http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/1f6337f/skylon <b>Skylon</b><br />London, Southbank Centre, SE1 8XX, United Kingdom en http://trustedplaces.com/uploads/placepics/trustedplaces.comaPlacePic['name']}.140.jpg http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/1f6337f/skylon http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/1f6337f/skylon/1v28h9
Review by walid

Rating: 3.00
Tags:
This is a really difficult one to rate, on one side the service was a 2 star, the venue a 5 star, and the food 3 star... ok so overall a 3 star.

Found on top of the Royal Festival Hall, Skylon has a restaurant and brasserie section. My friends and I sat in the brasserie section as we starred at the beautiful view of the south bank. With its incredibly high ceilings Skylon feels very airy and with its candles at night would probably be romantic.

The food is ok at best, I had the Merguez Couscous which wasn't very exciting in terms of taste and texture. What this place has going is that the food is reasonably priced. See picture of the menu.

The disappointment came with the quality of the service. Whilst there was an abundance of waiters it was quite difficult to get their attention and when you did the service was slowish. Additionally I overheard at least 4 times dishes / glasses being dropped by the staff.

In spite of the above issues I would recommend you give this place a try, if not for the food do it for the great views and superb airy atmosphere.
]]> Tue, 13 May 2008 13:45:10 +0000 /review/uk/london/restaurant/1f6337f/skylon/1v28h91995266474 walid 51.505510397275 -0.11758804321289 http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/1f6337f/skylon/1i94u7
Review by lattebird

Rating: 1.00
Tags:
Much hyped recently, Skylon has a superb setting right on the river at the Royal Festival Hall. Panormic views of London, high ceilings and airy atmosphere. The food though, whilst fair is not worth any hype at all.

The fish soup was average and the lamb was tasty but not any more exceptional than a good gastro pub.

I would rate the service but then with a ratio that seemed like it was 10 staff to every diner, you'd expect good service.

I would go again, at lunchtime on a sunny day but only if I got a really special deal.]]> Thu, 13 Sep 2007 11:01:44 +0000 /review/uk/london/restaurant/1f6337f/skylon/1i94u71494429681 lattebird 51.505510397275 -0.11758804321289 http://trustedplaces.com/review/uk/london/restaurant/1f6337f/skylon/1j9337
Review by wyahaw

Rating: 3.00
Tags:
I have a rule that says that food gets worse as it gets higher: think airline food, ski lodges, revolving restaurants at the top of towers. This also applies to places with a view, as restaurant owners feel that a good view entitles them to jack up the prices 20% or so because people will be so taken with the view out of the window that they won't notice the bill.

It seems they are generally right about that, as Skylon was packed. The redevelopment of the Festival Hall completed just weeks ago and includes the Skylon restaurant in the place where the old People's Palace resided. However the refurbishment has much improved the space, which now consists of a vast, high-ceilinged room with spectacular drop windows overlooking the Thames. The menu features bistro British dishes, with three courses at £37.50 and two courses at £32.50. The wine list is very good with interesting growers from around the world, though mark-ups are fierce in places e.g. a dessert wine that retails at £16.50 for a half bottle was on the list at £75. Service is friendly though a little slipshod in places e.g. wine was not topped up on occasion, and there was a painfully long gap between the main course and dessert.

The meal began with tube-shaped slivers of chicken liver pate on toast, which was pleasant though not very strong in flavour (3/10). My starter of carpaccio of scallops with chorizo was surprisingly bland, enlivened by some toasted almonds but with capers that had little impact on the dish (2/10). A salad of Cornish crab on an avocado mousse was better, topped with a few coriander leaves and a few baby tomatoes (4/10).

Wild salmon from Scotland was surprisingly limited in flavour, though cooked correctly, served with a watercress cream and pomme mousseline (3/10). Chateaubriand was cooked well enough but had only fair quality beef, served with mash flavoured with truffle, a little spinach and a tiny amount of madeira sauce (2/10). Dessert of crepes Suzette was done in the traditional way, flambeed at the table, but the pancakes were much too thick. It is possible they were pre-bought pancakes but either way they should have been light and thin rather than plump and heavy (2/10).

I was hoping for more from chef Helena Puolakka, who worked for Pierre Koffmann at the Berkeley and cooked really well in her stint at Sonnys. She is "executive chef", which I presume means she is not very hands on, though I saw her here this evening. Overall I loved the room and the view but was rather disappointed by the cooking, especially given the hardly bargain prices. But still, there is that view.....
]]> Sat, 14 Jul 2007 01:55:31 +0000 /review/uk/london/restaurant/1f6337f/skylon/1j93371038366406 wyahaw 51.505510397275 -0.11758804321289