Village East (171-173 Bermondsey Street, London, London, SE1 3UW) I've been to Village East a few times now and always love it. Definitely much much cooler than all the dull chains around More London & the overpriced Pont de la Tour & clones by Tower Bridge. Great atmosphere, fab cocktails and good food. In fact, I like it so much I've even forgiven the waiter who told me I look like Nigella Lawson (who apparently is a regular – an accolade in itself!) The menu is creative & seasonal with yummy daily specials and the wine list ranges from £20 to £100, with a bargain “bin ends” page at the front – great for all the recessionistas out there! Last night I had lovely chargrilled tuna steak (beautifully cooked, still nice & pink in the middle) with seasonal veg and a mustardy sauce. My boyfriend had a great ribeye and our pre-dinner cocktails were yummy and really well presented. I've only ever been here in the evening and am inclined to think it would lacking a certain something during the daytime – the New York styling just wouldn't be as cool in the cold harsh light of day!
Link to this reviewApril 2009 | | Overall: | 8 |
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| Food and Drink: | 9 |
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| Service: | 8 |
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| Atmosphere: | 10 |
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| Value for Money: | 8 |
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Bam-Bou (1 Percy Street, London, London, W1T 1DB) I've been to BamBou loads of time, both to eat in the main restaurant and for drinks in the cocktail bar upstairs. The food has always been yummy (if a touch overpriced) and the cocktails upstairs are great, so when organising a party I had no hesitation in deciding on a private room at BamBou. Big mistake. From start to finish my contact with the private room staff has been problematic. To cut a long story short they lost my credit card details, lost my booking form and were rude. I have since cancelled the room as I can only assume the service at the party would reflect the surly and incompetent service during the booking. When I phoned to cancel, I politely told the staff why I was cancelling and they were totally disintererested. I would definitely not recommend BamBou for a private room booking.
Link to this reviewMarch 2009 | | Overall: | 1 |
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| Food and Drink: | 8 |
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| Service: | 1 |
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| Atmosphere: | 8 |
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| Value for Money: | 1 |
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Olivomare (10 Lower Belgrave Street, London, SW1W 0LJ) I have to say I don't agree with the “all style and no substance” in the official review of Olivomare – the interior of the restau is fab, I love the “seaweed” on the ceiling and the clever wall paper/paint, very funky! My crab linguine was really tasty and my tuna main course was perfectly cooked. I'll definitely go again next time I'm eating near Victoria.
Link to this reviewFebruary 2009 | | Overall: | 7 |
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| Food and Drink: | 7 |
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| Service: | 7 |
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| Atmosphere: | 8 |
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| Value for Money: | 6 |
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The Botanist (7 Sloane Square, London, London, SW1W 8EE) Our Sunday lunch at the Botanist last week was great and I'm hoping it'll become a regular occurrence. The prices are a touch steep for what is in reality a gastropub menu, but this is Sloane Square so that's to be expected. My roast beef was beautifully cooked and the desserts were gorgeous (the rhubarb souffle is really light & fluffy) – there was a table of desserts set up by the entrance and we raced through our main course to get to them! Service was a bit slow though and we had to wait nearly half an hour for our (reserved) table.
Link to this reviewFebruary 2009 | | Overall: | 8 |
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| Food and Drink: | 8 |
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| Service: | 6 |
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| Atmosphere: | 9 |
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| Value for Money: | 8 |
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Vinoteca (7 St John Street, London, EC1M 4AA) Vinoteca's food is great, and the wine list is really impressive – particularly the list of wines by the glass. Our charcuterie & cheese main course (we shared – tapas style) were lovely, and the desserts were gorgeous. However, we were a bit disappointed by the size of the serving – we had to check that we had in fact been given the large portions! The private room downstairs at Vinoteca is fab, and the menus are very good value.
Link to this reviewFebruary 2009 | | Overall: | 9 |
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| Drinks: | 9 |
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| Service: | 6 |
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| Atmosphere: | 8 |
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| Value for Money: | 8 |
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The great thing about Le RdV is that you know exactly what you're going to get – decent steak in a really tasty (secret!) sauce, quickly. Not having menus really speeds up the whole lunch process (hands up who's waiting 20 mins in One Lombard just to order?), and my steak was very tasty. However, the price is a little steep (£90 for starter, main course and cokes for 3 – no sides, no desserts, no wine) and the staff are surly at best (typical Parisians). Worth checking out, and I'll probably go back when I want a fast, reliable lunch – but only if someone else is paying!
Link to this reviewFebruary 2009 | | Overall: | 7 |
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| Food and Drink: | 7 |
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| Service: | 6 |
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| Atmosphere: | 7 |
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| Value for Money: | 6 |
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Great Queen Street (32 Great Queen Street, London, WC2B 5AA) Great local restaurant – the menu changes regularly, the food is imaginative, seasonal and tasty and 32 Great Queen Street makes a pleasant change from the many chain restaus around Holborn Station. The wine selection is good, and reasonably priced. I only have 3 gripes; it's not open on Mondays, it gets booked up very quickly and the wine is served in tumblers.
Link to this reviewNovember 2008 | | Overall: | 7 |
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| Food and Drink: | 8 |
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| Service: | 6 |
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| Atmosphere: | 7 |
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| Value for Money: | 7 |
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Fiona M.