Nils D.
Yelp
Went last night with an American friend living here for a while. He knew about my phobia of British restaurants, as I'm visiting from the San Francisco Bay Area - I've had horrid experiences with restaurants in London.
We sat downstairs in the bar on a busy Saturday night - they had a few tables available so there was no wait. I would call the service leisurely, but we weren't in a hurry so it fit our mood fine.
I had the special pan-fried bream, which came with smoked salmon mashed potatoes, a beurre blanc sauce, and broccolini, along with three shelled mussels distributed on the plate. It was very good! The taste combinations were very nice - not haute cuisine level, more advanced comfort food. Partly this was because, although the bream, smoked salmon, and mussels attempted to create a unifying theme, from that standpoint, though delicious, they were just a bit gimmicky.
My friend had a cheeseburger and chips. He originally ordered it with blue cheese, rather than cheddar, but that would have been £3 extra, so he stuck with the basics. It was fine, but nothing to write home about, he said.
We finished with their Burnt Orange Marmalade pudding and the apple crumble. Both were very good, plates basically licked clean.
Total bill per person, with main, dessert, and two drinks (beer and port for me, two beers for him) was £38. I thought it was high but reasonable. (When in Europe, when something only costs the same in £s as it does in $s at home, I figure it's reasonable.)
If we had the same restaurant with the food *I* had in Menlo Park, where I live, I'd go often.
Minuses: The servings were a little smaller than I'd like (but on the other hand I didn't leave hungry). It was quite loud in the bar, although we were in a quieter area so didn't have to shout.