Cuisine: Belgian
Cost:
Rating:
Where?: 44 - 48 Clapham High Road, Clapham. SW4 7UR.
Closest station(s): Clapham North, Clapham Common, Clapham High Street Rail.
Telephone: 0207 720 1118
Website: http://www.belgo-restaurants.co.uk
It had been a while since I had visited a branch of this Belgian chain restaurant – having previously tried the ever busy Belgo Centraal in Covent Garden. The Clapham branch can be found at the northern end of Clapham High Road, easily recognisable with its quite shockingly dull grey frontage with a smattering of beer garden tables at the front.
Going in I was surprised to see just how busy it was, it was packed. Having been seated it was then an age before our drinks order was taken and then another near lifetime before the drinks actually arrived. Alongside the moules & frites in which the place specialises, the rest of the menu is rather eclectic and tries to please all with a selection of rotisserie, steak, duck, fish & chips and seabass.
Not being in the mood for moules I went for something that I rarely eat in restaurants - chicken. The dish that came to the table was truly spectacular; I was close to calling a doctor at one point during the meal as it was so dry I was struggling to breath let alone swallow. I can’t remember the last time I had a less pleasant dish. Seeking to reintroduce at least a little moisture into my mouth I tried my dining partner’s moules, though better than the chicken, for somewhere where they are the speciality they were poor. They lacked any real flavour and were instantly forgettable. With mains from £10 - £18 it is not an expensive restaurant; however even for that money a lot more could be expected.
I was surprised at how poor I found the meal at Belgo Clapham – the service was poor and the food was pretty awful; making the fact that it was so busy rather depressing. There are much better meals out there for the same price with better staff, better décor and infinitely better food. If you ever want to know what sandblasting your mouth would feel like then all you need to do is try their chicken.