http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar The Clerkenwell Dining Room & Bar - London, 69-73 St John St, EC1M 4AN, United Kingdom en http://cdn.trustedplaces.com/i/uploads/placepics/18256_0e8d4cb6.140.jpg http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/149xl7
Review by AlexWoods

Rating: 4.00
Tags: french, good value, mediterranean, expensive
Now then. The Clerkenwell is probably at the top end, price wise, of eateries in the area and I have to admit that were it not for taking advantage of the 50% off TT deal, I probably wouldn't have suggested lunching there with my colleagues. Having done so, I would not hesitate to go again, discount or no discount.

The restaurant itself is lovely. Deceptively large, very well appointed, modern, fresh and comfortable. The music was a little loud, to the point of being intrusive, which was a great shame, but otherwise very nice indeed.

The menu I like. Varied, balanced and interesting, I was torn between several delicious sounding dishes. I settled for chicken liver parfait, carrot and garlic chutney to start. The parfait was delicious ⬠creamy, rich and silky smooth! The chutney was a real high light though. Iâ¬"m a bit of a sucker for a good chutney anyway, but Hubba hubba! Sweet, sour, savoury, crunchy and crowned with a bushel of oh-so-very microgreens ⬠tres chic donâ¬"cha know?! Colleagues enjoyed seared scallops, aubergine pakora and curry spices, which just looked and smelled (and, I was assured, tasted) heavenly, and field mushrooms, crisp polenta cake, balsamic and pomegranate glaze, which looked very handsome indeed.

Choosing an entrée was a challenge but eventually I was won over by the hake (or rather by the squid, mussel, red pepper and pesto potage it came with) and man was that a good idea! A perfectly sized and cooked piece of fish was topped with a generous smear of tart pesto and swam in the most delicious, sweet seafood potage. The microgreens made another appearance in quantity, and a welcome element it was too!

We didnâ¬"t have dessert, but they looked delicious, and we were treated to some delicious dark, bitter truffles with the bill.

I was impressed by the wine list. Pretty Old World, but very varied, and at least a dozen reds and whites available by the carafe, which I applaud! More carafes, Restaurants of London! More!

The service we thought could have been a little sharper. We lunched, not necessarily by choice, at a leisurely pace which was made all the more frustrating by the rather dopey young man who kept wandering past tables with out really paying much attention to what was actually going on. He was however, like his colleagues, charming and I do think being a nice waiter can disguise, up to a point, some short comings in efficiency.
]]> Fri, 29 May 2009 16:36:25 +0000 /review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/149xl71278578654 AlexWoods french good value mediterranean expensive 51.520618500946 -0.1031453880373 http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/1b7tv8
Review by chrisp

Rating: 4.00
Tags: romantic, british, international, french
In a typically eloquent post a few months back, fellow food blogger Silverbrow confessed to what he called his "Dirty Secret" - the use of the Square Meal restaurant review site. I know how he feels - as a foodie there seems to be an attitude that you should just somehow "know" where's good and where isn't from tips handed down from the Food Gods, rather than doing anything so common as looking it up on a website. For whatever reason, to say you visited somewhere because a friend recommended it is perfectly fine, even if said friend knows nothing about food, but to say you'd made a booking based on the highest score on TrustedPlaces is inviting ridicule. It's absurd, of course, but such is the elitist world of restaurant dining.

So perhaps now it's time to confess to my own dirty secret. In the same way that some people obsessively track their eBay collectibles or their Facebook feed, I am addicted to the Toptable Special Offers page. It's constantly updated, includes some of the best restaurants in the country and occasionally lists offers that seem too good to be true. Recently, Michelin-starred Knightsbridge eatery One-O-One had a "50% off the food" offer - astonishing when you consider the quality of the cooking there and that this included all a la carte menu items with ingredients such as lobster, truffles and caviar. And on Monday, searching for somewhere new to visit that evening I spotted a similar deal at The Clerkenwell - a restaurant with a stellar pedigree and yet one which has quite a low profile in the capital. With a couple of clicks, I made a booking.

The one thing that does let Toptable down is the user reviews - sometimes it's hard to believe you're eating on the same planet of some of the more eccentric reviewers, never mind the same restaurant. I had been led to expect poor service ("we had a clumsy waiter"), and yet service on the night was never anything less than charming and super-efficient. The room was intimate without being oppressive ("tables are too close together"), and I liked the long entrance corridor with the uplighting and plush carpet ("hallway carpet really needs to be replaced"). I also enjoyed a glass of white burgundy in the bar area without being rushed to my table ("the minute a glass or plate was left unattended it would be wisked[sic] away by a waiter keen to get us out of there and get the table back").

The food wasn't a letdown either. An unlisted amuse of parsnip soup was pleasant and set the tone nicely, but the fireworks really started with the arrival of my Steak Tartare and Truffle Cream. The steak itself was served on a cigar-shaped sliver of polenta crisp, topped with a cute quails egg yolk in a half shell. With it were two medallions of polenta which had great texture and were only slightly too oily, and a superb dollop of earthy, truffley mousse.

Main course was a very fresh fillet of wild sea bass, with good firm flesh and lovely crispy skin, sat on top of a potato rösti. Surrounding it was a warm and silky crab sauce spiked with some mixture of herbs that I couldn't quite place but which had great, fresh flavour. Again, the only mild complaint was the rösti which could have done with losing about 50% of its oil content, but it did its job well enough.

Finally, we shared a chocolate tarte thingy and white chocolate ice-cream. As is so often the case in these places, desserts seemed like a bit of an afterthought - I don't have much of a sweet tooth but I could tell the ingredients and preparation in the dessert menu was toned down in comparison to the savoury courses. The chocolate itself was bordering on stodgy and was hard to get through, even with two of us attacking it, although the white chocolate ice-cream was good.

Overall I was very pleasantly surprised with The Clerkenwell. The kitchen showed a confidence not to muck about too much with good ingredients, and perhaps with a slightly lighter touch on the fried goods they would be worthy of attention from the Michelin boys. Is it possible that all the weird reviews from Toptable were just a clever excercise in lowering expectations so the reality would be appreciated in sharper relief? If so, it certainly worked on me. And now my dirty secret is out, I commend the Toptable Special Offers page to you - just remember, whatever the user reviews say, the opposite may well be true.]]> Fri, 30 Jan 2009 13:13:00 +0000 /review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/1b7tv81994914438 chrisp romantic british international french 51.520618500946 -0.1031453880373 http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/1p0q37
Review by acrobat

Rating: 4.00
Tags: french, expensive
Though everyone, including the Clerkenwell Dinning Room itself, seems to style itself as European, it was defintaly more French influenced than anything else.

The mains were excellent - particularly the lamb and pork belly, though the portions for the sea food seemed small in comparison. And the wine was very full bodied but excellent.

Desserts were a bit more mixed - some were amazing (one of us declared the Chocolate fondant the best they'd ever tasted...), and the cheese selection was varied and very enjoyable. Though I am yet to convinced of ricotta cheese doing well in a cheese cake....

Service was very attentive, though a little over zealous on the water pouring - which is a obviously a good money spinner for them as it is £3.50 a bottle.

Otherwise it was very enjoyable and highly recommended.]]> Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:19:28 +0000 /review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/1p0q371844703901 acrobat french expensive 51.520618500946 -0.1031453880373 http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/1p99u7
Review by sue

Rating: 2.00
Tags: european, bad service, international, business
I really wanted to like The Clerkenwell Dining Room. Friends had enjoyed it, the menu sounded good, and I am a fan of their sister restaurant, The Chancery. I think I should have stuck to The Chancery.

Ok, it wasn't all bad. For example, the starters were nice. We had the Octopus Carpaccio, braised baby octopus, squid, lemon and rosemary dressing; and the Crab chowder, crab dumplings, sweet corn and basil oil. The octopus was very well received, and the chowder was good but under-seasoned.

Main courses we had were the Sea bass, scallop ravioli, artichokes, asparagus, tomato consommé; the Lamb Rump, provencal vegetables, samossas and balsamic jus; and the Rabbit saddle, potato puree, baby leeks, wild mushrooms and herb sauce. The lamb was really delicious⬦ unfortunately I didn't order it. I had the sea bass which was disappointing - it sounded good on paper, but the tomato consommé was bland and watered down all the other flavours. Dessert was almost a success - the Lemon curd tart, lemon confit and coconut sorbet was nicely presented, but the tart was a little too gooey. Did like the sorbet though.

While most of the food we had was nice, the service really put a dampener on the evening. There were about 6 staff racing about, all apparently serving the same tables which lead to confusion and duplications, not to mention endlessly annoying water top-ups. Many of the staff didn't appear to understand English, and stared blankly at us when a request was made. We were all irritated more and more as the meal progressed.

But the biggest mistake was when they gave the remainder of our wine to another table⬦ They had the white wine from all tables sitting in coolers to one side - I noticed them trying to write our table number on the label of our wine initially, but their system fell apart and our wine disappeared. At one stage they mistakenly bought over a couple of new glasses and then a half-finished bottle of someone else's wine. When we told them it wasn't ours they then took it to another table and started pouring.

When the manager bought over our bill she asked how our meal had been. We then mentioned the issue with the wine and she looked shocked. She hurried off and we dug out cash/cards to pay the bill and prepared to leave. The manager returned with glasses of champagne for all of us by way of apology. To be honest I was horrified. Ok, it may have been a nice gesture, but we had finished our meal, and just wanted to pay and get out of there. Only one of us valiantly forced down a half glass of champers... ]]> Wed, 02 Jul 2008 19:14:00 +0000 /review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/1p99u71284662104 sue european bad service international business 51.520618500946 -0.1031453880373 http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/1f25i8
Review by DavidMuir

Rating: 4.00
Tags: good value, british, business
I haven't been to this place for eight years. Was there on Friday. The cooking was exemplary, wonderful seasonal halibut.

And very good value for really good cooking]]> Mon, 05 Nov 2007 10:28:06 +0000 /review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/1f25i81063692060 DavidMuir good value british business 51.520618500946 -0.1031453880373 http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/1a85v7
Review by squirrel

Rating: 3.00
Tags: international, british, gastro pub
We went here to take advantage of the 50% of deal, and ended up paying about £30 each, so under normal circumstances the place could be considered expensive, it's hard to tell, it depends whether you are a millionaire or a pauper.

We were seated in a little corner off by ourselves, because there was a herd of newly qualified solicitors in the main dining room. Nevertheless, our armchair style seats were was incredibly comfortable, which made it all the more difficult, at the end of the evening, to get out into the cold, drizzly night.

Now to the food and service.

We tasted each other's starters, so I could offer an opinion on 3. But that could take forever. Suffice it to say that they were fine. Nothing to dream about and drool over, just good. And I wouldn't order the fois gras again - it was probably too cheap to be as sinfully good as fois gras can be.

The warm bread served on the side was a great touch, and the butter was nice too.

As for the mains, I ordered the halibut but was served the rabbit. The waiter (with designer glasses scarier than my own) was lovely and apologetic and I wasn't bothered as this would have been my second choice. So I stuck with the rabbit. I am not sure that it tasted particularly rabbity, but it was delicious. There was a hint of sweetness to the sauce (juice?) it was served with that went well with the meat. My friend had the halibut and seemed to be enjoying that.

I didn't have dessert, but I did have a desert wine, and I have to say that this was my highlight of the night. It was just sweet enough, it was smooth as silk and it followed extremely well after the white wine we had had during the meal.

My friends had to wait a long time to get their creme brulees, but they were very satisfied once they did arrive.

I wouldn't be opposed to returning if someone else was adamant, but I wouldn't take others there. I would rather try new places.

I would definitely return for the dessert wine though!]]> Sat, 27 Oct 2007 16:57:16 +0000 /review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/1a85v71191707918 squirrel international british gastro pub 51.520618500946 -0.1031453880373 http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/109137
Review by TrustedBot

Rating: 0.00
Tags: Bar, Brunch Menu, Business, Cocktails
The two key ingredients to a successful restaurant operation are great food and superb service.
 
With the two key players at The Clerkenwell Dining Room & Bar, which opened on 15 November 2001 at 69-73 St John Street, EC1, the stage should be set for success.
 
Head Chef Andrew Thompson´s background includes two years at The Square with Philip Howard, two years in New York at The Lennox Room, and the past five years at the Michelin-starred L´Escargot in Greek Street, Soho, where he was in charge of the kitchens for the Picasso Room and ground floor restaurant. Business partner and General Manager Zak Jones spent two years with Anton Mosimann, followed by five years working for Marco Pierre White at Quo Vadis, Mirabelle, Criterion Brasserie, ending in charge of L´Escorgot as General Manager.
 
The site of The Clerkenwell Dining Room & Bar was Stephen Bull´s for several years, and most recently a Belgo Bierodrome. A cosmetic refurbishment - mostly paint and fabric - has improved the interior mood with dark wood and warm tones of Oxford blue and mushroom.
 
The ground floor restaurant can accommodate up to 80 for lunch/dinner complete with a separate cocktail bar for drinks before or after.  On the first floor a private dining room is available for hire and can accommodate from 20-40 seated or 50 standing.
 
The private room at The Clerkenwell offers complete privacy from the regular diners, elegantly enhanced with its unusual architecture, it is the ideal venue for celebrations, client entertaining and other special occasions.
 
The menu is modern European with occasional touches of ´Michelin´-style, mixed with gutsy flavours and combinations, recently awarded two AA Rosettes.
]]> Thu, 08 Feb 2007 18:20:00 +0000 /review/uk/london/restaurant/138e47/the-clerkenwell-dining-room-and-bar/109137486983840 TrustedBot Bar Brunch Menu Business Cocktails 51.520618500946 -0.1031453880373