Restaurants

St James
Fine dining in the suburbs
By Jenni Muir
The blue neon halo hovering above the door is the only thing vaguely saintly about this bar and restaurant. On the site that was the variable Florians, St James is the sibling of the best restaurant in Bushey, Herts. The owners are trying their luck in the big city – or at least Crouch End – at precisely the time most others in the business are cancelling expansion plans, but whatever nerves they are experiencing are well concealed here by mature staff and confident (if a tad ostentatious) decor and cooking.

Nearly everyone who’s walked into the lounge has commented on its resemblance to a high-end strip club, apparently; others might note that the velvety dark blue carpet clearly needs vacuuming several times a day to look its best, but the dining area proper is quite lovely, with white walls and chairs, gleaming floor-to-ceiling mirrors and elegant seasonal flowers arrangements on each table.

Here dishes featuring wasabi, miso and soba noodles line up against more familiar British, French and Mediterranean fare. Least successful was a risotto of confit duck with coriander, whose green sauce had virtually no flavour. But a plate of smoked salmon, mackerel and haddock was beautifully complemented by wasabi mayo, spicy microcress and a lime-laden fennel ceviche that was good enough to take a more prominent role. Calves’ liver came tender and expertly cooked pink, a side of chips was golden brown and succulent rather than crisp.

Desserts – surprisingly all British – seemed small after the well-portioned mains and starters. However the treacle sponge and apple crumble were well made and tasty.

The brief, approachable wine list makes choosing a pleasure. Service is delightful, too, the only slip being slowness to deliver and process the bill. St James could do very well; the patio tables could become a hot ticket come summer.
Time Out Issue 2002: January 1-7

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Posted by Stefanie on 20 Nov 2009 08:38
Food and service = 5 Stars

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Posted by Neil on 24 Sep 2009 11:08
What a difference! I visited St James last week for a great breakfast and was surprised to find they had completely changed the front bar to more casual dining, going from West End to more Crouch End. The food was great, a perfect start to the day. Looking forward to going back for a meal. The staff were also very friendly.5*!!

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Posted by Leo on 14 Sep 2009 01:00
Very nice location, kind staff, good presented food, but not as good as expected.
We had a carrot soup as starter and we enjoyed it, despite the amount of garlic. The main courses, a lamb leg and a beef fillet were absolutely tasteless, as well as the vegetables (carrots and asparugus tasted the same). The fillet was not as tender as we would expect and the lamb was a bit cold and without "personality". The wine list was poor; we had a bottle of Zinfandell from California, drinkable, that's all. The dessert, a trio of brulee, was nothing really special. Nevertheless, the price was 75.38 pounds for two...so, if you are looking for a nice place, that's ok, but if you are looking for a nice place and good food..than, we would not recommend it. Leo&Ele

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Posted by Viv Edwards on 08 May 2009 20:50
I recently went to this restaurant for the first time with 3 other friends. The bar to have a cocktail and odd glass of champpagne before our meal was both stylish and glamorous. The fact the bar is set up seperatly to the restaurant means you can have a dirnk and not interupt any diners and we were not pushed to go to our table even when the booking time for the restaurant had passed. The restaurant itself was stunningly decorated with everything pure white, including the incredibly soft leather seats making it very comfortable. The food was delicious, served in good timing and very friendly service. The live music in the bar following our meal finished of the evening. Between the four of us there were no complaints and we all very much look forward to returning many times Highly reccommend

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