This Bright Field

We're in London on a break from Islamabad and staying at a nearby hotel. We wanted something close and relatively simple for a late lunch on a rather gloomy Saturday afternoon. This Bright Field was perfect - casual, friendly staff, and bustling with customers. The organic scrambled eggs w/lightly smoked salmon were perfectly cooked and seasoned, and were whisked from the kitchen to the table so they were still very warm and yummy when they landed on the table. My boyfriend ordered the kipper, which (as another diner noted) was huge, and he enjoyed its intense, smoky flavor. Since I'm American, I was delighted to see iced tea on the soft drinks menu. There were several nice touches -- fresh tulips and a large bottle of tap water with fresh mint were on the table, good music that wasn't intrusively loud, and an eclectic decor that wasn't contrived or overdone. Wonderful staff. Bottom line -- if we lived here, we'd be regular customers.

There last night. Booked table for 2 in the afternoon with the friendly Ben and got an email confirmation but didn't notice he'd put wrong date. Not to worry as empty when we got there (it filled). Friendly staff. Nice tables and lights. Floor to ceiling windows all round make it a bit goldfish bowl and on a bitter Feb night could have been a temperature challenge but warm enough. Asked about cocktails which they don't do yet but plan to. No problem sampling the 2 cheapest white wines on the menu, both drinkable but the Spanish at £3 more our preference (they've just got a new season wine choice in). We chose same starters and mains (pork - fabulous, tender, delicious and chicken - lip-smackingly good). At £21.50 for 2 courses and £23.50 for 3 it seemed rude not to go for a pudding...the chocolate brownie delivered. 4 hours whisked by in delightful company and the waiting staff were the perfect balance of friendly but not overbearing. They are short on nightcaps with only Isle of Jura so we had one of those and were last to leave at 11.30. I'll be back...

Oh, and I'll give it 2 stars. See below...

Although the space is attractive and the service friendly and attentive, the food was way below par. My starter of watercress soup was lukewarm. A globule of cream in the middle turned out to be the size of a fist, obliterating any flavour the soup may have had. What sounded interesting: creamed pearl barley, squash and wild mushoms cooked as a risotto/stew tuned out to be a weird textured gloop. Again, the cream robbed the dish of any flavour. Even the poached duck egg abanoned all hope and lost its flavour. The prices are a tad over the worth of the food. There are loads of restaurants doing what This Bright Field are doing, but better.

Fantastic experience at This Bright Field. My girlfriend and I went for a casual meal on a Friday night, and the only negative comment is that I wish there were more diners. We were attracted by the limited, changing seasonal menu and good prices (£23 for three courses and the look of the place and it exceeded expectations. I had: a starter of goose with duck pâté and rhubarb, a main of crispy-skinned sea bream, clams, sea kale in a creamy broth, and a desert of passion fruit cream, berry compote, jelly and compote. The food was almost faultless, the service was great and the waitress (possibly the owner) was well informed, smiling and attentive. Two people, three courses each and a bottle of wine (house white - we preferred it to a mid priced bottle, both we were offered to try before deciding) came to £66, before service.

Fantastic service, equally amazing food. I had the kipper (huge!!)which was simply amazing and then poached pear for dessert. A nice place to be

Really yummy food. Have been several times for the reasonable lunch and breakfast menu. Have also had dinner with friends, all of which have been back for more. The menu changes regularly as does the great produce and the drinks. The service was brilliant and very relaxing.

Group of four South londoners decide to head east to This Bright Field . This was our first visit, and having read many review and tweets we had to make the trip on a very wet friday night. Me and the wife got there early to have pre dinner drinks while wanting for our friends. However in the so called "BAR" , with no spirits, no cocktails, no music. We had a rain check and headed next door to bistrotheque. We did go back to This Bright Field, To enjoy a very nice meal, with very good service , great wine, tasty food. Highlights, Haddock Skink creamy soup, Hake with razor clams and cockles, shortbread mess. In the end it was worth the trip, would go back !!

I ate here last week and had excellent food and great service. Everything is served on really pretty vintagey plates. Drinks list had all kinds of exciting pops and colas for my little one. The main vegetarian course was also really good, lentils and goats cheese concoction- definitely not the bland veggie option on offer at most local establishments. My partner had fish- cooked to perfection. A very happy customer.

Took a punt and went with parents on a Saturday night. No evidence of poor service, our waitress was charming and attentive. Food was delicious but would agree that the two course deal might not be enough if hungry but the three courses were just right and only £2 more. Parents had a great time and are likely to want to return next time they visit. It's good to have another high quality place to eat in the area.