Bertorelli - Restaurant

Nice surroundings with doors opening on to a mini-terrace located on Frith Street. Service was fine - nothing to note, just fine.

I ordered a pizza with proscuitto, which was a complete disappointment. The dough was too salty, the sauce tasted like a acidic, cheap tin tomato type and the proscuitto just thrown on top. Given the tourist location of Bertorelli, I should really be surprised...

Santoré - Restaurant

A brief lunch with my fiancé at Santoré on a glorious summer's day - fabulous! The service was efficient and nice, the food (mushroom pizza) was divine and the wine was perfectly chilled. An inexpensive place for lunch or dinner with a nice selection of food.

One thing - there seems to almost been too much on the menu. It took me forever to choose but as my fiancé says, that may have something to do with me being a woman!

Blue bar

Chic decor, excessively priced drinks, good service and highly unsuitable for the weekend due to the size. Pretty cool, though definitely not a regular spot.

Mildred's - restaurant

I was so hyped to go to Mildred's (despite the ridiculous no-booking rule) and after the first time I raved about it to anybody who would listen! Went a second time and found it mediocre. Third and final time was just plain bad. When the food is all smell and no taste, something is wrong. I'm in no hurry to get back. This was all in the space of 6-8 weeks, so absolutely no consistency.

On the upside, staff members are really friendly, enthusiastic and clearly know the menu inside out. Plus everything is labelled clearly for those who may be vegan, coeliac, lactose-intolerant and so on.

Shochu lounge - Bar

This is one of my favourite bars in London – the cocktails are terrific, chilled atmosphere and great decor. Staff are really helpful, unpretentious and friendly. An excellent place to start before moving upstairs (to Roka) for a lovely dinner.

Ping Pong - restaurant

We fancied having dinner somewhere within walking distance, so decided to give Ping Pong (Westbourne Grove) a try. We arrived sans reservation, asked for a table for two and the so-called waiter casually gestured to a couple of available tables. Not impressed, but fine. We sat down next to these two Californian women talking at the top of their voices for a reason that still escapes me. As we discussed the menu, it became apparent that due to the volume of the people beside us, any type of conversation was going to be difficult.

As the ladies called the waiter over, he rather rudely put up his hand in a 'just wait' fashion. Rude. 2 minutes later, I politely asked if he'd mind moving us to another table. Apparently there were none. (a. It was a Monday night, and b. I have eyes and can see numerous spare tables...) "We’ll order drinks and then wait for another table, if that’s alright", I said. Can you believe that the waiter dismissively moved his hand in a I-really-don’t-want-to-be-here fashion, rolled his eyes and then stood with his hand on hip waiting for our drink order. At that point, I asked my boyfriend if he minded eating elsewhere, we popped our coats on and off we went. We had lovely cocktails at Westbourne House (my espresso martini was divine) and then headed to Mulberry Street resto – the NYC-style upmarket pizzeria with the best service.

I will N-E-V-E-R so much as look at a Ping Pong menu again and will be sure to share my negative experience with anybody who’ll listen! Plus, they have cheap, wooden, disposable chopsticks = bad for the environment and not what I expect from a restaurant.

Roka - Restaurant

So, having been back to Roka twice in the space of a week, I must confess that it is now officially my favourite restaurant in London and am full of suggestions:

- The rose petal martini is smooth, pretty and oh so chic.
- The king crab
- The tuna sashimi
- The fois gras with ume (Japanese plum) = heaven on a plate.

The service rocks and the atmosphere is energetic, fun and without pretense. Can't wait to go back!

14/10/08

Sitting around the counter, watching the chefs prepare the most delicious food - heavenly. Sashimi was really good. Helpful service and, despite being quite busy, you never feel rushed. I like it a lot, though not terribly keen on the miso there.

Long Bar

Now, I’m not advocating drinking in the afternoon, but if you happen to find yourself sat at the Long Bar at 15:30 on a Wednesday afternoon after a little shopping, you’ll have a great time. The service is flirty, attentive and spot on and the martinis are exquisite. If you have the misfortune of being there 17:00-22:00 Mon-Sat, you’ll probably find it full of hookers, excessively loud media types and the optimum of pretension. Suddenly Wednesday afternoon isn’t looking so shabby!

A male friend referred to the Long Bar as being the tackiest place ever. A female friend thinks it’s the best thing since sliced bread! Over to you...

Carluccio's - Restaurant/Groceries

Great for a quick bite when out shopping. Fast, easy service, with a menu and price that attracts all types and ages. The freshly prepared pappardelle con funghi is a favourite of mine. Can be very chaotic on a Saturday afternoon. Don't say I didn't warn you!

Axis - restaurant

Really, really like it - intimate, gorgeous surroundings and great service.

Oxo Tower - Restaurant

If you're happy to pay for a truly wonderful view, make a reservation now... but to be honest, you will probably be left disappointed. I wouldn't describe the food as inedible, just bland and excessively overpriced. The staff were okay (no complaints) but nothing really stands out about this place except for the view.

Tamarai - Restaurant

Excellent food*, mediocre service and the worst ever placemats known to man!

The strange thing is that this place completely changes into a noisy club/bar on Friday and Saturday nights, so talking during dinner becomes near impossible. A good place to go to for a late night drink.

*Sweet Chilli Lotus and Crispy Red Mullet are to die for!

Planet Organic - Groceries

I’m torn; on one hand, they have an excellent selection of food, health products and beauty items any health-conscious individual would die for. Good for herbal tea, snack bars, grains and seeds – you can find every possible type here. On the other hand, it’s so expensive! I bought a (small) fresh vegetable juice and it cost almost £4! It’s just too expensive. C’est la crise!

It’s conveniently 2 mins away, but then again so is Waitrose and they stock the same organic fresh products for half the price. I do, however, really appreciate the knowledgeable and helpful staff at PO.

Met Bar

I actually like the decor and the cocktails are delish BUT like the majority of the other reviewers, I'm not particularly impressed. On the few occasions that I've been there, the place was empty.

It's not that the atmosphere is bad, just nonexistent. Let's put it this way; if I never go there again, I won't feel as though I'm missing anything.

L'Oranger - restaurant

You haven't had langoustine until you've had it here - succulent and so tasty. The service is just what you would expect from a restaurant of this standing and in this location - professional, faultless and as French as can be.

I went on a date but it also suits a more formal occasion such as a business lunch/dinner.

GBK - restaurant

Is it normal for a 27 year old woman to be addicted to Oreo milkshake!? Not really sure but my life became a whole lot better when I discovered GBK's milkshakes, so no complaints from me! Delicious!

Noura Central - restaurant

I love this place (and the Belgravia branch) and have been a regular for 3+ years. The service is impeccable, they always remember what I like to order, are friendly, and the food is so healthy, fresh and scrumptious. For the quality of food and service, I think the price is quite reasonable.

I take all of my friends there - vegetarians, coeliacs, meat lovers, friends with children etc - and there is something for everyone. I highly recommend the tabbouleh (diced tomato, parsley, buckwheat, lemon and onion), moutabbal (pureed smoked aubergine), vegetable soup, and the smoothest hoummos known to man.

The moment we stepped in, despite being very dark, I appreciated the spaciousness of the foyer. We approached the reservations desk. The super-duper, self-important reservationist continued her conversation with her colleague, took a call on her headset and when she finally decided to speak with us, she did so without eye contact and with a condescending tone I didn’t care much for and proceeded to ask us twice for the name of the reservation and how many people. Still no eye contact or smile. Not impressed.

Since we were 15 minutes early, we decided to have a drink at the bar and were taken through by another hostess. Once seated we ordered drinks – a mojito for the boyfriend and a vodka martini for me. "A martini rosso" she asked with her hands in her pockets, whilst looking around the bar. Come on, this isn’t 1972! Why on earth would I want martini rosso (especially since I specified exactly what type of martini I wanted)!?

Ten minutes later we were taken to our table upstairs and informed that our drinks would follow. After being seated, we decided to move tables because we were far too close to the grill and there was an empty table available 5 metres away. Still no sign of our cocktails (by now we’d been there for 25 minutes). Still not impressed.

So our waiter comes over, a chap named Altin. When given the wine menu, we explained that we had yet to receive our drinks. As I suspected, he had no idea we’d ordered anything downstairs but offered to find out where they were. We declined and decided to choose some wine to go with our meal. He was able to choose the most divine red wine, which perfectly complemented our dishes. He was helpful with the menu, very friendly and provided a service that was far above anything we had experienced with other employees.

I started with a tiger prawn ceviche and since I’m not really used to eating too much meat (the steaks are huge), I went with the lemon & lime spatchcock chicken. I already disliked the resto and its arrogant staff, had decided never to return and so wanted the food to be bland/mediocre/crap, so you can imagine my frustration/delight that the food was prepared and cooked to perfection! The ceviche just melted in my mouth, the flavours were so delicate and perfectly balanced. I eat meat 1-2 times per month because it doesn’t really do anything for me, but to say that the chicken was good would be a huge injustice. Succulent, tender, tasty and so fresh with the seasoning gentle enough to balance perfectly with subtle flavour of the chicken. Perfection.

As we talked - my boyfriend had finished eating and I simply paused to talk - a waitress approached our table, picked up his plate despite the fact that I was clearly still eating (I still had the fork in my hand!) and asked if I was finished. In response to my "No", she took his plate anyway. So rude and improper.

So this resto gets 2 stars only – 1 for Altin and 1 for the food. Whilst both were great, I would have had a nicer time at home, with a great atmosphere, good food and wonderful company. For those people who go to restaurants because celeb X went there, it’s fine. For those people like me, who want the whole package - ambience, great food, faultless service and happy times - I advise you to go elsewhere.

And what is with those hideous light fittings in the restaurant?! Oh my goodness, it’s like something out of Happy Days!

Eco - Pizzeria

Despite being in need of a decor update, the pizzas are inexpensive, delicious and so fresh - a good, local pizzeria. I've been there 3-4 times and have never had any complaints.

Mango Tree - Restaurant

Never again! I had been meaning to go to this resto for years, and what a disappointment. The food was actually okay, nothing flash but okay, but the service was just disgusting! The joke is that they have the audacity to think this is acceptable because when I complained, the manager was as dismissive as the waiter. Like I said, NEVER AGAIN!!

My friend suffers from coeliac disease (gluten intolerance) and so asked for a list of the ingredients in the Thai curries. The ignorant, rude, stuck up waiter just spewed off some ingredients and, when quizzed further, rolled his eyes and just kept saying "Well why don't you try something else?", in between running back and forth to speak with the chef. If you have someone in your restaurant asking in-depth questions about the food, a member of the kitchen team needs to come out and speak with them or else send someone who knows what they're talking about.

We finished our drinks and decided to leave, opting to eat at one of my favourite places - Noura, a Lebanese resto next door.

I've dined at restaurants all over the world and never have I experienced such poor service. Save your time, energy and money by going somewhere else.

To end on a good note, the decor is pretty nice and they have lovely flower arrangements.