Latest reviews for Restaurants in Southgate, London, United Kingdom

The Grill Bar - The Grill Bar, Southgate by Col29

Col29 — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 19:18:56 +0000

Review by Col29

Rating: 2.00

Phone: 020 8886 7372

Website: http://www.thegrillbar.co.uk

Upon arriving with my wife and another couple we were quickly seen to and our request to have a table outside was met with no complications.
We ordered a bottle of house red and for Â£10.50 was nothing more than ok. A similar quality red would probably set you back Â£3-4 at the supermarket.
It took some time, around 30mins , for our order to be taken and everyone plumped for the Â£15 a head "Meze".The starters were the usual mix of yoghurt and mint style dips along with taramasalata, houmus etc etc and an overcooked and very rubbery halloumi.
The main dish of mixed grill came within 5 mins of the starters being cleared. It included a chicken wing, a slice of chicken breast, a lamb cutlet, and 2 pieces of lamb shish, served with rice and a salad. The lamb, obviously a good cut was cooked expertly. The chicken breast was dry and overcooked and the chicken wing gave you the feeling of eating a prepacked piece of chicken similar to a famous colonel's we all know. The salad tasted fresh and the rice was cooked well.
Our second bottle of wine was a Â£14 bottle of Rioja which was lighter and crisper than the house red, but again I feel slightly overpriced.
Fruit came next. Watermelon, 1970's style cut kiwi fruit and grapes were presented on a platter for 4 to share. Fresh and clean they might be but I prefer a sweet for desert which would have to be paid for seperately.
With the coffee machine being broken we were brought 4 ordinary coffees to finish the meal.I would have liked to have ordered a cappacino or Turkish coffee as this was still on the menu and at no point were we made aware of this until ordering coffee at the end of the meal.
The waiters were friendly but slow. They had a work at their own pace mentality. Two young ladies sitting behind us were served before us even though they sat at their table a good 10mins after we did. The fact the waiters were all young and probably single men surely had nothing to do with this!
Food was mediocre, lamb apart. Good for large groups wanting easy eating and plenty to drink. Not great for couples or foursomes.Service can do better.
Total bill was Â£80 about Â£10 more than what I felt it was worthUpon arriving with my wife and another couple we were quickly seen to and our request to have a table outside was met with no complications.
We ordered a bottle of house red and for Â£10.50 was nothing more than ok. A similar quality red would probably set you back Â£3-4 at the supermarket.
It took some time, around 30mins , for our order to be taken and everyone plumped for the Â£15 a head "Meze".The starters were the usual mix of yoghurt and mint style dips along with taramasalata, houmus etc etc and an overcooked and very rubbery halloumi.
The main dish of mixed grill came within 5 mins of the starters being cleared. It included a chicken wing, a slice of chicken breast, a lamb cutlet, and 2 pieces of lamb shish, served with rice and a salad. The lamb, obviously a good cut was cooked expertly. The chicken breast was dry and overcooked and the chicken wing gave you the feeling of eating a prepacked piece of chicken similar to a famous colonel's we all know. The salad tasted fresh and the rice was cooked well.
Our second bottle of wine was a Â£14 bottle of Rioja which was lighter and crisper than the house red, but again I feel slightly overpriced.
Fruit came next. Watermelon, 1970's style cut kiwi fruit and grapes were presented on a platter for 4 to share. Fresh and clean they might be but I prefer a sweet for desert which would have to be paid for seperately.
With the coffee machine being broken we were brought 4 ordinary coffees to finish the meal.I would have liked to have ordered a cappacino or Turkish coffee as this was still on the menu and at no point were we made aware of this until ordering coffee at the end of the meal.
The waiters were friendly but slow. They had a work at their own pace mentality. Two young ladies sitting behind us were served before us even though they sat at their table a good 10mins after we did. The fact the waiters were all young and probably single men surely had nothing to do with this!
Food was mediocre, lamb apart. Good for large groups wanting easy eating and plenty to drink. Not great for couples or foursomes.Service can do better.
Total bill was Â£80 about Â£10 more than what I felt it was worth

Cafe Rouge - Cafe Rouge - a typical chain restaurant? by jennufcboss

jennufcboss — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 11:21:20 +0000

Review by jennufcboss

Rating: 3.00

Phone: 020 8886 3336

Website: http://www.caferouge.co.uk

Tags: french, good value, lively

In agreement to Sami the other reviewer, I am not a fan of chain restaurants at all. But also in agreement with Sami, I think the food at Cafe Rouge is far better than normally expected of a chain restaurant, and perhaps the French passion of good cooking is still evident in some of the dishes on offer here.
Portions appear to have got smaller over the last few years, which is slightly disappointing for a gannet like me, but the quality has not diminished. My personal favourite dish at Cafe Rouge has to be the French Onion Soup, which is extremely flavoursome and presented in the traditional way.
It does get crowded, so it's worth booking a table or arriving early, but this adds to the lively atmosphere.In agreement to Sami the other reviewer, I am not a fan of chain restaurants at all. But also in agreement with Sami, I think the food at Cafe Rouge is far better than normally expected of a chain restaurant, and perhaps the French passion of good cooking is still evident in some of the dishes on offer here.
Portions appear to have got smaller over the last few years, which is slightly disappointing for a gannet like me, but the quality has not diminished. My personal favourite dish at Cafe Rouge has to be the French Onion Soup, which is extremely flavoursome and presented in the traditional way.
It does get crowded, so it's worth booking a table or arriving early, but this adds to the lively atmosphere.

Los Kouzina - by jennufcboss

jennufcboss — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 11:16:57 +0000

Review by jennufcboss

Rating: 4.00

Phone: 0800 2346450

Tags: greek, buzzy, slow service

This is a great place for a relaxed lunch, or a buzzing dinner. The food is excellent value for money, and the style of the venue is quite different from any other Greek restaurants in the area. The menu is diverse with touches of individuality. I recommend this highly. The only downside is that occasionally the service can be slightly slow, but when you're having a good time - who needs to rush!This is a great place for a relaxed lunch, or a buzzing dinner. The food is excellent value for money, and the style of the venue is quite different from any other Greek restaurants in the area. The menu is diverse with touches of individuality. I recommend this highly. The only downside is that occasionally the service can be slightly slow, but when you're having a good time - who needs to rush!

Fantozzi - Best pizza I've had, outside of Italy by Sami

Sami — Tue, 08 May 2007 23:29:18 +0000

Review by Sami

Rating: 4.00

Phone: 020 8447 9082

Website: http://www.fantozzi.co.uk/

Tags: italian, lively, cheap

One of the unfortunate parts about living in Southgate is that there is really nowhere to eat if you want to go out for dinner and stay close to home. However, one of the positive things about this is that you try every restaurant in the area and if it's any good, you return on a regular basis.

This is embarassing to admit but I eat here at least once a week and have gone 4 times in one week before. It's a relatively big restaurant and constantly packed, night in and out. Making reservations is a must on the week-end, but the table turnaround is pretty fast and it's no more than a 15 minute wait. It's noisy, and at times can be quite the raucous affair, but it's also a lot of fun and is great for family eating. The crowd is quite a mix, whether it's a family with their small children in tow, a couple of businessmen sitting down for a quick meal, a young couple, or a group of friends. I think it's safe to say that it's a neighbourhood institution.

The staff are incredibly friendly and make conversation with you; they might not be the best servers per se in that they forget to bring things to the table, or can be slow to take your order, but it's a small price to pay for the best pizza. I've eaten at la Porchetta which everyone claims is the best pizza in London, but Fantozzi gives it a good run for the title. I won't eat at la Porchetta anymore, even if I'm in Angel and have a craving for pizza.

Their pastas are excellent as well, but I've never eaten any of the meat courses because I always give in to temptation... however, their starters are absolutely terrible and it's really quite a shame since they do so well in other aspects of their menu. The wine list is okay, nothing special, but it's a lot better than what I've seen in many City restaurants which are 3 times the price and nowhere near the quality.

Hopefully they manage to pull it together, but until then I'll happily stick with the pizza!

Their website is http://www.fantozzi.co.uk.One of the unfortunate parts about living in Southgate is that there is really nowhere to eat if you want to go out for dinner and stay close to home. However, one of the positive things about this is that you try every restaurant in the area and if it's any good, you return on a regular basis.

This is embarassing to admit but I eat here at least once a week and have gone 4 times in one week before. It's a relatively big restaurant and constantly packed, night in and out. Making reservations is a must on the week-end, but the table turnaround is pretty fast and it's no more than a 15 minute wait. It's noisy, and at times can be quite the raucous affair, but it's also a lot of fun and is great for family eating. The crowd is quite a mix, whether it's a family with their small children in tow, a couple of businessmen sitting down for a quick meal, a young couple, or a group of friends. I think it's safe to say that it's a neighbourhood institution.

The staff are incredibly friendly and make conversation with you; they might not be the best servers per se in that they forget to bring things to the table, or can be slow to take your order, but it's a small price to pay for the best pizza. I've eaten at la Porchetta which everyone claims is the best pizza in London, but Fantozzi gives it a good run for the title. I won't eat at la Porchetta anymore, even if I'm in Angel and have a craving for pizza.

Their pastas are excellent as well, but I've never eaten any of the meat courses because I always give in to temptation... however, their starters are absolutely terrible and it's really quite a shame since they do so well in other aspects of their menu. The wine list is okay, nothing special, but it's a lot better than what I've seen in many City restaurants which are 3 times the price and nowhere near the quality.

Hopefully they manage to pull it together, but until then I'll happily stick with the pizza!

Their website is http://www.fantozzi.co.uk.