The Avalon - Restaurant Review

Cuisine: Modern European

Cost: 

Rating: 

Where?:  16, Balham Hill, London. SW12 9EB

Closest station(s): Clapham South, Clapham Common, Clapham Junction, Balham.    

Telephone:  0208 675 8613

Website: www.theavalonlondon.com  

Being a delightful summer’s day and wanting to sit outside the Avalon seemed a good choice as somewhere to go for sustenance and a drop of wine. Falling into the category of gastropub the Avalon sits between Clapham South and Balham with a large terrace at the front and a huge garden at the back. Whilst the atmosphere is pleasant enough there is something a little flat about the whole place, the inside is forgettable and the outside rather like someone went on a shopping trip to a garden centre and bought all the chunky wooden furniture they could find without a thought as to how it would look when they got home.

I thoroughly enjoyed my starter of crab with wasabi aioli, cucumber and fried basil (£6.95)– not a complicated dish but one that was well suited to the good weather and packing sufficient flavour. It was therefore rather a shame that the mains were such a let-down. There was nothing specifically wrong with my dish of linguine with rock shrimps, garlic and lemon; apart from the lack any real flavour. Eating the dish was very much like eating a bowl of pasta that one might knock up at home in a couple of minutes with a dollop of jarred pesto smeared on top – on this occasion it simply had a scattering of prawns. My dining partner’s stuffed courgette with lentils and mozzarella was again uninspiring and bland (and a little too healthy for my tastes). I don’t believe that the ingredients necessarily lend themselves to great feats of flavour, however if the chef hadn’t thought of a way to give the dish some taste then it has to be questioned whether it should be on the menu. At £11 - £21 for mains, though not expensive, a lot more could have been expected.

At £14 the house wine was perfectly acceptable and the bloody Mary with which I started was also well made. The Avalon is not a bad pub, I would happily return to sit in at the front to have a cheapish bottle of wine in the sun and perhaps share a couple of the cheaper starters to fight off any pangs of hunger. I will not however be returning to for a meal, as with too many places it has attempted to jump on the gastropub band wagon without, to my mind, considering what it means or putting sufficient effort into the food.  

Varanasi chefs - Restaurant Review

Cuisine:  Indian

Cost:  

Rating:

Where?:  142, Battersea high Street, London. SW11 3JR.

Closest station(s): Clapham Junction.  

Telephone: 020 7228 3145

Website: www.varanasichefs.co.uk

Varanasi Chefs is tucked away on Battersea High Street, a rather shabby road that I had not eaten on previously. The décor is pretty standard for a run of the mill Indian restaurant, perfectly comfortable and welcoming however little more. The menu immediately caught my attention with a selection of dishes that don’t prescribe to the standard ‘samosa, bhaji, sheikh kebab, chicken tikka’ formula that you find on so many high street Indian restaurant menus. Here instead you have papri chaat, aloo tikki chaat and the wonderfully named lamb mo mo. So, the menu may be a little out of the ordinary however at Varanasi Chefs prices (pretty much all starters under £5) I wasn’t expecting them to be anything special.

The starters that arrived at the table were stunning, real effort has been made to make the starters a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach. These starters have the look of those you would find in an upmarket Indian restaurant; this is certainly more Benares or Cinnamon Kitchen than your bog standard high street Indian restaurant. The starters were without exception excellent.

The mains that followed were also very good, however they could not quite live up to the theatre or excellence of the starters. The sides, roti and naan were all particularly good – the Daal was one of the finest I have had.

I hold great affection for Varanasi Chefs, the staff are extremely friendly and attentive and the house wine comes in around £13. The last time I went I just had starters, which turned out to be a great meal. In addition, the restaurant often has offers in place that make the already reasonably priced food an absolute steal. 

Le Bouchon Bordelais - Restaurant Review

Cuisine:  French

Cost:  

Rating:

Where?:  5 – 9, Battersea Rise, London. SW11 1HG.

Closest station(s): Clapham Junction, Clapham South, Clapham Common.  

Telephone: 0207 738 0307

Website: www.lebouchon.co.uk

Sitting on the veranda of this French restaurant near Clapham Junction in the sun enjoying a glass of crisp white wine whilst waiting for my dining partner I had extremely high hopes for Le Bouchon. Alas, soon it started to rain so myself and my tardy guest decided to move inside to avoid the British weather.

The décor is simple, in itself this is not a bad thing however I found it rather lacking in charm. The seating was decidedly uncomfortable, ending up perched on bar stools around a small table in order to remain away from the absurdly loud television in the adjoining part of the restaurant.

The menu offers a fine selection of French cuisine, however it seemed to be an age before the rather rude waitress came and took our order. Our starters of terrine de foie gras and moules finally arrived and were decidedly average.

 Nevermind, it was onto the Chateaubriand which I was hoping to make amends and leave me satisfied in the way only a huge piece of bloody cow can. It was shown at the table in advance of carving and both myself and my dining partner gasped at the beauty of the this charred piece of meat. Unfortunately being shown the meat was the highlight of my experience of Le Bouchon. It was hugely disappointing to find that my first mouthful lasted considerably longer than I had expected. Chew chew chew chew chew .. hmm , still there .. chew chew chew .. wash down with wine … swallow. I have never had Chateaubriand that was so chewy and consequently not enjoyable. To add insult to injury the chips were also undercooked.

I did not enjoy my meal at Le Bouchon; the food was below par, the service was slow, poor and rude and the bill managed to come to considerably more than I was expecting. There are often offers on the food – however even with a reduction in the bill I believe that you could find better food in more pleasant surroundings for the same money. 

Nancy Lam’s Enak Enak - Restaurant Review

Cuisine:  Indonesian

Cost: 

Rating: 

Where?:  56, Lavender Hill, London. SW11 5RQ.

Closest station(s):  Queenstown Road, Battersea Park, Clapham Junction,  

Telephone: 0207 924 3148

Website: www.nancylam.com

I can’t say that I have seen Nancy Lam on television for a long time, I am not sure this is a bad thing as I remember having to turn the volume down every time she came on as her presentation style generally involved screaming at high pitch. I certainly felt sorry for dogs sitting near televisions when she appeared.  

Following its 2004 refurbishment Enak Enak (yummy yummy in Indonesian) reopened much larger and allegedly more modern. Having walked in I can’t imagine what it looked like pre-2004 as it looks decidedly dated now.

The food took quite a while to arrive and the service was generally poor, I don’t mind waiting if I have a drink to help me through the time however it took an age for wine and water to be brought to the table. The portions were not massive, however with hindsight I think they are pleasantly sized – having finished the meal I left satisfied however not horrendously full as I often seem to find when eating in a high street Chinese restaurant.

The food throughout was good but little more, the meat certainly tasted fresher than it often does when eating dishes such as satay or an Oriental curry; however the whole thing just seemed a little dull. The presentation is straight from the 1990s and lacked anything to make it memorable.

 It certainly isn’t somewhere to avoid at all costs, however it all just seems to be to stuck in a time warp – luckily the prices a relatively low at £8 for starters and £10 for mains. I have heard from many others that it has lost a magic that it used to have back in the 1990s. 

The Fox & Hounds - Restaurant Review

 

Cuisine:  Gastropub

Cost: 

Rating: 

Where?:  66, Latchmere Road, Battersea, London. SW11 2JU.  

Closest station(s):  Clapham Junction, Queenstown Road, Battersea Park.    

Telephone: 0207 924 5483

Website: www.foxandhoundspub.co.uk

Finding myself on the incredibly dull street that is Latchmere Road I decided to give the Fox & Hounds a go, a traditional looking English pub that I heard served food. Inside it is all wood with an appealing layout of non-uniform tables.

The antipasti platter with which we started was a rather bizarre assortment of bites and considerably larger than would be wanted for two people as a starter. Everything was reasonable though not amazing, the highlight being the fried polenta. Luckily the mains really hit the mark, in a pub like this I hope to be able to order something like sausage and mash, which I could, and did. The Italian sausage, mash and red onion marmalade was great; a filling serving (there really had been no need for the starter) including good quality meaty sausages and a thick red onion gravy. At £6 for starters and £12 for mains it was reasonably priced for the quality and house wine was under £15.

The staff are friendly and there is a healthy mix of clientele; it remains primarily a pub so there is a decent atmosphere but also plenty of people choosing to dine.  

If ever on Latchmere Road then the Fox & Hounds is a relaible place to stop for a pint, a glass of wine or a plate of food – it certainly lacks some of the pretention that you find in many of the pubs closer to Battersea Park.  

Entrée Restaurant & Bar - Restaurant Review

Cuisine:  Modern European

Cost:

Rating:

Where?:  2, Battersea Rise, London. SW11 1ED.

Closest station(s): Clapham Junction, Clapham South, Clapham North.      

Telephone: 0207 223 5147

Website: www.entreebattersea.co.uk      

At the top of Battersea Rise moments from the Western end of Clapham Common there has been a rash of restaurants popping up; one of these is Entrée.  The dark exterior gives way to a dark wooden interior; despite the dark polished wood the dining space has a surprisingly warm feel to it.

Ther welcome was warm and we were taken to a table on in the raised dining area, this is opposed to the cocktail bar downstairs which certainly looked well worth a visit on another occasion. The dishes are a selection of European classics however often with an interesting touch such as free-range Old Spot pork belly, vegetables á la Grecque, green papaya & grapefruit salsa. At around £7 for starters and £18 for mains the prices are pretty reasonable. All of the dishes that we tried were well executed, of great quality and satisfying. Though good nothing could be said to have been stunning.

The décor, service and food combined to make this an extremely enjoyable dining experience. For a mid-week dinner with friends this would be a good choice of restaurant. Deals are also often on offer, including £20 for two courses for Sunday lunch. 

La Movida - Restaurant Review

Cuisine: Spanish / Tapas

Cost:

Rating:

Where?:  300,  Battersea Park Rd, Battersea. SW11 3BU.

Closest station(s): Battersea Park, Queenstown Road, Clapham Junction.

Telephone:  0207 924 2595

Website: N/A

Certainly one of my finds of the year. Having been past this unassuming restaurant on many occasions it certainly isn’t a restaurant that will be drawing people in off the street. This family run restaurant cannot be said to be pretty and the fact that it is rarely busy does little to suggest that it would be worth a go. How wrong I was.

Finding myself in the area with a penchant for tapas I decided to give it a stab, nothing ventured nothing gained. From start to finish there was little to fault from this friendly and relaxed venue. The liver was possibly the finest I have had and the squid was cooked to perfection. The prices are extremely reasonable; most dishes for around £5; in addition to which there has been a 50% off deal running three nights a week for the past few months.

The wine list cannot be said to amaze however it provides a perfectly good selection of wines with which to wash down the great food, again at extremely modest prices. My greatest worry is that the lack of business will see it go under as it really is a gem of a restaurant. When looking for great tapas which won’t leave too great a dent in your wallet then La Movida would be difficult to top. It would also be a great place for large groups.