Kyra K.

Review of Rye Hotel

21 Apr 08, 19:59

My Excellent Local

I have to agree with Kieran and Lorraine on the Rye Hotel. This is probably my nearest pub, and fast becoming a favourite.

On winter evenings it's a warm, cosy haven, bedecked as it is with fairy lights and boasting large roaring fires. In the summertime, the back garden and bedouin-tent style back rooms become popular late-night hangouts, with the pub even putting on the occasional barbeque. The atmosphere changes with the seasons, from lively festival-esque beer tent to laid-back country-pub Scrabble venue, and I like both.

My one reservation would be that as it's such a child-friendly place it can get pretty full of families, babies and loud children on weekend afternoons. But hey. You gotta love 'em, the little darlings. This is (almost) East Dulwich, after all...

1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.

Review of Dim T

30 Jan 08, 11:41

You'd be dim not to try it

I love Dim T- to the point where I would actively choose to go to one of these rather than, say, a Wagamama. And that's saying quite a lot.

The Charlotte Street branch is cute, petite and funky, and every time I have been there I've been drawn to the dim sum, which are really good value and delicious! You only get three of each kind, which is annoying when you're sharing, but trust me, it's worth getting two baskets of the prawn and chive dumplings. Yum!

It's a great little date place- mind you, you can't go far wrong on Charlotte Street! Maybe I have such a good impression of Dim T because I went on a very successful date there almost a year ago...anyway, it's very good. Try it!

0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.

Review of Balfour

29 Jan 08, 16:45

Balfour out of five!

I work really close to this and only noticed it a couple of months ago, because it's undergone something of a transformation and is now quite a cosy, trendy little hotspot for lunch or dinner.

The food is a pan-European mix of Italian, French, and British dishes, and their choices are well-thought for a smaller menu. Their set lunch menu is superb- a great choice of dishes that seem to change daily, and two courses for £6.95. The staff are always friendly and very accomodating. There's definitely a family-friendly feel here as well, although its location means that most customers are business types, or hip young couples checking out the Brunswick centre opposite. When faced with the identikit chain restaurants there, I'd happily choose this place over Nando's, Starbucks, or Strada.

1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.

Review of Jasmin Restaurant

28 Jan 08, 15:30

What a great little find!

I really enjoyed this place. We stumbled across it last Saturday as we got off the 37 bus, starving and looking for something quick and cheap on Battersea Rise. It wasn't at all busy, and there was only one other family in there. We were served by one man, in double-quick time, and had a fantastic set menu lunch which included a starter and a main course, plus prawn crackers, for £6.50 per person. The portions were really generous, and the quality of the food excellent, with many choices. We were totally surprised to have had such a cheap and tasty lunch in what is quite a posh area, and left delighted.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Tamesa@Oxo

28 Jan 08, 14:04

A Room with a View

I chose this restaurant at the last minute, from a selection of riverside options as a colleague of mine was leaving us to go back to Australia and I wanted to give her one last beautiful view of the city to remember us by. The original plan was to go to Bincho Yakitori, a few floors up in the same building, but that fell through as they were having their staff Christmas party (In January? Go figure).

Anyway, I booked this late on a Sunday evening for the Monday, and prayed that the view would be enough to compensate for the mediocre reviews I'dread almost everywhere- toptable, view London, Time Out. I figured our colleage would appreciate the thought, even if the food was less than outstanding.

Well, I needn't have worried. From the time I spoke to the Maitre'd, Stephan, who kindly sent me sample menus by email and assured me that we would have a table with great views, to the end of the fantastic meal, our experience at Tamesa was second to none.

Apart from being a little empty (hardly surprising on a cold Monday night in mid-January), I couldn't fault this place at all. Their service was perfect- attentive yet not overbearing, and wine suggestions were made gently, to enhance the food. We sank a few bottles of one of the nicest Riojas I have ever had, and couldn't believe the quality of the food, given the reviews we had read.

Many of us sampled the set menu, priced extremely reasonably at £15.50 for 2 courses or £17.50 for three. I had a wonderful tuna carpaccio salad followed by beef fillet with spinach and was left feeling totally satisfied. Around the table, the steaks got many satisfied murmurs, as did the pumpkin and onion soups. I sampled some desserts from around the table and all were warm, rich and creamy- comfort food for the winter.

The views, frankly, were the icing on the cake. We could see all the way from the Tate Modern over to St Paul's and beyond. Even though you're only on the second floor, it's enough to be highly impressive.

I would recommend this place without a moment's hestitation. Maybe the reviewers were harsh. Maybe the restaurant bucked up its ideas. Whatever the case, it's definitely one to watch.

0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.

Review of Gold Lee

10 Jan 08, 17:29

Best Chinese in East Dulwich...but only if you eat in?

This place is the nearest restaurant to our house and is, handily, a surprisingly great option. You really couldn't ask for nicer, more smiley staff, and the food is plentiful and nicely presented, as well as being very cheap. We had a set meal for £12.50 per person which was three courses and lasted us another two days with the leftovers we took home!

The only thing I have heard which takes a star off the review is that the takeaway/delivery food is nowhere near as good. I can't quite belive that, but heard it from a couple of different sources, so there must be some truth to the rumour. Anyway, I couldn't fault their food, surroundings, or service, and will be a regular there in the coming months, I'm sure.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Rasa Samudra

11 Dec 07, 16:23

In the Pink!

I hadn't been to Rasa in ages and just went there for a business lunch. I had forgotten just how lovely it is. I was surprised that they had a table for 5 at less than a weeks' notice this close to Christmas, but they did, and this is unusual on Charlotte Street at this time of year. They were supremely pleasant and accomodating when making the booking.

Anyway, to the restaurant itself. It's very pink. I like this. Some have been known to call it 'womb-like'. Don't let that put you off your food. It's very cosy.

The staff are charming and attentive, without being overly so. Service is relaxed, and the food all impeccable. The menu is succinct, with an emphasis on fish and vegetarian dishes. We went here with a non-vegetarian, non-fish eater, and even she was raving about the food. Kingfish, tilapia, prawns and crab all feature heavily on the menu. Most dishes benefit from coconutty, non-greasy, lightly spiced golden sauces, and all of the breads and rice options are to die for. Parathas are home-made, fresh and served warm, and they fall apart pleasingly in your fingers. All of the food tastes home-cooked, and is really satisfying. It doesn't leave you feeling oily and polluted the way some Indian food can. I can't recommend it highly enough.

My one qualm is that I found the restauarant itself a bit cold, but the warmth and spice of the food soon took care of that.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Review of Kennards

07 Dec 07, 14:43

Lovely deli with a local feel

I poppped in here today during the Lamb's Conduit Street festival and it was absolutely heaving. The deli at the front of the shop is well-stocked with lots of interesting products from around the world, and they have samples of cheeses or olives to try before you buy.

It feels very charming and village-y inside, with products stacked on wooden shelves and dotted around the space, so that you have to forage for them a bit, which I really liked. A tiny café at the back serves as a relaxing place to sit and watch the happenings of Lamb's Conduit Street.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Brindisa

06 Dec 07, 23:45

The best converted potato warehouse restaurant I've ever been to.

All right, so it's the only converted potato warehouse I've ever been to. But the tapas here proved to be more than I'd expected.

We went on a busy Friday night, as early as possible after work to snare a seat (most of the tables were reserved, but we grabbed a couple of bar seats at a big barrel by the door) and decided on a bottle of fino sherry, some toasted marcona almonds, and some fine marinated green olives while we decided what to sample from the tapas menu.

If there's one thing to sample from their winter menu, it's got to be their sweet potato soup. It was perfectly smooth, balanced and delicately spiced. It was also filling, so side dishes of braised red cabbage with pine nuts and some chorizo was enough to satisfy.

The atmosphere continued to grow livelier throughout the evening, and the fact that the place feels too small can only be a testament to its popularity. On weekends when the market is on, it seems similarly stuffed. I was very pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food and the service despite how busy they were.

Brindisa is a good option in Borough, especially if you've had your appetite whetted after looking around the food stalls...

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of The Old Crown

11 Oct 07, 12:43

Busy but go upstairs, it's worth it...

I went here recently for what was intended to be a quick after-work drink, but turned into a rather pleasant long evening.

The place looked packed when we first arrived, and the ground floor is a bit cramped, but to our delight we found a completely empty room upstairs, with comfy leather sofas and plenty of candles. Some may find it a bit pretentious, but I really liked the effort they had gone to with the decor- funky wallpaper, chandeliers, fresh flowers on the bar, and candles everywhere.

The bar food menu was excellent, and really inexpensive for the quality. Deliciously fat, juicy chargrilled lamb koftas were served with salad for £3.50, and their greek salad was really packed with ingredients, for the same price. The food was mainly what enticed us to consider staying longer, and the novelty of finding a central London venue where we could have a room (almost) to ourselves was what kept us there.

As a final note, the toilets were some of the nicest pub toilets I've ever seen. I'm not even kidding. Oddly, there was one cubicle in the ladies' with two toilets inside. But I'll let that weird little detail slide. A top place.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Ping Pong

10 Oct 07, 18:01

All Ping, No Pong

Now. Let's get a few things straight.

Ping Pong will not appeal to everyone. It's not 'traditional', it's not in Chinatown, it's a chain, it's overly stylish and full of gleaming black laquer and poncey teas. Yes, the staff can sometimes, depending on which branch you visit, and what time you arrive, be brusque and/ or overly efficient, taking away plates that may still have some dipping sauce on them, or over-selling the dumplings and trying to get you to buy more than you need. But let's be fair, this is their job. And if you find a nice branch, and you don't go an hour before they close, then the chances are, you'll have a lovely time.

The simple fact is that it's a pleasure to be poncey sometimes, and this is embraced at Ping Pong. Those little jasmine tea flowers that unfurled lazily in your glass when the hot water was added was enough to keep me entertained for the whole of my first visit. Never mind the super-cool toilets with the automatic sliding doors and sinks shared between men and women with a sleek divider in between!

The food is probably not the best dim sum you'll ever eat, but the choices are wide-ranging, and you'll find yourself being able to eat a surprising amount of those little dumplings.

Enjoy the surroundings, which are stylish and wonderful without any doubt, and sip your stylish tea, and eat your dainty little morsels with your chopsticks. It's really good fun, and I defy anyone who says otherwise!

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Hare and Tortoise

10 Oct 07, 17:39

Excellent Asian-Fusion Option

I really couldn't agree more with the other reviewers on here- I just went here for lunch and it was worth the (10 minute) wait to get in. You can see why this place is so busy at lunchtimes- it's quick, it's cheap, and the food is very tasty. The broad menu is also impressive- it dips into Chinese, Japanese, and Thai cuisine.

The vegetable lo mein stood out as particularly good, prawn and vegetable tempura was light and crispy, exactly the way it should be, and sushi was quick and fresh. The portions are all enormous and I would wager that hard-up students could even share servings!

I have heard less-than-glowing reviews about the Putney branch but this new sleek Brunswick Centre branch ticked all the right boxes for me. Definitely worth a lunchtime or pre- Renoir cinema visit.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of American Apparel

09 Oct 07, 17:03

Awesomely American, Apparently

Every time I go into American apparel, I feel like I've stepped onto the set of an 80s dance video, or a Flashdance tribute party.

That's a good thing. The clothes in here are simple essentials- you're not going to find anything too kooky, but the colours are fabulously un-British. Bright neons and pastels mix with deep reds and greens. Of course all their staples are available in black, but why would you want that?

Most of their wares come in two fabrics: cotton or lycra. Most of their wares (the girls' stuff, anyway) is tight-fitting and well-suited to dancers' bodies. Which I don't have.

Having said that, I have always found their cuts to be really flattering, and I have found myself going back here again and again for staple items like t-shirts, skirts, and hoodies.

It's uber-trendy, and sometimes the staff size up what you're wearing, but their prices are good and the quality of their locally-sourced US cotton is excellent. It's definitely worth a long mooch on a rainy afternoon. Preferably before going home to watch Flashdance...

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Incognico

09 Oct 07, 15:33

Go Incognico

I have had a couple of fantastic, memorable evenings here. It's a good central place for special occasions, but despite its excellent location near Cambridge Circus, not many people seem to know about it. Maybe this is because the restaurant doesn't draw attention to itself- instead of tables positioned needily by the windows, a curtained facade protects the diners from unwanted onlookers. Dark leather chairs slouch pleasingly next to sparkling white tablecloths and glassware.The ambience inside, therefore, is covert and private, making it slightly romantic and coy.

The food I have eaten here has never been anything less than superb. The portions look light, but are rich enough to be satisfying. The asparagus risotto really stands out, as do their fish dishes. The sommeliers aren't pushy at all, and make gentle, helpful suggestions.

I love it here. It's grown-up, quiet, and sophisticated. All the things I'm not. Definitely worth your time.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Bamboula Jerk Kitchen

01 Oct 07, 17:01

Wham Bam-boula, thank you!

I'm afraid I have to disagree with you there, Carie P. Bamboula is great fun!

Goat is a tricky meat, so you may have had a particularly tough or bony piece, but I urge you to try their jerk chicken- it's what they're famed for, and with good reason. I also found their stewed chicken, although mightily salty, ALMOST as good as the real, home-cooked, thing.

The best thing about this place, though, is the sunny atmosphere and the friendly welcome you get when you walk in. Come for the £5.50 jerk chicken, rice and peas and salad lunch, and watch all the office workers eating there shedding a little bit of their toughened, grey Londoner exteriors and feeling that little bit closer to the Caribbean.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Hoxton Furnace

20 Sep 07, 16:26

A good Hoxton option

I just went for a business-y work lunch here and it was really pleasant. I couldn't fault anything- the building and the space itself was very cool, the staff were friendly and helpful, didn't rush us at all, and the food was top-notch.

I had a lovely warm artichoke salad and and the pizzas were all handmade and cooked in a proper wood-fired pizza oven. Their daily pasta and fish specials looked pretty good, too. It's the kind of place that I can imagine will be really cosy in the winter. Not just from the open fire, but from the nice service.

I'll be going back.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Camino

13 Sep 07, 12:34

Que Bueno!

I went to Camino last night after stumbling upon it whilst looking for a place to have cocktails. The sound of the lively bar and Spanish music was what drew my attention at first, but the look of the impressive glass-domed restaurant next door was what enticed me to stay.

We ordered house red wine at £12 a bottle, and I was pleasantly surprised by the price and the quality. I began, from that moment, to feel a bit like I was on holiday. Always a good sign.

The menu was surprisingly concise, but spoke of a confidence in their dishes; what they did do, they did very well. My boyfriend and I had the pan con tomate, a tasty Spanish-style bruschetta, and then decided to go for what seemed to be the menu's flagship item- the huge Charolais rib-eye steak, aged and hung for 25-30 days; enough for 2 people. With a hearty side order of pimentón-sprinkled patatas a lo pobre con huevos, we were more than satisfied. We left with a bill of £30 each including 12.5% tip, which we felt was justified by the friendly service we had received, and the feeling of heading tipsily back to the real world from a little gastronomic tour of Spain. Highly recommended.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Firezza

10 Sep 07, 15:57

Fired up for Firezza

I was introduced by my pseudo- Italian boyfriend to Firezza. Having lived in Italy, he's an extreme pizza snob, so Domino's and Pizza Hut's salty, bloated chesse-fests just won't cut it for him. I was won over (by the pizza) after the first bite.

I recently used Firezza to order pizzas for a big work party (bear in mind I work with a lot of Americans, who also have their own ideas about what constitutes good pizza), and they went down a storm. The half-metre option is a great idea for larger groups, or just larger appetites. The choice of toppings are great, and much closer to that perfect pizza you had on an idyllic holiday in Italy than that horrible soggy cold pizza you found in your fridge whilst living in student digs.

Down with Domino's! Pah to Pizza Hut! Firezza got me all fired up. Try them and you'll see why.

3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Review of Peckham Multiplex

23 Aug 07, 16:45

Definitely worth a look

I must admit, at first I was a bit dubious about this cinema. I thought it might be a bit loud, a bit raucous; you know, popcorn throwing and lots of mobiles being answered during the screenings. I fully admit to being a bit snooty about it. Boy, have I been proved wrong. It's now a regular Monday night hangout.

All films are £3.99 all day on Mondays, and around a fiver for the rest of the week, going up to just £6 on weekends. As well as showing the usual action-packed blockbuster fare and kids' films, they often have an independent or foreign film choice showing at a decent time. It's never too busy, and I've never had my viewing experience disturbed by morons, not once. The popcorn's a bit pricey, and I'd like to see more low-budget stuff being shown there, but those are only minor downsides. Central London cinemas, take note!

1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.

Review of Jin Korean Restaurant

23 Aug 07, 16:07

Hot plate, hot place

Jin is the kind of restaurant that is good to take a big group of friends or is equally good fun for a romantic dinner for couples. Its gimmick is that certain meat and vegetable dishes are cooked by your waiters on a hot plate at your table. The dishes worth having are the pork belly, the seafood, or the marinated chicken with a tasty, sticky teriyaki-like sauce. Their kimchee is really good and I have always found the service to be very friendly and efficient.

It's a reasonably priced and fairly stylish place to go. If you're looking for an unusal bite to eat in Soho, you could do an awful lot worse.

1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.

Review of Pizzeria San Marco

23 Aug 07, 14:18

Clap your hands say yeah!

We stumbled upon the Pizzeria San Marco after a terrible experience at Gastro, a French restaurant around the corner. We arrived there utterly dejected and hungry after waiting over an hour for our food to arrive. As soon as we walked into San Marco, we were greeted with broad smiles and some delicious smells from the open kitchen at the back.

Our waitresses were so charming and listened to our tales of bad service. We were presented with some free olives while we waited as they took pity on us. We began to relax, glad that we'd changed restaurants.

Once the food came, it became clear that one of our orders has been misunderstood by the chef. Our waitress couldn't apologise enough and she rushed to the kitchen to make sure our dish was their priority. She chatted with us at length as we waited, and apologised again. Once we had finished eating- fantastic crisp pizza, a delicious seafood linguine, and some more of the delectable olives, she rushed over to see if everything was ok. Despite our protests, she gave us a free drink on the house after the meal.

We left full, slightly tipsy, and with much more money in our pockets than if our meal at Gastro had been successful: smiling and vowing to go there again as soon as possible.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Review of Regency Cafe

22 Aug 07, 11:14

Put all your eggs in this basket...

I used to work just around the corner from The Regency Café, and I miss it terribly. It's the kind of place I would now get up early on a precious Saturday morning to go and visit, that's how great it is.

But lunchtime is when this place really comes into its own. By 1pm every weekday, it's a steamy, buzzing place, stuffed full of an unusual cross-section of people: cabbies make up its staple trade, but they usually pop in a bit earlier along with local builders, to avoid the rush of Westminster suits, Civil Servants, and Channel Four workers.

The food here does exactly what is says on the tin. Hearty, stodgy mains courses are always plentiful, and the special changes every day. The most common orders are for eggs, beans, sausages, and their legendary chips- huge yet somehow light golden bites of fluffy goodness. The scampi and the chicken fillet burgers are some of my other favourites. Scampi salad is a real pleasure- a chunky, basic salad topped off with refreshingly unhealthy fried morsels. My only criticism is that they’re still stuck in postwar school-dinners era as far as their peas are concerned- they use those sludgy khaki-coloured tinned processed ones.

But the most memorable thing about this place is the sheer volume at which the owner/ proprietor, Marco “The Voice” Schiavetti, bellows out the orders to customers as the dishes arrive piping hot from the kitchen. You’re expected to be on the ball and remember what you’ve ordered, as well as be ready to step up and collect it. If you’re female, he’s a pussycat. If you’re male, you’ll get an appreciative nod if you get to the service counter promptly.

This place has been used in all kinds of film and tv adverts and is an iconic slice of postwar London. It’s a cheap lunch and an unforgettable experience to boot! Get down there before your food goes cold.

1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.

Review of East Dulwich Dental Care

15 Aug 07, 16:04

Smile!

I just moved to the area recently and was dreading finding a dentist, but when my gums became sore I knew I had to bite the bullet, so to speak, and was extremely surprised to find this dentist (listed on the NHS website as accepting NHS patients) was so nearby, was actually accepting new NHS patients, and wasn't charging an arm and a leg for their private care. Regular NHS checkups there will cost you less than �16. My dentist was really friendly, very efficient, and told me that all of the damage I'd inflicted on my gums over the last 6 years (that's how long it had been since my last visit) was completely reversible. I can't promise the same fate for your teeth, but I left the place smiling.

1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.