Automat (33 Dover Street, London, W1S 4NF) As a big fan of America and an even bigger fan of brunch I am always pleased when I stumble across a diner which claims to cater to both of these loves. Walking into Automat I was certainly not disappointed – it was busy, it was loud and I saw burgers and pancakes everywhere I looked. My party was shown through to the second room, a mock railway carriage with booths all along both sides. This was somehow not tacky and I only got more excited when I walked through to the loos to find another room three times the size and filled with natural light and big tables of brushed aluminium. Having started the day with a healthy breakfast of German sausage and sauerkraut I felt the age old dilemma of ‘sweet versus savoury’ had been decided for me, and my anticipation started to build when the waiter cut off my question on the merits of various dishes with a very affirmative “Waffles”. After working myself up into such a state one can imagine the disappointment when I bit into said waffles to find them dry and bland; and although the blueberries, cream and maple syrup went a long way to solving this, I was out of the lot by half way through. Now I probably could have asked for more of all three but despite being an Americophile, I am still English, and I feel a bit awkward in those situations – have they factored in the cost of extra blueberries? Will I pay a surcharge for a single portion of maple syrup? Besides, I was being taken out by some friends and I did not want to seem ungrateful. Fortunately, my belated banana milkshake arrived and pulled me through the final two waffles with a healthy dose of dairy and a deliciously fresh taste of bananas. This is a restaurant that I want to love, and based on the quality of the milkshakes and my friend’s scrambled eggs I think the possibility is still there. My only mistake was expecting New York waffles in central London – it just isn’t going to happen.
Link to this reviewDecember 2010 | 
Tim MurrayMale, United Kingdom