Roast

tuppy14

So up itself it's a wonder it doesn't waddle. 7th February 2009

0 found this helpful

First impressions often last. "Do you have a reservation?" we were asked at 10.30am. For breakfast? The serveuse trolled off to find an empty table in the 80% empty dining room. The decor is modern, but beginning to show its cheapness beneath the veneer.
We were initially enticed in with the Full Borough Breakfast, but when I saw one arrive at the table next door, Little Chef sprang to mind. At 13 quid a pop I want to see glistening fried eggs, properly pan fried bread, half a link of black pudding, lightly grilled smoked bacon, juicy sausages, grilled plum tommies, field mushrooms; you get the picture. The only bit of the above that applied was that the sausages looked right and so did the tommies. No toast, that's extra.
We ordered some Earl Grey and a cappucino. They eventually arived, the tea was fine but the coffee was far too small and luke warm. The waitress confirmed our food order twice before sending it to the kitchen, so I was expecting it to be wrong. Not so.
I had ordered haggis, bubble & squeak and a duck egg while She Who Must Be Obeyed plumped for the Full Borough with poached and a side of bubble.
These meals duly arrived. My duck egg was about 3 weeks old, and perched on top of a slice of fried haggis, which in turn found itself on top of a very greasy 'roast' bubble. This was not what I had been expecting. You can get nice little individual haggis that can be steamed, but Roast prefer the slice off a sausage haggis, fried to death, much like in a Glaswegian chippy. Not enough seasoning in any of the meal left it tasteless, made up for only by the glorious Tiptree Tomato ketchup. The bubble was sadly lacking in the spud department, and, as previously mentioned, the fried duck egg was old, leathery, and tasteless. The one saving grace was that the plate was hot so the congealing mass was at least warm.

SWMBO was not so lucky.
Her Full Borough looked better than our neighbour's but only because of the properly poached eggs. The plate however was tepid to best and this was common as the servers were carrying loaded 'hot' plates up bare arms. This resulted in the food becoming cold very fast. Deep-fried slice can be a wonderful thing when covered in lashing of Mr Heinz's baked beans but there are no beans or juicy mushrooms in a Full Borough so this half a slice of terracotta was consigned to the 'ever open bin' i.e. me. The great British banger cries out for accompaniment by proper English mustard, and as none was available on the table I asked for some. After 5 minutes I asked again and it duly arrived. Good mustard it was, if a little runny and on a saucer. Not Taylor's then. The bacon was very tasty and crispy, but the sausages lacked seasoning and enough cooking. Scottish black pudding, again in a slice, an over-barleyed and under-blooded pud in the Jockinese style served overly fried.

An automatic 12.5% service charge was added to the bill, and duly removed.
On departing we visited the lavatories. Not that clean and lacking paper in the gents and according to SWMBO the ladies was disgusting enough for me to not want to go in to more detail.
A huge log jam at the exit/entrance caused by front of house staff not really knowing what to do. By now the place was filling fast so I can only assume that it's normally better than on our visit.
If they were to source their ingredients from downstairs in the market, cook them properly and train the staff a bit better it might be worth the £32 for breakfast for 2, but it's not.
Eastern european staff and old eastern european commie block standards at West End prices.
I've had far better coffee and breakfasts in greasy spoon cafes than this and I'm not at all encouraged to try their dinner menu. If you cant cook a Full English properly then you have no chance at a decent roast.

neilgrayshon

21st October 2008

1 found this helpful

Some real highs - amazing puddings, beautiful dining room and mostly efficient service but shocking roast potatoes and mediocre main courses really let this place down.

jezirwin

Great Breakfast 22nd May 2008

3 found this helpful

I visited 'Roast' for breakfast mid-week and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The location, overlooking the Borough markets makes for an excellent atmosphere.

I had the 'Full Borough' (bacon, eggs, sausages, mushroom and black pudding) which was, as expected - big, filling and tasty. My cousin and aunt had kippers which they enjoyed.

The service was excellent, while it wasn't cheap it wasn't exorbitant either, it cost about £35 for the three of us.

Litro_K

Lovely Views of Borough Market 19th May 2008

4 found this helpful

I haven't eaten here yet but soon will. I've visited twice, to have drinks in the long bar at the front of the building, the beautiful Floral Hall. It overlooks Borough Market in its entirety and seems to remain strangely quiet even on Saturday afternoons when the marketplace is rammed with people. For me, that makes it an incredibly appealing place to go and people-watch and I've dragged friends here for a drink when the usual haunts (The Market Porter, Brindisa) have been too full. Everyone who has been wants to go back, so I guess that says something!

DanWilkinson

If dinner's as good as breakfast... 16th November 2007

8 found this helpful

Now, I'm not normally one for breakfast on a weekday. I tend not to properly wake up until some time after I've got to work and the second coffee's starting to kick in (unless I've been to Monmouth on the way in, in which case I'm reaching full speed as I walk through the door). This means that dealing with solid food before lunchtime is something of an unwelcome challenge, normally.

However, mutually stacked diaries led to me meeting at Roast for a working breakfast recently, and very impressed we all were too. Full 'Boroughs' all round, with stunning sausages, meaty bacon and excellent black pudding (nicely crisped on the outside). Only criticism of mine would be that the fried bread was perhaps a little on the greasy side, but I suppose comments like that of a fried breakfast are a bit like handing out speeding tickets at the Formula 1.

They do a good-looking range of coffees and teas, notably my colleague's jasmine tea, which contained a full jasmine flower in the cup - very impressive, if arguably a rather unusual order in this context. As for the rest, it looks similarly satisfying, and from the menu it looks like the rest of the day is too. I know this is probably on the expensive side, but it's a really nice setting, the ingredients are absolutely top notch and, on my visit at least, the signs of a deft touch in the kitchen were clearly apparent.

And the Market Porter across the way is open at this time in the morning too, so one could, if one were so inclined, roll out from breakfast in time for a cheeky pint before work.

Not me though. Honest guv.

alba

Nice views, nice, food, better atmosphere! 19th October 2007

5 found this helpful

The first time I went to roast was a Saturday afternoon. I though the place was cosy and very beautiful. We got a table close to the windows (these are the best but you have to arrive before 10,00-11,00 to get one). The service was just perfect and the food excellent. It may be a little bit expensive but everything is good quality and I thin k it's worth to visit at least once. I enjoyed the Special Borough market which was 12 £ but I could not eat anything else for at least 8 hours!

lenalouise

9th August 2007

4 found this helpful

This British restaurant is not bad. The interior is modern and nicely decorated with an open kitchen (behind a glass wall). The staff are extremely friendly and efficient which is what you come to expect from this type of place.

The food was not as amazing as I expected it to be. I had a smoked salmon starter which was tasty but not orgasmic. For mains I had steak and kidney pudding. The pastry on top was very thick and stodgy like it wasn't rolled out thin enough. Slightly disappointing but the filling was satisfyingly tender and rich. I then shared a cheeseboard with my friend and was very pleased with it.

I would maybe come here again if money wasn't an issue but I don't think the food is exceptional enough for the price you pay.

paulcollins

Good food and great location, but not cheap 13th June 2007

4 found this helpful

Opened in a blaze of publicity a couple of years ago, Roast has had some mixed reviews. A winter Saturday night was a great time to go, and the atmosphere was superb.

Traditional English cuisine with a twist, attentive service and a good wine list combine to make this a spectacular experience. Even so, I felt a little put out by the size of the bill.

jo104

Tribute to British cooking 19th March 2007

5 found this helpful

This restaurant specialises in the good old English roast, although it does excellent fish dishes as well. There is great views from both sides of this fabulous restaurant being the view of St Pauls on the one side & the bustling Bourough market on the other. I came here at lunch time on market day & if your request for a window seat is granted the market hustle & bustle is your view, alternatively if you visit for dinner then you would prefer the other side of the restaurant offering views of St Pauls with the city lights.

The food is delicious and the service is good. We ate in the floral hall, the flower shaped window came from Covent garden.

I had the honey & port roasted ham which was divine. At this restaurant you can sample some British wines and of course all the meat is British. They offer a breakfast menu as well as high tea menu.

http://www.roast-restaurant.com/home.cfm