Carolina the Diner's Reviews

Happy Hour here buys you a bottle of Prosecco for a half price £12.50. In fact all the drinks are half price. However, disappointment awaits you if you get the munchies while taking advantage of the Happy Hour bargains however, and feel tempted to try a sharer plate here. £18 buys you a platter of synthetic carbs, which is supposed to serve 2-4 people, but really serves 1.5 people, and that's being generous.

This was one of those evenings where I wished I'd ordered something else…for virtually every course, resulting in a large dose of food envy as I eyed the far more interesting dishes being brought to other tables. Nevertheless, at these prices, everything should be mouthwatering and memorable.

That said, my pork belly main course was highly memorable…for all the wrong reasons. The crackling was the toughest I've ever done battle with. The steak knife I was provided with was no match for this hard as a rock lump of indigestion.

The artisanal organic breads (note plural!) with good oil and butter starter was a let down – with one lousy variety of white bread, and no interesting seeded or brown varieties. Who wants good oil anyway? – it tastes kind of dirty – bring back olive oil!

A very average dinner spent mostly shouting across the table to make each other heard above the din created by the young and upwardly mobile locals was rescued by an outstanding truffly chocolate cake with a rich coffee sauce.

This restaurant has clearly spent more time and energy ensuring that all its staff are blonde, young, female and stunning, rather than concentrating on the food it is serving.

The atmosphere was spacious with relaxed yet attentive service.
There was a 2 courses for £10 midweek offer on the night we visited, which my fellow diner went for – however the food which came from this menu was unremarkable. The tomato & basil soup was hearty and generous and served with thick chunks of moist olive bread, but without any kind of imaginative gastropub twist. Likewise, the sausage and mash was average.
By ingoring the set menu, I was in for a treat however – the smoked salmon, halibut, beetroot remoulade & baby leaf salad was one of the best starters I've had in 2011 – the two smoked fishes complimented eachother beautifully and encased the delicate beetroot remoulade; the salad and balsamic drizzle was fresh and worked well. Unusually for such a delicious dish, it was not frustratingly small.
My chunky chicken and leek pie contained an indulgent creamy sauce with delicate hints of butternut squash, and was served with a mound of perfectly cooked curly kale.
The chocolate brownie was exactly how a chocolate brownie should be – moist, dense and rich.

At Salt Yard, the tapas dishes were brought out one at a time so we could appreciate the flavour of each plate individually while it was still hot. The downside of this, however, was that, due to the slightly slow service, there were some longer than necessary gaps between some dishes – although the wait was generally worth it.
Salt Yard is best known for its courgette flower stuffed with goat's cheese and drizzled with honey – trying this innovative dish at Taste of London was what prompted me to a night out at Salt Yard restaurant. The only disappointment on this occasion was that one of our two flowers was missing its goat's cheese stuffing, which is sloppy at these prices.
The roasted scallops with chickpea puree and crispy serrano was stunning in flavour and texture, but, like all quality scallops dishes, too small.
The butternut squash gnocchi with sultanas, pinenuts, brown butter and sage added a Spanish twist to the standard Italian sage and butter pasta sauce. It was bursting with flavour and I'll be trying this one at home as they published the recipe online.
The tender ox cheek, served with a polenta with a texture half way between porridge and risotto, was another homely buttery hug of a dish.
Overall the food was excellent and each dish was carefully created and beautifully served.