• Added: 17th of October 2008
• Area: Leicester Square
• Category: Restaurants

London WC2N 4AG
020 7497 5050

FluffyRona said
Beyond appalling - avoid like the plague
I have been going to this venue since it opened, so returning last night for dinner, I was confident all would be as usual. How wrong I was proved to be?

The most incompetent waitress I have ever encountered, overcrowded tables (a credit crunch obviously means cramming people in like sardines, in a restaurant where they must expect to turn tables at least once if not twice in an evening), lengthy waits for food (more than 40 minutes for a main course!) and utterly inedible food made it one of the worst meals I have ever been served - total and utter disgrace.

The waitress didn't write down our order, then didn't notice when she brought us totally different items from those which we had ordered - use a pad, you silly girl, if you have a memory like a goldfish! My lamb steak - one of the specials - was more reminiscent of a slab of solid fat - if I'd wanted to serve myself something so chewy and inedible I'd have taken a slice off the butt of one of the braying American tourists at the bar. Despite only carrying two glasses of wine to our table, our waitress managed to spill my husband's red, leaving him with a dripping glass which was impossible to notice in the near pitch black room until it had stained his brand new shirt.

It took more than 20 minutes to get the attention of the waitress to ask for things to be changed - we took nearly 2 hours in the restaurant for a meal which my dog wouldn't look twice at.

The most insulting thing was that the restaurant was only half full - Lord help us when it gets busy. And the manageress's claim that "the kitchen's getting used to a new menu" really wasn't good enough - don't offer things if a) the chef can't cook them and b) staff can't recognise the difference between a rack of lamb and a pork fillet (one served with mash, one with black pudding - there's a clue!).

Simply dreadful - if I could award this negative stars (or at best, zero) I would. Avoid like the plague. Totally and utterly disgraceful.

• Added: 31st of October 2007
• Area: Croydon
• Category: Cafes and Coffee Shops

Croydon CR0 6PU

FluffyRona said
Builders are never wrong!
Always packed with brickies, chippies and other tradesmen - and they're never wrong about good value British brekkie!

• Added: 31st of October 2007
• Area: Chelsea
• Category: Restaurants

London SW7 4QH
020 7370 4040

FluffyRona said
Interesting and innovative
A real taste of Colonial spice is the order of the day at the Bombay Brasserie - none of your chicken tikka masalla here!

Authentic regional Indian dishes are served with flair and care in a sumptuous room attached to one of London's most faceless hotels. Enter through a palm-tree lined walkway to a space where the waiters greet you like a long lost friend, and prepare to excite your tastebuds.

Nothing it so spicy that you need to gulp down 15 pints of lager! and everything is prepared with such care that you cna try all sorts of new ideas with no worries about whether you're going to like them!

A la carte isn't the cheapest way of experiencing the delights on offer - locals know to come round at lunchtime and enjoy the "all you can eat" buffet, which always surprises and delights in equal measure. And watch out for London's biggest wine glasses - it's like drinking out of a goldfish bowl!

• Added: 31st of October 2007
• Area: Wandsworth
• Category: Restaurants

London SW17 7EG
020 8672 0114

FluffyRona said
Great food but lose the hoorays!
A fabulous room and genuinely impressive service make this a really special dining experience - not your run of the mill brasserie.

The food is imaginative, beautifully prepare and served with just the right level of attentiveness...but, and it's something that spoiled my visit, I can't bear eating in a room packed with people who are trying to outdo each other at every turn ("my range rover's bigger than your range rover", etc etc). I know its a symptom of where the restaurant is, but the introduction of some subtle background music or spreading the tables out a bit more would ensure that everyone is not subjected to finding out exactly how special little Tarquin's music teacher thinks he is. Sorry!

• Added: 28th of October 2007
• Area: Chelsea
• Category: Restaurants

London SW3 4HP
020 7352 4441

FluffyRona said
Culinary heaven
My tastebuds are still recovering - perfection on a plate whatever you choose, with service that other restaurants can only dream about. Beautiful room, great people and food that makes it the most spectacular place to eat in the world. Ever. Rob a bank, sell a kidney, do what you must to raise the cash to eat there!

• Added: 26th of October 2007
• Area: Southwark
• Category: Restaurants

London SE1 8HA
020 7928 1111

FluffyRona said
Overrated
Loved Wodka, thought this place was WAY overrated - and far too pretentious for its own good.

Yes it's a great concept, and it's a pretty room, but really the food was very average the night we went, the drinks were horribly overpriced and the staff couldn't have been more bored with the whole process.

It's a shame, because it's a great idea - but with places like the Laughing Gravy, the Anchor and Hope and a host of other gorgeous pubs in the area that serve super food, Baltic would do well to pull it's socks up.

• Added: 24th of October 2007
• Area: New York
• Category: Restaurants

New York 10011

FluffyRona said
Simply superb
Village is a glorious find in a city that prides itself on great food - an intimate yet lively brasserie with great staff and an even better menu and wine list.

Light and airy room, with a great balcony (where I was lucky enough to celebrate my birthday with friends last year) and plenty of giant ferns to lend an old-world charm.

The cocktails are marvellous (and moreish!), the wine list has plenty of bargains to be snapped up and the menu is packed with treasures.

Although it sounds very pedestrian, the roast chicken here, with thyme and lemon, is the best I've ever eaten in my life, and the steaks are superb. Leave room for dessert - especially the home made sorbets (black cherry was divine).

The staff are lovely - chatty, friendly, and definitely not infected by the supercilious attitude which seems to be creeping into some of New York's eateries. All round, just a wonderful place to spend some time - go today!

• Added: 24th of October 2007
• Area: Croydon
• Category: Bars and Pubs

Croydon CR0 6BE

FluffyRona said
The best place to eat in Croydon by miles!
If I could give a venue 6 stars, this would be it!

The Glamorgan (formerly the Grouse and Claret) has been transformed into a haven of great food, fine wines (and beers) and great entertainment - without an alcopop, a blaring disco beat or a beery football hooligan in sight!

Pitched as a "gastropub", it's more like a restaurant with a bar - certainly, there aren't the hoardes of people piling into the bar for cheap beer that you find in the rest of the town. The dining room is light and airy, without being formulaic in its decor (some great modern art on show), the bar has some great sofas to relax in with the Sunday papers, and the revamped beer garden is the best outside space in the area - perfect for a Saturday afternoon barbecue.

The kitchen produces some really imaginative dishes - way above the usual "curry and a pint for a fiver" or microwaved fare that other establishments palm off. The emphasis is on great ingredients, cooked well - sensational meat, and some wonderful fish, served simply but beautifully. Try the South African Bunny Chow - a spicy curry served in a hollowed out loaf of bread and served with bananas and other sliced fruit - or one of the daily specials, which have recently included some wonderful risotto or a sensational lamb shank cooked with Moroccan spices. The newly arrived Dutch chef is also a demon crepe maker - check them out, but leave room for more than one as they are sinfully delicious!

Leave room for puddings - there's an ever changing selection, including delicious ice creams, a cheesecake of the week (liquorice and Black Zambuca was a recent fave!) and some great cheese.

The wine list isn't extensive, but has some very well priced Southern Hemisphere wines and the beers are well kept and served correctly. Brothers pear cider (as served at Glastonbury) has made a recent and welcome appearance on the bar, and goes down a storm.

Booking is essential in the evenings and Thursday/Friday lunchtimes, as it can be busy, but it's worth making the effort for food that's well above the average that you'd find in London, let alone in Croydon!! A real gem.

• Added: 23rd of October 2007
• Area: Leicester Square
• Category: Restaurants

London WC2H 9DD
020 7240 3757

FluffyRona said
French charm
A slice of old-school France in the centre of Covent Garden!

Ask for a table upstairs and you can while away a happy afternoon with some superb traditional French grub. Great Muscadet on offer with some wonderful fish last time I went.

And don't let the sneer of the waiter deter you - they DO take bookings and WILL let you choose the table YOU want!! ;-)

• Added: 23rd of October 2007
• Area: Croydon
• Category: Restaurants

Croydon CR0 6PT

FluffyRona said
A local surprise!
Considering this is situated in a really unprepossessing row of shops, this is actually a pretty good local trattoria.

The pasta is fabulous, as are the pizzas - sometimes the meat can be a bit overcooked, but nothing too traumatic, and it's all very good value for money.