Olympic Café & Dining Room

Restaurants, British Barnes
5 out of 5 stars
(12user reviews)
Winner<br/>2016

Winner
2016
Winner<br/>2016

Winner
2016
Olympic Café & Dining Room

A new café and restaurant serving a predominantly seasonal British menu with European influences, and open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It's part of the new Olympic Cinema complex, which has transformed the historic Olympic Studios in Barnes (legendary recording studios for the likes of the Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendrix) into a brand-new cinema and private members' club. Open mid October.

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Venue name: Olympic Café & Dining Room
Contact:
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Address: Olympic Cinema
117- 123 Church Rd
London
SW13 9HL
Transport: Barnes/Barnes Bridge rail
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Average User Rating

4.6 / 5

Rating Breakdown

  • 5 star:10
  • 4 star:1
  • 3 star:0
  • 2 star:0
  • 1 star:1
LiveReviews|12
1 person listening
Tastemaker

Small plates make me happy. Perfect for sharing which let's face it, is sort of why we dine with friends in the first place, they give you the opportunity to dip in and out of a menu tasting everything with the sort of reckless abandon that only comes from finding a place that offers beautifully presented plates full of the freshest colours, textures & flavours...the Olympic Cafe & Dining Room in Barnes is one such place.


At the heart of the high street, this gorgeous tiled and airily decorated space was absolutely packed on the sunny Saturday we visited. Barnes is not a huge place so there aren't the number of restaurants you might have imagined which means that spots like this are worth finding and worth enjoying. British, seasonal and local produce runs through the menu, itself a tidy little list of sharing dishes and larger plates for solo consumption. If the ham & spinach croquettes with blue cheese dip are on the menu, get them. If the broad bean hummus on wholemeal is around, dive in. Don't leave without spooning silky burrata from fork to mouth and while you're at it, the crispy squid is also worth a graze. 


Don't be fooled by the idea that these small plates are, well, small...they're generous enough to share and big enough to almost leave you regretting the order of a main sized portion of the red rice & pecan grain salad topped with a squidgy round of goats cheese...almost. Like the best sort of places, the Olympic will wrap up your leftovers so that lunch today becomes dinner tomorrow. Staff are perky and prompt, service is well executed even when every table is full and the sunlight that streams through the sparkling windows lights everyone and everything in the sort of balmy glow that usually only Instagram can deliver.


Sit outside and watch the world go by while envious pedestrians ogle your table or relax in the cool, modern & Pinterest-esque dining room...either way, you'll be seriously pleased that you did. Barnes may not have everything an inner-city gal needs but good food is always worth going country mouse for.

Tastemaker

I adored my post-cinema dinner at this lovely restaurant in Barnes. The menu is varied and offers some wonderful dishes with superb ingredients. Feeling extravagant I opted to the lobster and it was stunning, with sweet, succulent meat and a lovely garlic butter sheen. Service is attentive and kind and the atmosphere is relaxed.


Can't fault this place. Most comfortable cinema out there, with decent food, all in a special venue. Go !


Everything done so nicely, simple good food, great surrounding, v nice staff. Worth the trip to Barnes


The Olympic Studios Cafe. Sounds and looks grand. But oh dear...where the Olympic logo has five rings in it, this establishment would be better represented by a dysfunctional hula hoop. My wife and I had visited the previous Friday. We were impressed by helpful, enthusiastic staff and shown round the cinema ( absolutely fantastic), the members room on the first floor (looks really good) and the quite exciting Cafe on the ground floor open to non members. We left with membership application forms after booking a table for three for the following Friday at 8, specifying that it be in the corner of the cafe by the windows. This was even pointed out. The booking was duly noted and the table location agreed, at least so we thought, by our charming host. So we eagerly returned this last Friday, arriving 12 minutes late having been stuck in London's traffic. We had, however, called ahead saying we would be a little late and been told this presented no problem. Entering the Cafe we were greeted by a slightly flustered soul who 'found' our booking and proceeded to lead us to our table. Through the Cafe we went, past the area we had agreed to be be shown to to a table at the end of the depressing alleyway leading to the toilets and a busy staff entrance/exit. Thoroughly underwhelmed our host showed us to that premier location of tables anywhere, you know the one. The one with an uninterrupted view of the Toilet hallway door. It was also a table that was clearly for two. Three could drink at it, but eating on it was a crowded experience. We voiced our view that this was not what we had asked for nor been agreed. The place was very busy, and there you go - no other table was available. Tough! Leaving was an option, but 'hey' the food was going to be good and we were geared up for a great family night Friday night supper. So we stayed. A mistake. Ordering drinks we opted for a bottle of Albarino priced at £35. The drink we ordered with this arrived rapidly. A well served Hendriks and tonic. We ordered food. The starters arrived within minutes of the order being placed. Deep Fried Squid was the absolute smallest of portions I have witnessed, hot - good. Tough – bad. Clearly pre -cooked and then hot plated. The accompanying garlic mayonnaise was ghastly. The steak tartare our son ordered was a meat centric sludge with sourdough toast. Not a hint of presentational effort. Slap it on the plate and serve it up. But 'hey', this is a cafe. The mains will be better? Where though was the wine? We asked for this three times, and lo' it duly appeared – served at room temperature. Maybe I'm being picky, but Albarino, like most whites, needs to be properly chilled. This was also sadly not one of the better examples of the genre, tasting more manafactured than crafted and heavy on the nettles. The saga surrounding the serving of this bottle would take too long to describe. Suffice to say that by the end of our main courses it was at the right temperature. I should have declared 'Enough' before the mains were served, but persevered. Mains? Roasted cod was good. My wife's burger OK. Our son's veal and stilton sandwich was too overpoweringly stiltonesque to be enjoyable. We passed on pudding, paid, left and breathed a sigh of relief. My wife's completed club membership form was in her bag – she had intended to leave it at reception. It's now in the bin. This is a place that clearly has had a lot invested in it. The Barnes/Putney area is screaming for something like it. I really hope it works. Currently it is very much work in progress. No medals deserved on the evidence of this experience. The Olympic Cafe needs to get in training. Currently it's not fit to compete. The Olympic motto is “faster, higher, stronger' – the Cafe falls well short on all counts. London 2012 the Olympic Studios Cafe is not. SOS – send for Sir Sebastian. He is needed.


Fantastic night out at the amazing new cinema in Barnes. Huge reclining armchairs, incredible sound and all so luxurious. Delicious supper in the cool restaurant downstairs and I hear the cocktails are worth travelling for in the members bar upstairs!


Fantastic food in extremely cosy but cool setting. The cinema is very spoiling too, a real game changer for Barnes. We can't wait to go back.


The cinema is a real treat. Comfy seats with loads of leg room and incredible picture quality and sound. I've only had drinks there so far (members lounge is very swanky) but have yet to try the food.


Great food and a place with a legendary history. Will be going back for the cinema.