Duke of Cambridge (Angel)

I went here for dinner tonight and was so appauled that I am writing this just hours later.

When we arrived (when the restaurant opened to avoid busy times) we were shown to our seats given bread and water but noboby came to take our order for what felt like ages even though only ours and one other table was occupied. As we were about to leave they came to take our order. As I am a vegetarian...a proper one who does not eat fish either I was left with two choices. I chose a gnocchi and beetroot dish which sounded ok.

When I took my first bite I could not believe that they were trying to pass off little blobs of goo over flavoured with cheese and capers and gnocchi! I am slightly fussy so gave a bite to my fiance who will eat just about anything and he hated it as much as I did. The beetroot however would have been fine had it not all been covered in the previously mentioned goo.

My fiance did not think an awful lot of his meal either.

All of this and at the end of it we were charged over £100 for a meal for 4 with no starters, deserts or alcohol all served to us by a woman in a Nike sweatshirt !!!

Needless to say I will not be going back.
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Dawn
Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 0
Sunday, October 07, 2007

I went here for a Sunday roast last weekend. The place was packed which is odd since the food is appauling!!!!

We were served a small plate blanched cabbage leaf, boiled potaotes (not roasted), a finger of parsnip and a slab of raw, tough beef.

These two very poor dishes and a bottle of water cost us £38!! YES TWO SMALL ROASTS AND A BOTTLE OF WATER FOR £38!!!!

The North Star and the Albion are half the price and twice as good.

This is not the first bad meal I've had here but it's certainly going to be the last.
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Sarah H
Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 0
Monday, October 01, 2007

Pleasant, backstreet Islington setting but bland, uninspiring food that is ludicrously overpriced. As one reviewer here said, the Duke of Cambridge has its heart in the right place, but organic doesn't have to mean tasteless. Stick to the organic beers in the bar part and eat somewhere else -- it's just a few minutes from Upper Street so there's plenty of choice.
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Janet - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 2
Monday, September 17, 2007

This place seems to generate mixed reviews and if I hadn't already visited at least 5-6 times I would be seriously biased. I really can't figure out why some people have had bad experience as every time I've been there I came out very impressed and really happy. The food has been excellent, the service very fast and the atmosphere very friendly. The fact that it's not on the high street is a big big plus. I've enjoyed every time I've been there. I have to say that I generally avoid busy hours - last time I was there on a Sunday evening around 9.30pm.

I can think of three reasons why someone would give a bad review:

1. My standards may be very low (I'm not fussy about food & service but personally I rule this out as I'm Mediterranean and I'm used to very good food and generous portions) - by the way, I love the fact that you always get bread & olive oil for starters (at no extra charge - of course) shortly after you place your order - this is how a proper meal should start

2. Although I've never been dissappointed, I realise that I may just be lucky and every time I visit I get the good food/service whereas other people may have been unlucky - this is quite a plausible scenario but I doubt it

2.1 A sub-case of this could be that food/service is generally very good, but on some occassions it may have disappointed - and people tend to complain when disappointend rather than congratulate when satisfied - this seems more plausible

3. Bad reviews may deter new customers so you can always get the best service/food with no crowds - personally I prefer this scenario and now that I think of it, I wouldn't recommend going there because I'd hate to get there only to find out that there's no free table
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andreas - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Monday, August 13, 2007

This place seems to generate mixed reviews and if I hadn't already visited at least 5-6 times I would be seriously biased. I really can't figure out why some people have had bad experience as every time I've been there I came out very impressed and really happy. The food has been excellent, the service very fast and the atmosphere very friendly. The fact that it's not on the high street is a big big plus. I've enjoyed every time I've been there. I have to say that I generally avoid busy hours - last time I was there on a Sunday evening around 9.30pm.

I can think of three reasons why someone would give a bad review:

1. My standards may be very low (I'm not fussy about food & service but personally I rule this out as I'm Mediterranean and I'm used to very good food and generous portions) - by the way, I love the fact that you always get bread & olive oil for starters (at no extra charge - of course) shortly after you place your order - this is how a proper meal should start

2. Although I've never been dissappointed, I realise that I may just be lucky and every time I visit I get the good food/service whereas other people may have been unlucky - this is quite a plausible scenario but I doubt it

2.1 A sub-case of this could be that food/service is generally very good, but on some occassions it may have disappointed - and people tend to complain when disappointend rather than congratulate when satisfied - this seems more plausible

3. Bad reviews may deter new customers so you can always get the best service/food with no crowds - personally I prefer this scenario and now that I think of it, I wouldn't recommend going there because I'd hate to get there only to find out that there's no free table
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andreas
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Monday, August 13, 2007

i ate here last night and to tell the truth i can't comment on the food as it was so unmemorable i forget what i ate. it's all well to be organic etc. etc. but if an animal is treated well whilst alive then why give it no respect when it arrives in the kitchen. I am sure the Duke's heart is in the right place, but they really need to look after their business on every level. A competent kitchen team perhaps? Possibly a front of house team who are a little more attentive? Even a smile when incredibly busy would help. There are so many good pubs to eat in London that i am surprised people pack in to this place on most nights. I won't waste my money here again
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Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 0
Saturday, August 04, 2007

I went to the Duke of Cambridge last night and my boyfriend and I were sorely disappointed. Firstly we sat down only to be told that we had to move as we were sitting in someone elses spot who dines there regularly. Then the waiter took forever to take our drinks order. In the meantime we found it very difficult to find anything inspiring on the menu. Organic does not have to mean vegetarian does it? So finally we ordered and while our mains of beef pie and lamb cutlet were fine they were nothing more. The portions are also quite small. Not once did anyone ask if everything was ok or to be honest even give us eye contact for two seconds. In fact we felt a little unwanted there. So we just had our mains and left. As expected nobody noticed us leaving and we didn't even get a goodbye. Seriously overrated place. Seriously over priced also.
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DCormano
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 1
Friday, July 20, 2007

Living round the corner I'm often finding myself eating here. I love the pub itself, great atmosphere and nice bright space.

My only problem is with the food, I'm happy to pay for good food but here the prices are a little out of sync with whats actaully delivered from a sometimes pretty uninspring menu. Generally underseasoned and far to towards bland I struggle to find a satisfactory dish on the menu.

Having said that the roasts are great but if the rest of the menu could deliver a couple of notches up, towards what you'd expect, the whole place would be great.

A point of note - you can eat upstairs at fifteen for the same price and I often do. Given the choice...
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Damo
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 1
Saturday, May 12, 2007

Visited the Duke of Cambridge on Sunday 22 April after walking past it on my way home from work every day. They had a refurbishment about 6 wks ago and it is absolutely fantastic now.

We sat in the main bar bit and I had salmon with 'leaves' which was a perfect size for those with small appetites. My other half had roast pork - such a big portion that he couldn't finish it all. Said it was divine though.

The service was speedy and the staff were friendly and attentive.

Very impressive - will definitely be returning.
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Kirsty
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Monday, April 23, 2007

We went there last night and I must admit that it is serioulsy overrated. I had fishcake with spinach and poached egg. It was not crispy on the outside and just warm, the spinach were plain boiled and the poached egg was hard boiled. We also ordered some mash on the side which came when our main course was almost finished. We then tried the bread and butter pudding which came as a solid block of white bread with some sultana - no custard, cream to stop us choking on the thing.

The staff were numerous and useless. The optional service came to 13 pounds!

Bring a jumper or two as the place is freezing.
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Febo
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 2
Wednesday, March 21, 2007