West Eleven

The setting : 7 of us, Sunday lunch, 2 for 1 offer.

Walked in and was immediately very impressed with the decor, colour scheme and the spatiousness.

A warning to people contemplating eating here under the 2 for 1 : You will get a limited menu with, quite frankly, unexciting options. Actually, it's completely different and a far cry from the sample menu featured here.

Out of all our starters, I think the lamb strips with 3 dips was the most successful. Another starter consisted of toasted baguette slices, with coleslaw and something akin to duck mince (?). Regretfully, it had the texture of canned tuna and a vulgar gamey taste akin to something you'd get in a supermarket. Hardly spectacular. But the biggest disappointment arrived in the form of my salmon bisque with chervil and chives. Someone had clearly made a mistake with the lime juice or vinegar. Either way, it had the sourness comparable to Thai Tom-Yam soup, and the only thing 'salmoney' about it was that it was bright orange. Other starters included Egg Benedict, and a meagre offering of Tuna Carpaccio.

As for the mains, the steak chasseur was the clear winner. A sizeable portion of flat, tender and juicy beef cooked to your specifications (medium rare etc), infused with the flavour of the rich flavoursome sauce. There was also a very safe-looking salmon dish on offer, as well as lamb, but having tried neither, I cannot comment on these. I had the breaded Plaice and Chips, and to be fair, the fish was fresh and of good quality, although very ordinary for the £16.90 price tag. It was accompanied by an avocado-guacamole dip ( I couldn't taste the avocado ), which in my opinion, was a poor match for either the fish or the chunky chips. Ended up requesting for tomato sauce, which came straight out of the fridge. The guacamole would have been more at home with some nachos.

Desserts. Would I be stung once again? I decided to put my faith in the staple Bread and Butter pudding along with the majority of my friends. I'm hazarding a guess that the relatively long wait was due to the fact that it was freshly prepared, but it was worth it. Scrumptious. Some may find the crystallised sugar layer on top a bit much, but that's a mere detail. I would recommend the pink champagne jelly with summer fruits as an alternative. Very light, tasty and crisp.

I think this experience has reinforced a rule about these 2-for-1 offers. Fellow diners, please remain cautious and skeptical because at best, you get what you paid for. And on other occassions, the food falls under par for a restaurant of its calibre; as it did in my case with 2 out of 3 courses being found terribly lacking. Wouldn't consider returning.
Comment on this reader review

Nat Romanova
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 2
Wednesday, August 16, 2006

I dined at WestEleven recently with my partner and found the service to be superb - very efficient, yet not rushed. The atmosphere was set perfectly with discrete music and candlelit settings. The restaurant's decoration has a very modern touch, but is tastefully done.

The prices here are very reasonable, having polished off two bottles from their fine wine selection and eaten our way through three delicious courses followed by coffee!

The menu was refreshing to the palette, with plenty of different options making it very difficult to choose!

The selection for the courses were perfect for the time of year, having started with the grilled figs and pancetta, followed by Tandoori marinated monkfish with okra made in a beautifully delicate dill raita. To finish, I chose the most amazing dessert; tropical mango and lime parfait with cointreau flavoured chocolate sponge. I recommend this restaurant highly, and can't wait to return and have the other dishes that I couldn't on this occasion!
Comment on this reader review

Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Thursday, July 27, 2006