Lanes Restaurant & Bar
special offer
Special Offer only available online - please book above
2 courses for £15
Offer Details: ...from a set menu. Includes Vat, excludes service.
Available: Daily 12:00 to 15:00, 19:00 to 23:00
Maximum people: 10
Terms: Expires 2nd June 08
our review
With a new Chef introducing an interesting menu, fresh décor and different artwork on the walls, Lanes feels like a new restaurant. This semi-basement space is bright yet inviting, giving off a cool efficient air.
Before starters we were presented with an amuse bouche of leak and potato soup and poached quails egg topped off with truffle oil, a lovely combination and a very nice scene setter for the meal. On to starters, I was drawn to the Black pudding and poached rainbow trout with mustard and nettle sauce, an unlikely combination yet it worked, the pudding surprisingly light in both its texture and flavour complementing the scoop of roughly flaked fish that was sat on top, the sauce’s quite subtle flavour brought the dish together well. The Frisee salad with poached egg lardoons and mustard vinaigrette was fresh and light, the dressing giving the egg and slight saltiness of the bacon added zing.
Moving on to mains, the fillet of beef ‘wellington’ beautifully pink and tender in its light pastry case was served on a bed of savoy cabbage that still had some bite, the sweet stickiness of the red wine sauce and the truffled pomme puree served on the side supported the dish very well. The Chicken kiev was a very tender juicy chicken breast, which was also served with truffled pomme puree as well as nicely crunchy mange tout and a small jug of molten garlic butter to pour over the meat, a nice modern presentation of this old favourite. The dish had good subtle flavours that worked well together on the plate.
We were treated to a palate refreshing mango sorbet ‘pre-dessert’ after making our choices for dessert. The sticky toffee pudding was a ‘must have’ and I was very pleased it did! The light pudding and its sticky sauce were very decadent and was balanced by the slight sharpness of the scoop of crème fraiche served on it, it was serious comfort food. The lemon tart was incredibly tangy, its sharpness complemented well by the berry compote that accompanied it, another winner.
Lanes has a good range of wines on offer, priced upwards from £15.50. We tried both the house red and white wines, each of them were very pleasant. Service was attentive, professional and friendly. A short walk from Liverpool Street Station, Lanes is a cool and popular restaurant which presents interesting food choices and is well worth a visit – you won’t be disappointed.
akandpa - February 2007
your comments review this restaurant and win a bottle of champagne
lovely lunch from their express menu which helped get in under budget at £85 for 2 with a bottle of pinot grigio. fast service also a plus so will be back next week.
ate artichoke soup and fish and chips, client had pork salad and burger.
toilets are great as someone else said and beautiful flowers - brings out my feminine side!!
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douglas martin
Overall rating 
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Monday, April 28, 2008
I went last week for the first time in a while and was delighted to see that the restaurant has had a serious makeover.
The room feels more spacious and the private dining area that we have used for work in the past now has a beautiful one piece table and I was assured new chairs and other bits were on the way from Italy.
A new chef was also in, I think a menu change starts in the next couple of weeks but on this visit food was good and service friendly and efficient.
Toilets were another major improvement.
I hear thay have opened a new restaurant in chelsea too so good luck to them with that!
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Monday, March 24, 2008
My friend and I had dinner here last night, taking them up on the 50% off the food bill deal that was on offer.
We floated out of the restaurant. I was sceptical as we approached, but the staff were impeccable, the ambience was gorgeous; beautiful and calming.
The menu was simple and very British (knickerbocker glory?). My friend opted for the calfs liver and I had the rack of lamb. When our meals arrived, my first impression was 'if I was paying £23 for the lamb, I'd be a bit annoyed by how small it was.' It was very tasty though, a little overdone by my taste, but I actually hadn't been asked how I would like it cooked and I'm nit-picking. The sides were simple and really delicious, the cabbage especially. We both had the sticky toffee pudding which was gorgeous, and he finished with a coffee. We asked for the bill when the waitress cleared the table and she was quick to assure us that there was no rush for us to finish and that we were welcome to stay as long as we wanted. Never before has that happened!
All in all, it was a fantastic experience. The staff and service were impeccable, friendly, helpful and accomodating. Wine and water glasses were always topped up without interrupting the conversation, and we had completely unwound by the end of the evening, very full and very happy, floating off down the street. Would go again ni a heartbeat, 50% off or not!
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jpswalsh - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Thursday, February 28, 2008
I went to Lanes in 2006 for Valentines at fairly short notice. i spoke to the excellent staff and said I was vegetarian. Far from fainting at that notion, the girl I spoke to gave me the menu by e-mail ,and said she'll get the chef to add another vegetarian option - making it 3 vegetarian options out of 7.
That superb attitude, service and care lead to my fiance getting her office to book her company Christmas meal there.
The service is young and friendly without a snooty air, and it was fast. The service is only bettered by the Savoy Grill - where the waiters are telepathic!
The atmosphere appears austere at first, but is in fact quite warm and intimate, and anyone should feel at home there.
I love this restaurant, and writing the review makes me want to go back
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Loheswaran Amirthananthar - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating 
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Me and my fiancee have been frequenting Lanes since it opened 3/4 years ago. We always liked the food, atmosphere and friendliness but have recently noticed a decline in its standards.
I have eaten there twice in December 07 and the food quality has definitely declined. On the last visit I ordered haddock and it must have been the smallest piece of haddock that I have ever seen... My fiancee ordered a Caeser salad which arrived without any caeser sauce on it...
Also the staff dont seem to be as good as they used to be. The friendly joint owner who was always there with a welcoming smile never seems to be there anymore and the people in his place aren't as good. Not as friendly and proned to small mistakes.
I would love it to return to its previous best as it used to be one of the best places to go to for a good meal and a relaxing night out.
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Dean Bates
Overall rating 
Food 6 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 6
Thursday, December 20, 2007
quite possibly the best restaurant i have visited this year throughout the uk, the food was outstanding and the presentation wonderful, the blackpudding and rainbow trout was a no brainer after reading many reviews about this dish, and it was to die for! The lamb was cooked to perfection, full of flavour and the "anna" potato looked amazing! i sincerely hope the chef is here to stay! Desserts are well worth ordering, the knickerbocker glory was just how i remembered as a child. Service was attentive without being ott and i was very grateful when the waiteress picked out the wine to go with our amazing food, ill ber talking about this place for a long time and shall be returning in the near future to entertain clients
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Phil reynolds
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 10
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
If you like good food then you would be a fool not to eat here during the 50% offer! And if you miss that, go anyway, because it's still decent value. The menu is interesting and fairly varied, and the food is really top quality. If you like fish this is definitely a good place to come - my husband and I eat fish but not meat and often end up having almost no choice - but here we were spoilt for choice. I had the sole and my husband had the tuna (that night's special), we shared them both and they were both divine. The vegetables that accompanied them were incredibly tasty and cooked to perfection. As for the desserts....I had the creme brulee, which was really really delicious, and my husband had the cheesecake, which was some of the best cheesecake I have ever tasted...The service was excellent, and our waiter really knew what he was talking about when it came to the wines.
In short, I would highly recommend going to this place, because whilst the offer is on I do not think you will eat such good food for so little anywhere else in London!
I only gave the place 7 for atmosphere because I didn't love the music that was playing, and it is not the most beautiful setting...but it didn't really matter because the food and wine were more than distracting!!
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A - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Thursday, June 07, 2007
we loved dinner at lanes on saturday with the 50% offer.
a warm welcome and proffessional service from start to finish.
fabulous menu - had the champagne and asparagus soup followed by the swordfish and we shared the apple tart which was devine.
would highy recommend this restaurant whether on the offer or not.
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elaine
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Went here tonight based on the excellent reviews on london eating - however was hugely disappointed. At first we were seated under a music speaker which was likened to being a nightclub, not conducive to a nice evening meal out, we did ask to be moved, which helped, however rest of the seating area was separate to the main area so the upstairs was pretty "dead". Food was average, service was incredibly slow, and we had to wait 40 mins for anyone to take our dessert order at which point, we decided to get the bill. We went on the 50% london eating offer and ended up getting a bill for the full price; we politely pointed this out for them, and they did correct this. Though this was a friday night, the restaurant wasn't hugely busy, and given such, the staff could have been much better especially given that at regular prices, this isn't a cheap restaurant. i wouldn't recommend this restaurant even with the 50% deal.
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Overall rating 
Food 6 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 5
Friday, April 27, 2007
Very cool and smooth service from a very practised team serving a large menu of food you want to eat. Basically we found it hard to choose and everyone in our group thought they had ordered best.
I'd definitlely recommend Lanes to anyone for business or pleasure and it's worth noting they have a great lounge bar and they're very busy at nights so you'll have a good atmosphere in the evening until late.
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ben jones
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
