Jamie’s Diner
An impromptu
visit to Jamie Oliver’s Diner just off Piccadilly had me feeling quite excited,
I’d seen the bright lights when walking past on previous occasions and I’d
heard good things. So on a rare free evening my friend and I decided to get
around to going.
On arriving
we got a great welcome from the bouncer(?!) but then were kept waiting for much
longer than necessary at the foot of the stairs by the waiting staff, in a very
confusing set up where the host’s podium has no host and there is no indication
of what system is in place for seating oneself. After hovering for some time we
were noticed and seated. the tables are alarmingly closer together – the better
to squeeze more paying customers in – and we, unfortunately were seated next to
a very ‘affectionate’ couple.
The servers
are friendly but not sycophantic, my kind of service but we had to wait quite a
while to give our orders, despite the restaurant not being too busy. To start
we shared a deep fried squid with a chilli sour cream sauce, which was tasty
but nothing to write home about. As a main course I had the Beef Burger with
Skin-on-Fries and Rainbow Slaw, my friend had the vegetarian Happy Cow Burger
with Avocado Fries and Rainbow Slaw. I asked for the burger to be cooked medium
rare but was informed that due to health legislation they could only cook the
burger well-done – I’m not too well read up on these regulations but from the
poor explanation I was given I deduced that the quality of the meat would not
allow low levels of cooking. I thought that Jamie Oliver was all about the
quality. I also asked two different servers for the burger without tomatoes and
ended up having it brought to me disappointingly with a tomato. Our sides were
also on the wrong plates so my friend had to wait for his sides while they took
back my food to prepare for it as I had asked. The burger was mediocre at best,
mainly down to the fact that it was over-cooked. My friend’s veggie burger wasn’t
anything special either although the avocado fries were an interesting addition
and very tasty.
My
favourite thing about the meal were the drinks – we had a great rib-sticking
chocolate milkshake which was perfectly sweet without being too sickly and also
notable was the pink cola – definitely worth a try.
In the end
we mentioned the problem with the order to the manager and he gave us 10% off
the bill, which was a nice gesture, but didn’t make the evening any less
disappointing.
The theming in the dining hall is great and
does make dining here an experience, but it really feels like they have made
more effort on the props and waiting staff’s uniforms than on the food – unfortunately
the restaurant is trading on Jamie’s name but ultimately delivers something
less than ‘pucker’. 5 out of 10.
£20 a head
for 2 courses without alcohol.
What we ate:
To start:
Deep fried
calamari with chilli sour cream dip
To follow:
Beef Burger
with Skin on Fries and Rainbow Slaw
Happy Cow
Burger with Avocado Fries and Rainbow Slaw
To Drink:
Chocolate Milkshake
Pink Cola
Address:
23A Shaftesbury Avenue, London, W10 7EF (nearest station is Piccadilly Circus)
Website:
Booking number:
O2O3 6974 117
No comments:
Post a Comment