Offer Finder

  • Search Available Offers

Register here for your Square Meal Guides

 
 
(menu)

PK's Reviews

PK40s, Male, London

Member since January 2006

Reviews written: 2 (2 voted helpful)

Hasn’t rated any restaurants this year.

Hasn't posted in the forum yet

Baozi Inn (25 Newport Court, London, WC2H 7JS)

Went here for lunch on a Thursday. Restaurant was half-full when we arrived and almost full when we left. Decor is a little dark and the tables/chairs are a little low for my liking (I'm tall) but overall it is fine, and does achieve a sort of ‘chinese inn’ feel.

I had the stir-fried pork with dried chillis and sauce on noodles. The pork was very tender, the noodles were nice (though a fraction too soft for my liking) and the overall taste was delicious. The spiciness was just about right – hot enough to be considered sichuan cuisine but not hot enough to put people off (I know a lot of purists would like it hotter though). The dish was a little oily, but that may be more to do with the cuisine than the cooking. We also shared some pork crescent dumplings in chilli oil, which were delicious.

There are cheaper places in Chinatown, but it was very good value for the quality. I will be going back soon to try some of the other dishes (though the menu isn't huge).

October 2008

Overall:7
Food and Drink:7
Service:7
Atmosphere:7
Value for Money:8
1 of 1 people found this review helpful. Was it helpful to you?
Request review removal

Giaconda Dining Room (9 Denmark Street, London, WC2H 8LS)

Went here recently for lunch. It has a small, unimposing front. Once we walked inside, my first reaction was that it was quite buzzy and I am glad I had booked a table. We were greeted immediately by the friendly but efficiently busy waitress and asked to choose any of the three 2-seater tables that were left. Once seated, I glanced around the room to see an interesting mix of business types, lunching ladies and work friends who don't mind paying for a nice lunch. Not that it is expensive here, just a better standard than the usual chain type places. The room itself is quite small, but the tables aren't too close together. The decor is smart, with dark woods, nicely laid tables and cabinets of wine at the back.

A pleasant surprise was the carafe of sparkling water placed on the table, and a small plate of olives, as well as an extra dish for the pips, that were decent quality (it's a pet peeve of mine to be given tasteless olives).

The menu offers an interesting mix of dishes, and we were informed of daily specials also. One odd thing was there were three or so dishes that were in their own little group in between the starters and the mains. I presumed these were ‘medium’ size dishes that could be ordered either way.

As we had limited time, we just ordered one course. I had went for the duck confit with small roasted potatoes and watercress salad, my companion had the fish soup (which was Starter size, but a reasonably sized portion). The duck was delicious and tender, though the skin could have been a little crispier (caused no doubt by the slight sauce the potatoes were done in). A sizable portion, I thought it was good value. My friend thought her fish soup was delicious, though she did mention she prefers the croutons on the side so you can judge for yourself how long they sit in the soup and not let them go too soggy. It had a nice thick consistency and was bursting with fishy, saffrony flavour.

I convinced my friend to have a glass of wine, and she was pleasantly… More

October 2008

Overall:8
Food and Drink:8
Service:8
Atmosphere:8
Value for Money:8
2 of 2 people found this review helpful. Was it helpful to you?
Request review removal
Advertisement