St John's Tavern

There seems to be a running theme with many of the reviews here - poor service - and unfortunately I am going to have to concur.

Having read great things about St Johns - Anthony Bourdain said that it is one of his favourite restaurants in the world - and aware that it has a Michelin star, we booked a pre Christmas meal with high hopes that it would be a gastronomic experience to remember. It was certainly memorable, alas not for the food.

As soon as we sat down it seemed that the staff chose to forget that we were there. It took an age to order drinks, longer to order food, and even longer wait to actually be served. There was a general dismissive arrogance that was consistent across all of the waiters who served us (maybe the person who does the staff training wasn't hugged enough as a child). Even in Wagamamas the staff will ask if you are happy with your meal. Not at St Johns evidently.

It really is a shame because the food is very good. It is not technically brilliant like other Michelin starred restaurants are; it is more like really great home cooking, with the very best ingredients.

Unfortunately, when forking out close to £100 for two people, good food is not enough. You need to be made to feel valued, the ambience needs to be right, and you should leave feeling it was worth trudging through the snow to get there. On those points, not close, and certainly no cigar.
View/Add comments (1)

Father Ted
5 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 5
Tuesday, December 22, 2009