The Northgate

We held our wedding reception at the Northgate earlier this month and feel compelled to write a review on this fabulous venue, pub and restaurant. Prior to booking the pub for our wedding we have visited for both drinks and food and have always found the service and quality of food to be great. From start to finish the owners Roz and James were fantastic in making sure they understood exactly what we wanted and ensured the whole day ran smoothly and to plan. Planning our day was effortless as the pub was very flexible and nothing was to much trouble. The chef put together an excellent three course menu for us which received rave reviews from all our guests, each dish was perfect from the first to the last with quality never compromised despite a large group eating all at once. One of our guests even commented on how it was the best wedding menu they have ever eaten.

The staff, food and service at the Northgate has been first class everytime we have visited and we are delighted we choose the pub for our wedding.

Our personal recommendation would be the slow roasted pork belly it is absolutely amazing.

If you are looking for great food, a great venue and service which is both personable and attentive look no further than the Northgate.

Many thanks to Roz, James, Barrie, Katie and all the staff at the Northgate for delivering a perfect wedding.
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MrMrsBridge
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Sunday, July 31, 2011

I can't believe the negative reviews on the Northgate, I am a real fussy git at the best of times but the Northgate is an exceptionally great pub. Why? because the food is totally fantastic and the service is attentive and quick, we have been there several times and never had a bad experience.

We live over the road and were stalwarts for the Skolts Head down the road but decided to give the Northgate a go one day as it had new management. Now we have eaten there approximately eight times since and ditched the competition because the food was so consistently excellent and the atmosphere was a bit more grown up and relaxed, nice to get away from the heavy smokers and drinkers in other nearby establishments where getting a seat is near impossible on a weekend. NEVER had a bad meal, quite the opposite, the chef obviously cares about where he sources his ingredients as the flavour and quality is exceptional for a pub. Blows the socks off anywhere else in the area by far. Price, yeh its not the cheapest but no more expensive than the Skolt's or the Talbot nearby, and you feel it's worth it.
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Ree
9 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Friday, June 10, 2011

Lovely pub. Went there for years, BUT stopped going before their recent closure due to the poor service and ridiculous practises. Tried it again on Sunday (10th April 2011).

There is ONE thing which irritates a patron of a service establishment above anything else - and that is being subjected to processes and systems which don't make sense and reduce the overall enjoyment of the experience for the PAYING CUSTOMER.

When you go to the bar at The Northgate, you can order drinks. If you dare to tell one of the bar staff that you would like two roast beef as well, they look at you like you're a moron and send you to your table with instructions that someone will take your order there. Very often, by the time you have made your way back to your table, that same individual is standing behind you with order pad in hand, asking you what food you would like. This is ridiculous. Pointless. Stupid. Irritating and inefficient. In fact I would go as far to say that it is also childish and insulting to dismiss a customer in such a fashion when sense dictates that the server should take the order and ascertain the table number (like so many other establishments).

The food is GOOD. The selection of beers and wine is good. The pricing is a little high, but bearable. The service is chaotic, headless and slow.

If you have sat outside, enjoyed drinks, ordered food and then decided it is a little chilly so you've come inside and sat at a table and taken the trouble to inform one of the bar staff... DON'T expect that person to automatically do the sensible thing and communicate with the kitchen/waiting staff. No, your food will be taken outside to your original table and the waitress will come back in and flounder about asking everyone in the room who has ordered 2 beef. Absolute mess. Poor communication is inexcusable in a busy, bustling environment like The Northgate. It needs to be slick, fast, responsive, friendly and efficient. It simply is not, and the woman parading around as though she owns the place (perhaps she does) really needs to understand what the customer wants, not merely think about what she cares to provide. Perhaps with time she will grow into the role and gain experience, but the sporadic nature of my visits will reflect the current grudginess to take note of customer feedback (which was given at the time of the visit).
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Stuart King
6 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 6
Wednesday, April 13, 2011

I am really suprised by the negative review on this site. My husband just started work in the City and just moved in the area recently so we decided to try The Northgate Pub for dinner on Saturday with the inlaws. I had been there about 3 years ago but thought we'd give it another go. The staff were as friendly as could be, the place was packed and jumping with a really great atmosphere and the food was absolutely divine. My tiger prawns linguine was heavenly, the pork belly was great and the braised venison stew was perfect winter comfort food. My husband demolished his perfectly cooked ribeye steak. And we all had to try the selection of cheese plate - nice flavours with good selection. All in all a lovely saturday dinner - lovely atmosphere, friendly staff and great food. The service is a little slow but they are packed so its understandable. I wouldnt go here if I was in a rush but for a long drawn out for dinner it was perfect. And yes its little pricey - I certainly couldnt afford it on a regular basis but for a treat you cant fault
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stacey
9 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Thursday, January 20, 2011

Having been a resident of N1 for all of my life, the re-opening of The Northgate pub on Southgate Road, after months of closure has been greatly anticipated.

The new owners, also locals, have retained the previous chef; seemingly adhering to the mantra “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. The menu is a varied and exciting combination of dishes and flavours, not relying too heavy on a single type of cuisine, but merely on high-quality, well sourced ingredients. This is a far cry from the tired ‘gastro-pub’ menu, which after years of over-exposure can make an establishment seem predictable and unimaginative, something the Northgate menu could never be.

The interior of the pub has been tastefully redecorated, with the basic layout remaining the same. If anything it feels far cosier than its previous incarnation which didn’t want to encourage’ pub’ people; more ‘bar’ people. To the rear of the building is the restaurant, served by an open galley kitchen. This system works well as the customer can chose between eating in the bar area or having a more intimate experience and being waited on in the restaurant. I will personally always chose to watch a chef work, and on the evening that I ate there, the two chefs worked tirelessly and meticulously producing food of such a consistently high standard and almost dancing around each other in the process.

The staff and management were professional and made a point of welcoming us and engaging with both myself and my partner. There was a substantial wine list (I recommend the white Rioja) and a choice of over 5 draught lagers and 3 ales. The music was at just the right volume to allow conversation whilst creating an atmosphere and the customers seemed to be a good balance of young professionals and older ‘locals’. Having been tempted to physically lick my plate clean, I will definitely be returning for another serving of pork belly and feel the need to explore the rest of the menu if this is the standard of cooking.

Sunday lunch can get busy and they do a killer brunch on a Saturday, great for curing a hangover. As for me I have found my new local, tell your friends, the Northgate is the new kid on the block.
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roughafro - View all reviews by this user
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Monday, January 17, 2011

Whilst the Brazilian waitress was extremely friendly,professional and personable, the owners left much to be desired and can only be described as rough and rude! The food was pedestrian for the price and two meals were served to our table cold and sent back only to be microwaved and returned by the owners wife who couldn't look us in the eye . Considering the mains range between £10-£15, I would recommend going to Rivington near Old Street where you can be assured fine dining, superb service and a great experience for much the same price. Other great pubs nearby are the Albion in Barnsbury or The Canonbury... just don't go here!
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N1 Native
2 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 0
Sunday, January 09, 2011

I have been a regular (dinner and special occasions in the restaurant, lunch/dinner in the bar or just a few drinks) at The Northgate for many years (about 8 years) and have seen it go through many changes including different owners. The owners now though seem to have got it right. The in-house chef has stayed (I believe in residence for 6/7 years now) - so you know the food will be good, consistent and has maintained a good quality. When my Fiance and I were looking for somewhere to hold our Wedding Reception, we decided The Northgate would be the perfect venue! And it was - we had over a 100 guests at the reception and the staff could not do enough for us. Attention to detail was spot on; all requests (big or small) were managed and handled as if it were a large expensive hotel who cater for these events all the time; the food excellent: all guests' tastes and allergies taken care of and kids catered for perfectly. It really was the perfect day and all down to the management and staff of The Northgate - Thank You!! As a local gastro pub, one could not ask for more and will in fact be back for the New Year's Eve for dinner and drinks.
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- View all reviews by this user
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Monday, December 14, 2009

Your steak and chips were great - chapeau for the chips.

Thumbs down for a very pale imitation of mayonnaise (industrial?) as for the garlic I guess someone is still in the fields waiting to shoot it as it pops out of its hole.

Aioli is a zesty garlic mayonnaise It's made by slowly whisking olive oil into egg yolks and garlic as you well know.

Have we, alas, fallen into this trap and bowed to the easy commercial rip off - "they won't know anyway".

Your cooking is too good to bow to this - you don' have to call it aioli - I'll be back to test you on this so watch your backs - Papa G
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Papa G
7 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 7
Monday, August 17, 2009

This is my local "gastro"

I return repeatedly beccause it has good food, good wine (by the glass) & is cosy. Not frilly but enjoyable.
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Mark Warwick
7 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 7
Saturday, July 25, 2009