Recently (Dec 2011) went here for a works Christmas meal. The venue itself is large and well presented, if spartan. The food order had to be specified in advance from a menu, and place cards had been set with a diner's selection before the party arrived, which greatly speeded up ordering. The seats were extremely well spaced apart, which was a refreshing change to venues that cram the tables in as tightly as possible. This unusually generous space allowed plenty of room for side dishes, but this only served to emphasise the lack of consumables that were presented. Two pairs of two wine bottles (a red & a white) for a table over 30 feet long meant a bit of a stretch and three pairs would have made things easier.
The starter (shallot tart) was beautifully presented and delicious but somewhat small for the price. Two bites and it had gone, barely enough time to get into how it worked with the stilton dressing and the figs. A selection of breads were presented, but these were dry and unpalatable. The restaurant is only a ten minute walk from a degustibus, where they could have sourced a dozen loaves miles better than the ones on offer. Also, the butter pats were too cold – if the bread had been any fresher, it would have been un-spreadable.
The main course (a tagine and a chickpea dish with a minty raita) was, again, small and oddly served in three tiny bowls as if to say “never the twain shall meet”, which is exactly the opposite of how these dishes should be eaten. To top it all, the dishes were served on top of a napkin, so without disassembling the plate, you couldn't mix the cous-cous in with the other dish! I sampled the side dishes provided with other diners orders. The chips were enormous, if few in number, and great when dipped in the raita, but the brussels sprouts were flavourless and hard – I'd question just how fresh they actually were. The baby leaf salad, however, was fresh and mixed well. The mashed potato, on the other hand, was abysmal – grey, stodgy, over-mashe… More