Black & Blue

I have eaten here a few times in the past and while it is not in the same league as Smiths of Smithfield, it was an acceptable steak joint! I was told (rather rudely) today that they no longer take any bookings for parties less than 4 (and that this policy will continue after the christmas break)…so a lunch for two is no longer possible here! This seems an unusual stance in this climate but clearly they have no interest in anything other than large parties.

I whole-heartedly agree, this place is a rip-off joint. The steak & chips I had looked like cheap pub grub, and tasted even worse. Bad quality frozen chips, and a tasteless, stingy piece of unappealling steak, was presented very unattractively. The female staff members are rude and unhelpful. The fact that this place has a bar upstairs that you can only sit in if you buy Champagne says it all really…they are trying to woo the City boys who love their steaks, with little regard for quality. They should take a leaf out of Gaucho's book – the steaks, imaginative sides & charming service knock Black & Blue off the scale. This is probably the worst place to eat around Borough Market – luckily there are plenty of other great places to chosse from such as Brindisa, Feng Sushi, or Wright Bros Oyster Bar.

I have never had a more awful experience, I would rather go to a kebab shop and sit outside in a puddle then ever go back. There was a FLY in the prawn cocktail… The service was appalling, when we complained about the fly we were told by the extremely rude manager with a huge attitude problem "well it's not fine dining"- I think it can be safely guaranteed that this is the only thing we agreed with!!! The food was distictly below average and totally overpriced. I could have got a better steak at my local pub for a fraction of the price. Take my advice stay as far away as possible!