Latest favourites and wishlist by Liss

Austins - review by sue

Sat, 23 Aug 2008 18:17:04 +0000

Austins - review by sue

Rating: 2.5

Location: 29 The Green, TW9 1LX, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Tags: quick bite, smoothies, free wi-fi, proper food, tea, average brew, juices, cakes, organic

Austins is a small cafÃ© located across the road from Richmond Green. It specialises in organic and fair trade food and drinks. Its location ensures it is very popular, especially when the sun is shining as it has some tables outside.

After often walking past Austins for over a year, I finally ventured there one morning in search of a cup of tea and some cake. I had never seen it so quiet. The only two customers there were hogging all of the outside tables with their giant baby buggy and even larger, slobbering dog. I decided to sit inside.

All of the cakes in the display cabinet were still covered in clingfilm, which I always find off putting. I ordered a cuppa and a slice of 'organic chocolate cake'. The tea was served in a large cup that had seen better days. The cake was covered in lots of rich icing which was nice, but if you ate the cake part without the icing it was too dry. As I sat, sipping my tea to wash down the cake, I noticed how dirty the floor was.

Gaucho Richmond - review by JamesL

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:31:44 +0000

Gaucho Richmond - review by JamesL

Rating: 2.8

Location: The Towpath, TW10 6UT, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 8948 4030

Website: http://www.gauchorestaurants.co.uk/restaurants/restaurant.php?id=richmond

I may be alone but I think this branch is over rated and living off it's location...which is fabulous. Very much over priced and certainly not the greatest steaks I have had been couple of times and on both times our party has left disappointed. Shame as great location and fantastic wine list.

The Bingham - review by sue

Sun, 18 May 2008 13:30:21 +0000

The Bingham - review by sue

Rating: 3.5

Location: 61-63 Petersham Rd, TW10 6UT, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 8940 0902

Website: http://www.binghamhotel.co.uk/restaurant/

Tags: romantic, british, international, views, good value, expensive, european, bar

The Bingham restaurant has been completely refurbished (though I must confess to preferring the previous dÃ©cor) and re-launched in March with a shiny new chef and more upmarket menu. We recently took my foodie sister there for dinner and she was very impressed.

Since the refurb, some prices on the menu have been hiked up making the Bingham perhaps a more special occasion type of place, however there are deals to be had, and we were lucky to dine on a 50% off food offer which certainly softened the blow.

Make sure you start with a drink in the stunning looking bar, or perhaps on the terrace, weather permitting, with views over the river.

In the restaurant, we settled into our comfortable corner table for what turned out to be a very good meal indeed. Service was a little haphazard at times, and the noisy kitchen door did grate a little, but overall it was an excellent evening.

An amuse bouche of Asparagus & split pea soup paved the way for the delights to come. We started with the Roast Quail with pickled mushrooms, caramelised foie gras and shallot sauce; and the Smoked Eel Terrine with celeriac choucroute, pink fir potato and chervil salad. Loved the presentation and tastes of both. Next up was the Saddleback Pork - cheek, loin, black pudding, barbeque beans and smoked potato; and the Squab Pigeon with Jerusalem artichoke puree, fig & beetroot tart, and coffee sauce. I tried a mouthful of the pigeon and it was very rare and rich. The pork dish was delicious, particularly the sticky pork cheek and the black pudding.

Wanting to prolong the experience, dessert was ordered - the Yoghurt and Marscapone Cheesecake with gingerbread, fig ripple ice cream and earl grey jelly; and the Varlhona Chocolate Mousse with vanilla rice pudding and pink grapefruit sorbet - the mousse and rice pudding were an excellent combination, though the sorbet seemed out of place and melted too quickly.

Noisy doors and soggy sorbet aside, we will definitely return to The Bingham.

The Bingham - review by amandajf

Sat, 29 Mar 2008 08:20:53 +0000

The Bingham - review by amandajf

Rating: 3.5

Location: 61-63 Petersham Rd, TW10 6UT, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 8940 0902

Website: http://www.binghamhotel.co.uk/restaurant/

Tags: expensive

Although we have lived in Richmond for many years and enjoyed the nearby Petersham Hotel we have only 'discovered' this Gem in 2008.
It is a cool and stylish 'boutique' hotel,with a excellent restaurant.I don't know why is isn't packed and hard to book.The position is superb ,above the river .
We have eaten there twice and had superb meals each time. The food is very much upto the quality of 1 Michelin starred restaurants in central London. The price is quite high for Richmond but good value and similar to its neighbour on the Hill.Some of the combinations of food are very conventional others a little unusual although very successful. It is easy to see which from the menu .
It is hard to find fault but seating in the bar is quickly a problem. Why have a limit in the restaurant - maximum table size is 6 since the refurbishment ? Please note parking is a problem-ask when you book,they have a few spaces opposite ,priority to residents in the hotel. Apart from that I can recommend highly.

Gaucho Richmond - review by sue

Sun, 23 Mar 2008 18:30:49 +0000

Gaucho Richmond - review by sue

Rating: 2.8

Location: The Towpath, TW10 6UT, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 8948 4030

Website: http://www.gauchorestaurants.co.uk/restaurants/restaurant.php?id=richmond

Tags: romantic, argentinean, steak, expensive

As we weren't going away for Easter, I decided that a nice lunch was in order on Easter Sunday - and what's nicer than a big juicy steak and a couple of glasses of ballsy read wine! With that in mind, a visit to Gaucho in Richmond was in order.

For those not familiar with Gaucho (aka Gaucho Grill), they are a classy chain of Argentinian steak restaurants. Having eaten at the Piccadilly branch a couple of years earlier, I must confess that I wasn't a huge fan - at that visit my steak had been disappointing and the service pretty bad. But I headed to the Richmond branch with a positive attitude, hoping for a good Gaucho experience.

Service was friendly from arrival, and we were seated at a comfy table with distant views of the river. Loved the dÃ©cor, especially the cow-hide covered walls and leather chairs. The steak board was presented, where they show you the various cuts of steak on offer and explain the differences.

We both opted for the Rib-eye. I chose the 300g, while Alex chose the 400g, along with sides of thin hand-cut chips and some Humitas (pureed corn dish with way too much garlic). My steak was delicious - more medium rare than the requested medium, with that melt-in-your-mouth quality that you want in your rib-eye. Unfortunately Alex's steak wasn't so good - it was good quality, but had a pan fried taste to it and didn't melt like mine did. A bottle of Argentinian Cabernet Sauvignon was an excellent accompaniment to our meal.

At the waitresses recommendation, we shared the Dulce de Leche Cheesecake for dessert. Delicious, but very rich, I'm glad we were sharing. We didn't linger there over coffee, but headed home for a cuppa and some more Easter eggs.

The Bingham - review by Doug

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 18:19:28 +0000

The Bingham - review by Doug

Rating: 3.5

Location: 61-63 Petersham Rd, TW10 6UT, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 8940 0902

Website: http://www.binghamhotel.co.uk/restaurant/

I attempted to make a reservation on their website. There was no indication of any confirmation and I received no email from them. I ended up booking somewhere else. On the next month's credit card bill there was charge for one night's room. I have disputed it twice with my credit card company and the hotel has not provided any proof that they ever informed me about the reservation.

I would never do business with them!

The Bingham - review by Liss

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 12:49:55 +0000

The Bingham - review by Liss

Rating: 3.5

Location: 61-63 Petersham Rd, TW10 6UT, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 8940 0902

Website: http://www.binghamhotel.co.uk/restaurant/

Tags: romantic

For our first wedding we went to the Bingham for Sunday lunch. I had heard good things from friends and as it is right on the river we thought it would be a nice treat.

When we arrived we taken to the bar area where we got a seat on a comfie sofa right in front of the fire. We ordered some champagne and were given the menus to look over. Our order was taken here and we were left to enjoy the fire. We were collected and taken to the dinning room a few minutes before our entrees arrived. To our surprise we were the only people in there! Needless to say we had a great table with a wonderful view of the river and all the sunday river walkers. The room has a lovely feeling to it with modern decor.

The food was wonderful and the staff were attentive and friendly (but not over the top - thank goodness I was concerned being the only guests!)

When we ordered coffee we were given the option of having it in the restaurant or bar - we chose the bar and settled in by the fire.

We will be going back to the Bingham in the hope that it is busier next time so there might be a little more atmosphere!

Gaucho Richmond - review by ChrisHarrison

Mon, 16 Jul 2007 16:38:30 +0000

Gaucho Richmond - review by ChrisHarrison

Rating: 2.8

Location: The Towpath, TW10 6UT, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 8948 4030

Website: http://www.gauchorestaurants.co.uk/restaurants/restaurant.php?id=richmond

Tags: lively, argentinian, steak, pretentious, expensive

Great steaks - the other dishes were quite fussy and over-complicated, especially the starters, but the meat more than made up for it.

It is expensive, though, but nonetheless a good night out. Friendly service and an excellent wine list really helped - but it was the meat than carried the day.

Austins - review by Liss

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 15:47:05 +0000

Austins - review by Liss

Rating: 2.5

Location: 29 The Green, TW9 1LX, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Tags: cosy, average brew, quick bite, lively

This cafe is in a fabulous location in Richmond - overlooking the Green. Not surprisingly it is very busy and empty tables get snatched up very quickly.

The choice of smoothies and juices is by far the best I have seen in the area with healthy and tasty looking salads and sandwiches with a different hot lunch offered each day (and we are not talking just baked potatoes!)
For those that aren't interested in the healthier options in life there is a selection of yummy looking cakes.

The free wi-fi is handy too.

Gaucho Richmond - review by Liss

Fri, 15 Jun 2007 16:30:54 +0000

Gaucho Richmond - review by Liss

Rating: 2.8

Location: The Towpath, TW10 6UT, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 8948 4030

Website: http://www.gauchorestaurants.co.uk/restaurants/restaurant.php?id=richmond

Tags: brazilian, good value, outdoor seating, friendly staff, great atmosphere, expensive, friendly, bar, lively

Went to Gaucho Richmond last night with 5 friends and had a wonderful time. The restaurant is in a fabulous location, overlooking the river and has plenty of outdoor seating.

The service and atmosphere were great, very friendly and relaxed.

Vegetarians will probably not enjoy the 'show and tell' explanation of the different types of cuts of steak before you order. Meat eaters on the other hand will find it quite interesting!

The steaks were decent but certainly not the best we have ever had. Desert on the other hand was fabulous - highly recommended! Go for either the caramel fondue or churros.

The Bingham - review by sue

Sun, 18 May 2008 13:30:21 +0000

The Bingham - review by sue

Rating: 3.5

Location: 61-63 Petersham Rd, TW10 6UT, Richmond Upon Thames, United Kingdom

Phone: 020 8940 0902

Website: http://www.binghamhotel.co.uk/restaurant/

Tags: romantic, british, international, views, good value, expensive, european, bar

Well, it was our wedding anniversary so it seemed like the perfect excuse to go out somewhere nice for Sunday lunch! The venue of choice was The Bingham, which is located close to the river in Richmond, southwest London.

The Bingham is a boutique hotel, restaurant and bar, housed in a Georgian townhouse which dates back to the 1700s. It is a very popular place for weddings and functions due to its classy interior and river views.

When we arrived we were ushered into the gorgeous bar area where we relaxed for a while with a drink and enjoyed the luxurious room. While we had our drink we also looked at the menu and even ordered our meal. A little while later we were escorted to our table in the dining room. There was a two piece band playing some relaxing music and the service was professional but relaxed which all really added to the enjoyment of our meal.

To start, we had the Baked River Trout with new potatoes & rocket salad; and the Seared Scallops with cauliflower puree. Both were very tasty with interesting flavours.

Main courses were the Scotch fillet with shallot and red wine butter & Duchess potato; and the Filet of Venison with honey roast parsnips & Savoy cabbage - the flavours were good and I do love a parsnip.

We somehow managed to fit in dessert - I had the Lemon Tart (nothing to write home about) and hubby had the Chocolate Trio of fondant, cream and sorbet. Wow - it was pretty amazing....and he managed to eat it all, with only a little bit of help from me ; )