Rate my Bistro

We initially came to this Latin American restaurant for coffee but then ended up returning to it later in the day for an evening meal! Its nice that the restaurant is divided into sections: one part for the restaurant and the other part with comfy seats for drinks!

The latte and mocha drinks were really good. The mocha actually tasted more like a hot chocolate. We had the chunky cassava wedges as a snack. Although it looked like a small portion, it was enough. They had the right crunchiness on the outside with a soft centre.

The roast butternut squash and coconut milk soup was a rich soup and was just right for a cold winter’s day! I could taste the spiciness of the chilli in it. A good alternative was the chicken fajita wrap that was served with curly fries. The chicken was tender and tasted good with the additional filling of peppers, onion and cheese.

To complete the meal, a dessert had to be had. We shared the chocolate banoffee pie. This was an excellent choice and had the perfect proportions of chocolate, biscuit, banana and toffee.

I do have to comment on the fantastic customer service and the efficiency of all the staff at the restaurant. The restaurant was very busy in the evening and we were thinking that the service was going to be quite slow. This was not the case. The food was brought out not long after we had ordered and we weren’t waiting around for the bill either.

A fantastic restaurant with lively Latin American music and atmosphere. A highly recommended restaurant if you are at the O2 Arena!

Las Iguanas, The O2, Peninsula Square, Millenium Way, London, SE10 0DS

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This is a nice enough cafe next door to the Sadlers Wells Theatre. At first, it looks like they only have a few of the high metal tables and chairs by the counter. But at the back, it opens out into the garden court area. This is indoors and is very light and airy.

The Stage Door Cafe prepares fresh sandwiches and then they are wrapped and displayed in the fridge. The ham and mustard wholegrain sandwich was good, although a little pricey. They also have a range of hot food such as jacket potatoes, pasta dishes, bakes and soup. These are all self service and are in open trays on the hot plate.

I was going to have the cauliflower soup but then when I lifted the lid of the soup container, the soup looked stale as if it had been sitting there all day. They had a range of cakes and brownies too.

The latte was nice and they do flavoured coffees too. The cafe also serves teas and hot chocolate.

A good place to come to relax before a show or even if you just want a quiet place to have a drink and a bite to eat. The cafe does get busy before a show performance.

Stage Door Cafe and Bar, Sadlers Wells Theatre, Rosebery Avenue, London, EC1R 4TN 

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What I like about Cafe Rouge is that you can come here just for drinks or for a proper meal. The atmosphere is very relaxed and the staff don’t rush you in any manner. The red and white furniture complements the dark wooden surroundings. It does feel like a bistro that you would get in France!

The tea is always served by the pot and the coffee is also of a good quality. The butter biscuits are a nice accompaniment if you just want something small to go with the hot drinks.

Cafe Rouge do a soup of the day and the one that was on offer when we went was red pepper and aubergine soup. It was a  flavoursome soup with big chunks of aubergine. The soup came with half a baguette which was very fresh. A filling starter that could easily satisfy as a main meal.

Another good starter is the warm ciabatta style breadsticks which comes with three dips: hummus, tomato and aioli. You also get a  small amount of salad. The amount of dips is fairly small, but it suffices.

To finish the meal, a good choice is the assortment of desserts. These are smaller portions of the creme brulee, red fruit crumble and chocolate ganache. None of them disappointed and it was nice to get a taster of them all!

Cafe Rouge, 6-7 South Grove, Highgate, London, N6 6BP

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We’ve been to Le Pain Quotidien many a time and it is good at any time of the day! It’s great to go early in the morning when the pastries are all fresh.

They do good quality croissants and pain au chocolat. The granola with yogurt could have done with more yogurt to balance out the amount of granola. I’ve tried their muffins and thought that they were tasty and not overly sweet. The individual fresh fruit tarts always look tempting too!

The organic mezze platter is great to share. It comprises of hummus, babaganoush (aubergine salad) and aubergine and tomato. The bread that comes with it is usually rye bread but you can ask for any bread from their selection. It is all very moreish!

The coffees, teas and hot chocolates are all good. They do serve soy milk. Their freshly squeezed orange juice is OK. I did like the Luscombe bottled juices that they do.

I really like the wooden decor in Le Pain Quotidien and the rustic feel that this bistro has. It has a big communal table as well as individual seating. The staff are always friendly and accommodating to any special dietary requests.

Le Pain Quotidien, 18 Great Marlborough Street, London, W1F 7HS

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We had good cafe cremes (latte) at this bistro. The croissants that we had were fresh and they were big too.

The seating area if you are having just drinks is at the front of the cafe and the back is for if you are ordering food.

The waiter was friendly and we enjoyed relaxing in this cafe. The view was nice over the place de la Republique.

Cafe Republique, 11 place de la Republique, 75003, Paris

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