Tagrestaurant

La Pappardella (London) review

As you may have seen from my previous post, I was at Earl’s Court on Wednesday for IP EXPO. Having spent the day walking around talking to exhibitors, I decided to have a meal before my train back to Newark at 9pm.

I’d already had a look online at reviews for restaurants in the area, and in the end decided to try La Pappardella after seeing excellent reviews.

La Pappardella London outside

When I went in (which would’ve been at about 6pm), it was fairly quiet with only one other table being taken.

I didn’t have any (substantial) cash on me, so before ordering I wanted to make sure they accepted card payments (which they thankfully did).

I’m a big fan of Italian cuisine, and not a very fussy eater either, so it took me a fair while to decide on what I was going to have. In the end, I went for the home-made lasagne which I guess is a bit of a ‘safe’ option! You can download a PDF version of their menu by clicking here.

Whilst waiting for my meal, I saw a few pizzas and a calzone being brought out to a neighbouring table which looked massive. I only had to wait about 10-15 minutes for my meal.

La Pappardella lasagne
For dessert, I decided to have the Panna Cotta with fruits of the forest (the alternative was chocolate sauce).
La Pappardella panna cotta

They seem rather generous with their portions and are fairly cheap for the area.

Overall, a great restaurant in a good location if you’re in the area for a conference maybe. If I went again, I’d probably go for a pizza or calzone (both looked just as good!). As the night went on, the restaurant got busier and had a lively atmosphere to it.

Oh and they have free Wi-Fi too (just ask for the password!).

Meal at Ponti’s Italian Kitchen Restaurant (London)

I was in London recently for a conference (see my other blog posts) and was looking for somewhere to eat at. Being close to Oxford Circus tube station, Ponti’s was a convenient place for me to have an evening meal before going back to my hotel near King’s Cross.

I initially reserved a table for 7:30pm, but ended up being tied up elsewhere so had to call them and ask to push it back by an hour. Although they were busy that evening and I had called at last minute, they handled it with no problems. In case you’re wondering, I went there on Monday 8th July.

I was surprised at how close it actually was to the Oxford Circus tube station – literally a minute’s walk down a side road.

Ponti's Italian Kitchen oxford circus london

When I went in to the restaurant, I was greeted by a waiter and after checking my reservation I was shown to my table.

Time to order a drink! As it had been a hot day, I decided to go for a freshly squeezed orange juice, which tasted really nice! It was tangy (but not bitter!), and the bits left in which made it taste authentic. There were a few ice cubes in the glass too (and a slice of orange!) which was nice as it was a hot day.

Ponti's Italian Kitchen orange juice oxford circus london

After looking through their menu (which can be found here: http://www.pontis.co.uk/menus/PIK_main_0413.pdf), I decided to order the “Cotoletta Alla Milanese”, which was a pan-fried breaded chicken breast served with mashed potato.

I was pleased with the speed of service which I thought was just right. Not too fast that you would think it had already been cooked and waiting, but not too long that you got bored waiting.

When it arrived, I was very hungry from a long day spent travelling so I tucked in right away! The chicken was moist, and you could tell that it has been fried with sage butter which was nice and meant the meat didn’t dry up.

Ponti's Italian Kitchen cotoletta alls milanese oxford circus london

The photo doesn’t really give it credit – it was really filling!

After all that, I was ready to leave, and didn’t actually realise that they did desserts until I was given their special desserts menu after my plate had been taken away.

After being given the menu, the waiter recommended the cheesecake or brownie, but said that if I felt full, the Panna Cotta would be a good option. As I was still fairly full from the main, I decided to go for the latter. I appreciated the recommendation as I can never decide what to have (especially when it comes to desserts!).

It certainly stood up to its description of being creamy. It was a fairly light dessert, but had a really nice milky taste which went well with the crumble and berry compote. Not incredibly filling, but very creamy/milky and possibly even refreshing to some degree!

Ponti's Italian Kitchen panna cotta oxford circus london

After finishing my dessert, I was asked if wanted tea or coffee, but as I wanted to get back to my hotel to unpack my things I chose not to.

 

Overall, the restaurant has a great atmosphere, with music playing in the background at a low volume which is nice. The staff were very friendly and gave “service with a smile” although it was fairly busy and they were always on their feet. I think at least some of the staff were Italian and I was called “signor” a few times. All of this made it feel fairly authentic Italian.

I only wish that staff would be like this at all of the places I eat at. There is always usually that one member of staff that looks stressed, unmotivated and ends up passing on that negativity to the customer. At this place, the staff always seemed positive (even though it was busy) and seemed to enjoy what they were doing.

 

If I had the chance to visit again, I’d definitely go for one of their pizzas which sound really nice!

If you’re not that hungry, I imagine it would also be a great place to go out for drinks with a few friends in the evening as the table next to me had just come for drinks.

If you’d like to experience Ponti’s Italian Kitchen for yourself, they can be found at 5-7 John Princes Street, Oxford Circus, London, W1G 0JN, and 54 Duke Street, London, W1K 6JN.

Lunch at The Electric Bar & Restaurant

Situated on the Brayford Wharf in Lincoln, the Electric is a trendy bar & restaurant on the 5th floor of the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel.

Being fairly active on social media, I’d seen that the recently opened Electric Bar & Restaurant on the Brayford Wharf was holding a competition to win 50 ‘express lunch’ meals worth £12.95. You could also take a +1 so there were 100 meals up for grabs in total! I duly entered and was grateful to have been a winner!

Due to the popularity of the competition, I understandably had to book which was a fairly simple process and the staff were flexible as regards the date and time that I could book for.

Rather conveniently, there is a lift just inside the entrance to the DoubleTree which goes directly to the 5th floor where the Electric is situated. Upon entry, my coat was taken and kindly placed on a hanger for in a coat-cupboard. I was then taken through to the main dining area which had windows all around the edge overlooking Lincoln and the Cathedral.

Here are the three courses that I ordered from the set menu and a pic for each!

Starter: ‘Soup of the Day’ (Served with Homemade Bread) – this happened to be a Tomato Soup on the day.

Tomato Soup

When I ordered a tomato soup, I wasn’t expecting much as regards taste, however I was rather surprised at the flavours! You could tell that it was homemade.

Although not in the photo, this was served with a selection of small handmade ‘artisan’ style breads of different doughs.

Main: ‘Posh Fish & Chips’ (Beer Battered Haddock, Triple Cooked Chips, Garden Pea Puree, Tartar Sauce)

Posh Fish & Chips

This was what I was looking forward to tasting. I would even go as far to say the fish was of a higher standard than the freshly caught fish & chips you would eat at the seaside. It tasted very nice, and when you pulled it apart it flaked cleanly. The batter wasn’t at all soggy, and had been cooked well so that it was crispy and you could hear a slight crunch when you cut into the fish.

The chips were not dripping with oil which would have put me off. They were also seasoned with a pinch of salt, and served in a ‘chip pan’ style container (although they of course weren’t fried in this) which was an excellent finishing touch.

Dessert: ‘Sticky Toffee Pudding’ (Toffee Sauce, Double Cream Ice Cream)

Sticky Toffee Pudding

Being one of my favourite desserts, I had an idea in mind of what it should taste like, and it didn’t disappoint! The pudding itself was filled with raisins and spices so had plenty of flavour, and the toffee sauce was just right. I’ve never been a fan of clotted cream so I left that!

For an ‘express lunch’ menu, this left me completely full and I even had to leave a little of my sticky toffee pudding. There seemed to be no compromise – quality and a good quantity of food also!

Here are my ratings:

  • Food: 9/10
  • Service: 9/10
  • Staff: 9/10

Overall, whilst the food may not be the cheapest in the area, you do get value for money and can leave with a full stomach. The quality, presentation and taste of food was superb, and the staff were also very friendly and seemed to have a great work ethic. Rather than some places, the staff here seemed to genuinely care when they asked how your meal was and if there were any problems.

I would certainly eat there again and recommend to others in the local area looking for somewhere to eat out.

It’s worth mentioning that they do also have special offers on different days of the week such as Cocktail Club, After Work Social, Jazz Wednesdays, they do a roast on Sundays, and have a £25 set meal every evening.

You can find the Electric on Twitter (@electriclinc), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/ElectricLinc), and their website is Electric Bar & Restaurant.

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