David's Reviews

I am reminded of the phrase ‘All fur and no knickers’. On the surface this is deigned to be excellent French fine dining but one doesn't have to dig too deeply to find the problems.

The starters were all very good and my choice of the smoked salmon was excellent. I am also told that that the crab was also very good. I am never happy with restaurants who claim to offer a set meal for a certain price and then start adding all sorts of prices based on the choices. One of our group had the scallops, which incurred an extra charge. I am told they were not worth it.

Main courses were a bit of a disaster. One of our group had a dish that was flambed. It was served a good 5 minutes before the remaining 3 dishes were served and the pasta content had become cold. The waiters solution to this was to want to remove all 4 dishes, This would have caused all sorts of embarrassment to the affected diner and the rest of the party so we soldiered on. I enjoyed my fillet of beef, but it was also subject to a surcharge.

For desert I chose the Rice Pudding. It was the strangest one I have ever eaten. Almost no rice, it was like a custard and incredibly sweet.

The restaurant presents itself as being very pretentious but sadly reality does not match it.

Not an experience to be repeated.

I have now eaten twice in Jamie's Italian on Threadneedle Street. Both visits have been very good, both in terms of food and service.

My first visit was a weekday lunchtime. We were shown to our table on the 1st Floor which has a glass wall that allows a good vision of the dining are and bar below. My friend and I shared a seafood starter which was well presented and tasted excellent when augmented with the garlic dip provided. For mains we both had a dish of seafood and fish. It contained some excellent pieces of fish and was served with a decoration of, what I assume, is potato. We commented that the display looked a little like, that hat from the royal wedding last year. Our bottle of Sauvignon Blanc, which was very sensibly priced, was excellent and as readers of Patricia Cornwell we noted that it came from a wine supplier called Scarpetta.

The second visit was on a Friday evening when the restaurant was buzzing with the usual City Friday evening crowd. We enjoyed, as suggested by our excellent waiter, some bruschetta served with a variety of seafood. One of my friends chose the same fish dish I described above. The lobster ravioli that one friend chose looked excellent and I was informed the taste was equally as good. I enjoyed the veal which was stuffed and topped with a fried egg. It was delicious and very well cooked. All of our empty plates were tangible evidence of how much we had enjoyed our meal. The price was around £40 each and included deserts and coffee, with a soft drink to start. Not the cheapest meal but we all felt it represented good value bearing in mind the location

It was agreed that we shall certainly return.

This was a lovely example of how to overcome and put right a problem. I had booked online some time ago, on the IOD website. When we arrived at the restaurant they had no record of our booking and the restaurant was very busy. I have noted here that diners tend to eat earlier and by 7:30/8:00 it was almost empty. The Maitre'd quickly had a table prepared for us. It was rather large for 3 diners but very comfortable in a corner. A complimentary bottle of Champagne then arrived by way of apology. Totally unexpected but very much appreciated.

We had very good service during the meal. The wine list is very good and we enjoyed a bottle of 2005 Gevrey Chambertin that was quite reasonably priced. There is currently a menu price of £28 for 2 courses and £31 for 3 courses. A very reasonable price when you consider the location and the splendour of the venue.

My warm asparagas salad with mushrooms and poached egg was absolutely delicious. Fellow diners had prawns with noodles and duck and mango salad. Very positive feedback from them.

For mains I chose the fillet of beef, for which there is an extra charge of £4.50. It was superb. Cooked exactly how I like it. Very flavoursome and just melted in the mouth. One of my fellow diners made the same choice and we both agreed that it was one of the best we had ever eaten. My third diner had the beetroot tart with melting goats cheese and I gather that, too, was very enjoyable. The accompanying selection of vegetables were well cooked and well presented.

I choose not to have desert. My fellow diners had rhubard parfait with ginger jelly and lemon posset. I am told it was excellent and it certainly was beautifully presented.

We had a small error on the bill but that was very quickly corrected. It was such a good meal that I have already booked the next meal there in a couple of weeks. Whether you are a member of the IOD or not this restaurant comes highly recommended.

I have lunched here a few times and have always been very pleased with the result. They offer both a full a la carte restaurant menu and also a shorter bar menu. We always make clear which we need when booking the table. The welcome is always warm and they have some very quiet alcoves if you want that business lunch that might not be overheard at the next table.

The wine list, as you may expect, is very impressive and reasonably priced bearing in mind the City location. It can get expensive, however, if you go for glasses of wine rather than a bottle.

I have developed a real penchant for their scrambled eggs and smoke salmon. The eggs taste wonderful and are clearly freshly prepared. My lunching partner will usually go for the very attractive prawn and avocado salad. Both meals accompanied by a bowl of chips make a perfect business lunch.

Although tucked away in Abchurch Yard it is well worth seeking out and giving them a visit. You will be pleasantly surprised and certainly not regret your decision.

Lunch at Benares was a very enjoyable experience. It began with the welcome on the ground floor. I have had better welcomes on previous visits but this went the through the processes, although the usual warmth was sadly lacking. We were shown to our table in the corner, which gave a very good view of the restaurant. The decor is very restful and the use of dark wood and light walls makes it feel very homely and relaxing. We chose to have the platter menu. My meat platter offered 3 different types of meat. An excellent soup served along with pilau rice and naan. It was very good and quite filling. My partner chose the fish platter and I am told that of the 3 different fish offerings the sea bass was quite wonderful. We both enjoyed a rose petal flavoured desert. It was very subtle in flavour, light and delicious. The bill with the addition of a very good mango lassi and mineral water was less than £40 each, including service. Overall a very good experience to be repeated before too long. They just need to fix the welcoming.

This restaurant has long been a favourite of City types for lunch. It now also opens for dinner and that is what took us to the restaurant. Sadly it was certainly not very full for a Thursday evening, it deserves to do better.

Both food and service were very good. 2 of us had the fillet steak, complete with excellent frites. It was as good, if not better, than some of competition who tend to specialise more in this type of meal. As I recall from the past, my friend who had the sole remarked that it was prepared and cooked perfectly. The fourth member of our party opted for a casserole with assorted meat and game that would most certainly have represented a vegetarian's nightmare.

We opted for a bottle of the house red wine which was very drinkable and complemented the dishes well, even the fish.

A return visit is on the cards before too long.

On a light and warm summer's evening, this is a superb location for an early dinner booking. The ambiance of the restaurant is superb and sitting near the large windows overlooking the activities outside is great for people watching.

2 of my friends had the £26 dinner menu, which offered extremely good value for money. In particular the comments and clear enjoyment of the belly of pork, complete with crackling, was great to hear. I also gather the crumble and custard was exteremly good. I opted for the a la carte menu and went for the roast chicken. The portion was enormous and when enjoyed with some of the excellent roast potato it was superb. The accompanying bacon and bread sauce enhanced the dish really well. The general comments from my firends, who were dining there for the first time, was that the portions of all the dishes was very generous and certainly met in full the large appetites they had brought with them. The wine list is very good and offers both affordable and high end prices. It was good to see some English wines included.

It is not always clear when making a booking here that there is a 2 hour table turn but we found that did not cause us any difficulty. Some of guests were delayed a little in their arrival at the restaurant but the staff ensured, through good service, that the meal was served comfortably within the timeframe. It did not feel rushes at all.

Since eating there a few friends have advised me that the breakfast at roast is also excellent so that will be added to the diary before too long.

The new Sunday lunch offering at Quo Vadis was excellent. There was a very family orientated atmosphere in the restaurant and it felt very good and relaxed. A 3 course lunch for £35, which includes a half bottle of wine, water, coffee and service was incredibly good value. The service was ever present and attentive without being intrusive. Watching the maitre'd was a masterclass in good management and service. Throughout our visit he knew what was happening at each table and intervened when he thought it was necessary.

The smoked salmon starter was served with a circular accompaniment of hard boiled egg, chopped very finely and herbs. My roast beef was served excellently medium rare, although I was not asked if I had a preference. The ‘trimmings’ were very good, although a 3rd roast potato and possibly a little more gravy would have made it perfection. I am told by my partner that the sea bream was very good and cooked incredibly well. The desert was very good and well presented but did not totally reflect the decscription on the menu.

All considered it was an excellent experience that needs to be repeated sooner rather than later.