Restaurants

By Guy Dimond

The menu at this delightful Soho institution has barely changed since the 1960s. Pasta dishes and Anglo-Continental dishes are the mainstay, from spag bol to fishcakes. The fishcake is served with generous heaps of grated carrot, undressed salad and plump chips, and at £4.65, has got to be one of the best value dishes in London. All the prices make you do a double-take: Parma ham and melon for £3.30, grilled sardines with salad and boiled potatoes for £5.10, rice pudding for £1.95. With prices this low, you could splash out on a glass of house wine. And where else in London are you likely to find school-dinner favourites such as golden syrup sponge pudding with custard, or jelly and cream? The service is always charming on our visits, and the only thing we can pick fault with is that the seating and tables are small, but if you’re lucky enough to get a window seat, you’re laughing. It’s hardly the most fashionable joint in town either; at the next table, a group of octogenerians were discussing the use of trusses to support hernias. Modern doctors don’t recommend them, apparently.

Time Out London May 2009