and to seek it out. I don't think you will be disappointed.