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Inn The Park

St James's Park, SW1A 2BJ Full details & map

Café: British

Time Out says 1 Users say 1/5 Rate it

By Time Out Editors Posted: Oct 13 2011

On a rare balmy English summer evening, with its floor-to-ceiling windows rolled back, Inn The Park has one of the most enviable positions in town - in the heart of St James's Park. The restaurant's airy contemporary interior is sympathetic to the outside space, right down to the bumblebee motif on the glasses.

Attention to detail was reflected in a menu that offered seasonality in spades, from pea and lovage salad with honey and own-made ricotta, to globe artichoke with cobnut vinaigrette. Sadly, the menu promised more than it delivered, the lobster, squid and crayfish salad being a rather mean smattering of seafood amid an overgrown plate of frisée, making the £16.50 price tag questionable. Shetland smoked salmon and haddock fish cakes too seemed like a starter portion.

That left room for the cheeseboard, which reads as a showcase of British cheeses: blue horizon, keltic gold and an intriguing Cornish miss muffet. A mistake in the kitchen meant we received two cheeses rather than three, but this was soon rectified along with a requested extra portion of the top-notch wheaten bread, which only then managed to sate our grumbling stomachs. Could, and should, do better.

Tags: European, British, Breakfast/brunch, Families & kids, Great views, Outdoor : Dining, Central, St James's, Mid-range, Tea room (afternoon tea), Snack bar/Fast food, Restaurant, Café

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Inn The Park details

Address

Inn The Park

St James's Park SW1A 2BJ

Transport St James's Park tube

Telephone

020 7451 9999

Inn The Park website

Breakfast served 8-11am Mon-Fri; 9-11am Sat, Sun. Lunch served noon-3pm Mon-Fri; noon-4pm Sat, Sun. Tea served 3-5pm Mon-Fri; 4-5pm Sat, Sun. Dinner served 6-8.30pm daily

Main courses £10.50-£18.50

Credit cards MC, V

Facilities

Tables outdoors ( 23, terrace ), Babies and children welcome ( children's menu; high chairs ), Booking advisable, Disabled ( toilet ), Takeaway service

Inn The Park map

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Comments & ratings 1/5 (Average of 1 rating)

By Hanna - Aug 14 2011

1/5

Having booked Inn the Park for an engagement celebration we must admit we were concerned by their strict reservations policy. Upon arrival (10 minutes late and having called ahead to notify the establishment) we were initially told our table could not be kept. After much negotiation we were informed we would be required to return the table in 45 minutes, an absurd amount of time for a table of twelve. We were also rudely told that there was a private function being held, nothing of which had been mentioned when we arranged the booking. We had to cancel the reservation, and had to find an alternatively place to hold the brunch nearby.. This was made all the worse by the fact they were almost empty! A very stressful Sunday morning experience. In short, it was disappointing, frustrating and unprofessional. We wonder how their business functions at all. Needless to say, we won't ever be going back.

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By L Bloom - Nov 29 2010

Cold restaurant (on a day on which the temperature was 0 degrees, we were told heaters weren't brought in until December). Sitting in a coat, alongside other diners in coats, did not endear me to this restaurant, and nor did the food. Which was...small in portion size, largely tasteless, and also cold.

The manager did knock off over 50% of our bill, which was nice - but also a clear acknowledgment of the fact that his kitchen is serving sub-standard fare at reasonably expensive prices.

A lovely setting let down by the quality of the restaurant built upon it!