Rate my Bistro

Melanzana was one of those places that we weren’t sure whether to go into or not. This was only because we thought it may just be a take away deli and we wanted somewhere that we could sit in and have hot drinks.

As soon as we entered, we were impressed with the colourful displays and the range of food in the deli. Little did we know that Melanzana was a restaurant as well! It’s a shame that some of the food was open on top of the counters. They had a range of breads, pastries, cold meats, olives and roasted vegetables.

The staff were friendly and allowed us to sit anywhere that we liked in the dining area. One of the staff didn’t speak/understand English very well, so when we asked for a hot soya milk, she brought us a hot chocolate made with soya milk instead. The mango fruit tea was served by the cup not the pot.

The foccacia bread was good and was topped with onions. It all tasted fresh and was a good portion. There was a lot of pizzas and pasta dishes being brought out to the other tables and they all looked delicious. If we are in the area again, then we will return to sample some of their hot dishes.

Melanzana is a little gem of a place in Battersea! It felt like it was run by a nice tight knit family group. All the food seemed to be fresh and looked like it was made on a regular basis on the premises.

Melanzana, 140 Westbridge Road, London, SW11 3PF

Our Rating:

So, as promised we went back to the newly refurbished BFI Cafe.

The original review from August 2008 can be seen here:

http://ratemybistro.co.uk/bfi-film-cafe/

The interior is all new and they have the separated seating areas: one for the restaurant and the other for the cafe/bar. I think that the bar area has tried to become all trendy and I don’t think it works. It has lost its charm, cosiness and its relaxed atmosphere. It is has become more of a bar than a cafe  and I think that they are enough bars around!

The lighting is dimmer, and its a real shame that they have taken away the high window seats that you could sit on and have views of the river. Also, the big wooden tables and benches that made up the outside seating have gone. This has been replaced with a hedge enclosed table and chairs area.

We used to love the hot chocolates from BFI but not any more. The hot chocolate tasted wooden and like cardboard. Not an indulgent drink at all. It was actually not very drinkable. We miss the rich, creamy hot chocolate that would not fail us, especially on a cold winter’s day. They now serve soy milk.

Now onto the restaurant area. This has actually improved and feels a lot cleaner and defined. There are huge wooden communal tables as well as individual seating. You can still see the open kitchen area.

We had the veggie burger which came with salad. The staff were happy to replace the salad with chips. The bowl of chips were good. They were more like chip shop chips which made a nice change. The veggie burger was really tasty and it was in a nice soft white bun. The veggie burger had a really nice tangy taste  and was very moreish. I would actually say that it is one of the best veggie burgers out there.

One major thing that we had a problem with was the hygiene standards that we could see going on in the kitchen area. This particular situation happened after we had eaten our food. There was a tray of fried onion rings on the shelf between the kitchen area and the restaurant area. One of the chefs was just eating these onion rings  and then in the next moment, he was cooking the food in the kitchen. He did not have any gloves on nor did he wash his hands before making the food. I think that this is quite unacceptable. More should be done to ensure good hygiene practice.

Another thing to mention is that we could see our food just waiting on the shelf, before it was served to us. It was there for a real long time and we were surprised that it was still hot when it was served. The service was quite slow. There seemed to be a lot of staff who did not seem to be very attentive.

All in all, we had a mixed experience. This cafe has lost all its charm. The original star rating, as can be seen from our original review was a fantastic 5 stars.

http://ratemybistro.co.uk/bfi-film-cafe/

We feel that this is no longer justified. BFI used to be one of our most trusted and favourite places. Now, we are not sure that we would really return to this establishment.

The Riverfront at BFI Southbank, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XT

Our Rating:

Tas is a great restaurant that serves Anatolian/Turkish cuisine. The food is very tasty and portions are quite big. The kitchen and the bar are at the back end of the restaurant.

The starter we had was borek: filo pastry filled with feta cheese and spinach. This was nice and as there were four pieces, it was a good starter to share. The borek was not at all greasy even though it had been fried. It was also served with some salad. Bread, houmous and olives were served while we were deciding what to order!

Tas has lots of vegetarian options including numerous hot and cold starters. The turlu main dish was really good and extremely filling. Turlu was made mainly from aubergine, potatoes and peppers. It came with couscous and a lot of yoghurt. I would have been happy even if there had been less yoghurt!

It’s a shame that we were too stuffed to try the baklava dessert or the sundried apricots with cream, almonds and pistachios!

Tas serves coffees and a selection of teas including herbal and fruit teas. They also do Turkish coffee which is like a very thick espresso. This can be served sweetened.

The staff and service was good and pretty efficient. The only thing that I did not like about Tas was that the tables were very close together, so it felt a little cramped.

Tas, The Cut, Waterloo, London, SE1 8LF

Our Rating:

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

Our Rating:

A very reasonably priced Turkish restaurant in the centre of East Dulwich. I always like to start with the Hisar Mantar: fried breadcrumbed mushrooms with garlic mayonnaise. This goes well with the yogurt, cucumber and mint starter. The Patlican Salata had a nice taste with the flavours of the aubergine, peppers, tomatoes complemented by the garlic, lemon, mint and dill dressing.

The mixed grill main dish never disappoints. The chicken, lamb, kofte and lamb cutlets are always cooked perfectly and have the right tenderness. The portion size is good and this dish is very satisfying.

Its hard to resist the baklava dessert with its layers of puff pastry, nuts and sweet syrup. The mint tea is a good drink to finish off the meal, although the coffees are also good too.

The service is always really great here and it is nice that the kitchen is an open one so you can see the food being cooked on the charcoal grill as well. You never feel rushed at Hisar and can take your time savouring the food.  

Hisar, 51 Lordship Lane, East Dulwich, London, SE22 8EP

Our Rating: