Category: UK

Tom Aikens – Where has the magic gone?

Could not resist the toptable deal of £49 for a 5 course lunch with champagne and petit fours at Tom Aikens.

They are also doing a free corkage deal this month too, but as they only allow one promotion at a time,  it did not apply to our lunch option. The normal corkage fee of £30 a bottle would be charged. So we decided to leave our bottles at home on this occasion.  Ironically the corkage deal would have been the better one, as the normal lunch tasting menu is £49. So the deal was really just a free glass of champagne.

The sparkle does now seem to be missing from Tom Aikens, there were no stand out dishes at all.  The salmon and grapefruit dish worked but the fois gras was just lost in an overdose of blackcurrent.  The main course of lamb was too simple and a tiny portion (when I compare this to the lamb cuts I had on my first visit to Tom Aikens a few years ago, then there is no comparison).  There was a good cheese course and the chocolate dessert although complex was not very exciting. We finished with some basic petit fours –  the spectacular ones are saved for the evenings these days.

On the plus side the bread basket is still one of the best around – offering at least 6 different bread selections.

On the wine front, we ordered a rather disappointing bottle of Mt Beautiful Pinor Noir 2007 at £29.

In conclusion, I am sorry to say that in my view Tom Aikens has lost its magic, as reflected in the marks below.

Marks out of 10

Food 5.9

Service 6.5

Ambience 6

 

UPDATE : March 2012 – The Restaurant has had a major revamp – see Matthew Forts post for details

 

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Bermondsey Street Festival – Who let the dogs out?

The weather was good again for the Bermondsey Street Festival.  This annual festival definitely had more stalls this year.  Hopefully it will keep growing, as Bermondsey Street is well positioned for this type of event, with the small farmers market in the square at the top of the street and the park in the middle.

As well as the stalls showcasing the area and selling food and drink, there is the Fashion Show  (Zandra Rhodes Fashion & Textile Museum is located on Bermondsey Street). It is also a good day out for the areas dogs, who get to show off at the Dog Show.

The other advantage of this festival, is that it gives you a chance to try out some of the restaurants in the area, see

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The Rocks – Omelette challenge

Having  just finished watching the Omelette challenge on Saturday Kitchen, my choice of breakfast in The Rocks Restaurant may have been subliminal.  When my ham and cheese omelette arrived in a matter of minutes from order to table, unlike those on Saturday Kitchen which take seconds and look on the whole inedible, this omelette was close to perfect.  Delicious with a really light and fluffy texture. Actually it was easily the best omelette I have had in a long time.

The Rocks on Vauxhall Bridge Road is fairly new, formally Cafe Rocks – a well respected sandwich bar,  it has expanded to double its orginal size and is now a full blown restaurant.  It is a good spot to stop on route to Tate Britain.  The monochrome decor –  black marble tiles, black tables and chairs, may not be to everyones taste, but I thought it was both effective and practical.  I definitely plan to return to try their all day breakfast. The rest of the menu looked interesting too,  it included several Turkish dishes.  I need to make a few more visits and try more of the menu, but based on the omelette (known to be one of the best ways to judge a chefs ability) I suspect The Rocks is something of a Gem! (Pun intended).

Marks out of 10

Food 5.2

Service 5.2

Ambience 6

UPDATE : January 2011 – Made a return visit.  One dish on the menu to avoid is maybe the Eggs Benedict, which is actually not Eggs Benedict.  It tasted ok,  but was missing key ingredients like muffins and ham.

UPDATE : January 2014 – Nice to see that The Rocks is still going strong. Everyone who came in got a warm welcome and the service was good. It had a nice turn over of customers on my visit, with people choosing to both to eat in and take away. I  would recommend the Börek as a main course, it was tasty and nicely presented, although there was too much salad for my taste. They also had a decent selection of cakes and pastries.

 

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Albannach – style on the square (Closed)

The Albannach is pretty established now.  I went there a few times just after it opened, eating in the restaurant and in the bar. I was impressed by the quality and style of the place, especially when you consider its location in Trafalgar Square. So now several years later we decided to make a return visit.  The decor and layout had changed a bit, but the Alabannach still has its own distinctive style.  The interior design incorporates some stunning customized lighting, using a Stag and Antlers theme.

My reservation was based on ordering from the set menu (part of a deal I used to cash in on some of my toptable points). This turned out to be a bit of a false economy, as we found this menu to be a little too basic for our taste.  On past experience I think going a la carte might be a better option here.

The 3 fish terrine we had for starters was good, but the main courses were disappointing,  in that I had to order an extra dish to go with my sea bass and the alternative main course option of lamb stew would not have been out of place in a soup kitchen.  The watery stew was definitely not sophisticated enough for this type of venue.  Fortunately we ordered a very nice (if expensive) bottle of Gewürztraminer to drown the rather disappointing food.

UPDATE : CLOSED

 

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Tamesis Dock – Hot spot in Vauxhall

Vauxhall may not seem an obvious place to find a riverside bar on a sunny day, but there are a couple – Aqua River Brasserie and The Riverside.  They are directly on the river in St George Wharf, and are sun traps when the weather is good, however they are both rather soulless.  I would pass them by and go for a more quirky venue, namely Tamesis Dock a dutch barge permanently moored on the Thames, with a fabulous view of the Houses of Parliament.

Tamesis Dock is not that much of a gourmet experience  (the menu is mainly wraps and burgers), it’s basically a floating pub, in a great location that regularly hosts live music events.

Marks out of 10 for Tamesis Dock

Food 4.5

Service  4.5

Ambience 6

View 9

 

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Texture – feeling a bit rough!!

Birthday lunch at Texture – rather over did it, going for champagne cocktails, tasting menu and matching wines, cheese board and more wine. The Food was of a high standard and the Wines were all very, very good. Maybe a little too good as I definitely suffered for my overindulgence later that day. This level of fine dining comes at a cost (physically and financially), next time definitely going for the very reasonable set lunch at £22.00.

The menu we had included a delicious Heritage Tomato (or Heirloom Tomato as they are known in the US) salad, my favorite Texture dish – Anjou Pigeon with, sweetcorn and bacon popcorn, a rather moorish Icelandic Cod dish and a very refreshing Strawberry Textures Moscatel sabayon.

The presentation and menu choices included in the Tasting Menu were not as effective as those on our earlier visit (see Texture – something good from Iceland),  but eating at Texture is certainly a pleasure. Looking forward to returning in the not too distant future.

 

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