Canteen

Gastropub food in a minimalistic design concept

10 Oct 07, 17:21 Above expectations

I like Canteen but not quite as much as I'd hoped I would.

Personally, all the food I've had has been pretty great. It's carefully sourced British food. Braised lamb was wonderfully tender and the mackeral salad was tasty. Chocolate and beetroot cake was yummy; the additional of custard would have raised it to heavenly.

The design is very sleek and modern and the pared down font they use is extremely stylish. Thank goodness they have replaced the benches at the long shared tables with individual stools now though so you don't have to bother people or else clamber inelegantly in to sit down.

What underwhelmed me? I dunno. Maybe because I was sat in a draft, but the comforting nature of such good hearty grub was somewhat lost. It was like a gastropub found itself in a page spread Wallpaper magazine. Maybe the two don't fit together.

Still, I'm rating it 4 stars for the quality of the food and the design which are better than most places.

Wagamamas of British food

31 Jul 07, 22:39 Below expectations

The menu stated that all orders were made to order. The slight inaccuracy of this statement was apparent when I tried to first order a juice that wasn't a mixed one. 'They've already been made' came our waitress' reply and then again when I tried to order a main dish.

The layout of this restaurant is exactly like Wagamamas if you've ever been, even the juice drinks are uninventively the same e.g. carrot and ginger. Bench seats where you get sat snugly next to strangers, but then it is called Canteen afterall. I chose the steak and asked for it medium rare. Instead, it was well done, dry and tasteless. Another member of our party had the roast pork which was on the specials menu, that was by contrast to my dish quite succulent but this merely emphasised how my dish was small, bland and not worth around the £16 mark that they were charging for it.

Have heard, however, that their pies are rather good and that I happened to choose the wrong dish. I might end up going back and trying again.

Best of British

18 Jul 07, 19:21 Above expectations

I've been here for both breakfast and dinner. The breakfast left me overwhelmed, lovely bubble and squeak, perfectly crispy bacon and possibly one of the better coffees I've had in London. However at £20 for 2 people it's probably a little pricey for a regular treat.

Dinner however, left me slightly underwhelmed. The food was unfussy and the portion sizes were reasonable but it lacked something. Then again, I had the roast and lets face it - it's tough to outdo your Mum or Grandma's home cooking!

I would have given it 3 stars but the design of the restaurant and its branding make the designer in me swoon. Plus, it's one of the first restaurants I recommend to out-of-towners in order to get a taste of proper British cooking.

Good, big, British food.

08 Jun 07, 23:31 Above expectations

This is a very good restaurant which serves very rich food that your mum might make. Lovely sleek modern restaurant set against the ironwork of the market.

I had a great macaroni cheese which I'd recommend, and they do some very interesting beers too. I think the guys I was with complained that the roasts they had were a little on the small side.