Fish in a Tie, Clapham Junction

I don't think you would stumble across Fish in a Tie if you didn't know of it.  Pass under Clapham Junction's railway bridge, with the sound of trains rumbling in the distance and down a distinctly average looking road, enter a corner restaurant which has an interior belying its odd facade.  It is eccentric - jam packed with tables, chandeliers hang casting light over old church chairs.

The service is very friendly, we have been before and found it so then as well.  We are offered a choice of tables and are offered a drink immediately.  Throughout the meal tap water is refreshed and more wine offered.  A 7pm it is already half full and has a lovely buzzy atmosphere.

To begin my friend has the beef carpaccio which is a beautiful slim translucent piece of meat, served with crisp salad.  My goats cheese is deep fried and a generous portion.  It is delicious and again comes with salad.  In fact, everything here is generous, from portions to pricing to service.  

My swordfish is a large piece of fish which is really flavoursome and light.  I squeeze lemon over it but it has been left undressed which I like.  It sits on a bed of slightly warm vegetables/salad which I am less keen on (warm lettuce is revolting) and leave.  Abby's red snapper is similarly well cooked and she likes her veg.  We are also served a dish of very soft boiled potatoes which are topped with a peppery seasoning and are delicious, if a little cold.

Fish in a Tie is a scatty and friendly operation - you have a hit and miss experience with food but smiley service, friendly atmosphere and reasonable prices more than make up for it.

Two courses and half a bottle of wine: £20 per head

Value: 7/10

Service: 8/10

Atmosphere: 7/10

Food: 7/10

SCORE: 29/40

Fish in a Tie, 105 Falcon Road, London, SW11 2PF.  Tel: 020 79241913.

The Prince Bonaparte, Westbourne Grove

Another Friday and another lunch with colleagues at the Bonaparte.  There's not much more to say about here so I'll do a quick round up.

We were a bit squashed on our table - there are only really a couple that accommodate ten people and they were both taken but we didn't book so it wasn't their fault.  Down at the end of the restaurant area it is quite hot and quiet compared to the light, airy front bar.

Only one man was serving at the bar and with our party, and two other large groups in, service was extremely slow with him having to dash away from the bar to serve food to tables.

However, when it all arrived it was good as it usually is and from the sausages to the club sandwich all were pleased.

One course and a soft drink £8 per head

Value: 8/10

Service: 6/10

Atmosphere: 6/10

Food: 8/10

SCORE: 28/40

The Prince Bonaparte, 80 Chepstow Road, London, W2 5BE.  Tel: 020 73139491.

The Big Easy, Chelsea

I love The Big Easy and it had been far too long since my last visit.  The opportunity to take someone who had never been was perfect.

We arrived half an hour before the 7pm booking and sat at the tall wooden tables for a frozen margherita (2 for 1 during happy hour).  The staff are great in there - friendly and competent.  They led us to our table but there was another, tucked away in the corner on the raised platform, that we preferred.  Not a problem.

They came back for our order shortly and we chose to share a starter - golden chicken tenders - and for mains I chose surf and turf (8oz strip sirloin with four shrimp) and James the chicken lux - grilled chicken breast with bacon, cheese and guacamole in focaccia with fries.

The starter was beautiful - four skewers of chicken, breaded and crisp fried.  They weren't greasy and the chicken was falling off the stick it was so tender.  They also came with some tasty nachos and a honey mustard dip.  There was more than enough to share

The main courses were similarly good: James's burger was generous and delicious (I can vouch for the fries too!) and my steak was cooked exactly as requested, topped for four huge, juicy shrimps butterflied and skewered.  Homemade creamy coleslaw and big onion rings sealed the deal.  I would have loved a pudding but as too often is the case, I was just too full!

Throughout the evening the waiter enquired about the food and offered drinks.  A live singer provided a great background of country and western music.

Lovely lovely night.

Two courses and two cocktails: £28 per head

Value: 8/10

Service: 8/10

Atmosphere: 9/10

Food: 8/10

SCORE: 33/40

The Big Easy Bar.B.Q and Crabshack, 332-334 Kings Road, London, SW3 5UR.  Tel: 020 73524071.

L Restaurant, Kensington

I hadn't seen a friend of mine since she announced her engagement and, seeing a Toptable offer for 50% off food, I thought L Restaurant off High Street Kensington might be a nice place to celebrate.

It is an attractive place and, as it was a warm evening, they had set up tables outside on the pavement.  We asked to sit there which was no problem and sipped tap water whilst we chose from the menu.  Despite promising to give us a couple of moments to select wine, noone returned to take our order and eventually, after around twenty minutes, we gestured the waiter and ordered wine, sparkling water and food together.  The chicken breast I ordered would take about ten minutes he advised: 'Ok, well then may we have some bread and olives please?'.

The bread came (three pieces of average white loaf and some very hard butter) but no olives.  We asked again and then the most delicious olives I have ever had arrived: a mixture of black, green and a pale red variety arrived, marinated in lemon and garlic and so tender.  On top were three huge green olives, stuffed with warm goats cheese and breaded.  They were divine.  Still waiting for our main courses twenty minutes later Daisy asked if we could have some more of the goats cheese variety.

The main courses arrived before they did (I heard others complaining about the wait for food throughout the evening) and my friend had pan fried salmon - a fair sized portion, not huge, served with piquillo pepper sauce and normally with patata bravas but Daisy had requested to swap this for green beans.  Although this was done without fuss, I fear she may have taken away from the dish with her substitution - it was a bit dull she confessed.  My char-grilled chicken breast was in no way char-grilled at all and was two slices of breast and then a portion on the bone.  Sitting on a bed of very soft and sauteed leek and shitake mushrooms, it was surrounded by a grey thyme sauce that had a foamy appearance and tasted of very little.  When I ordered I asked if I needed any sides with it, to which the reply came "It's hard to say".  I was glad I decided on a salad of rocket with manchego cheese because this added some much needed variety of texture and flavour.  Mid way through the meal, our extra olives arrived.

We skipped puddings and had coffees, which were very nice.  The bill arrived without the discount applied, and I noticed we had been charged £6.00 for the olives - I think it's steep to charge twice when the second time we only had a few but once our offer had been applied the value wasn't too bad.

Bread and olives, one course, half a bottle of wine and half a bottle of mineral water: £27 per head with the Toptable offer

Value: 5/10

Service: 6/10

Atmosphere: 7/10

Food: 6/10

SCORE: 24/40

L Restaurant and Bar, 2 Abingdon Road, London, W8 6AF.  Tel: 020 77956969.

Numero Uno, Battersea

I met for a friend for lunch on Sunday and, no destination in mind, we wandered up Northcote Road in the sun.  Again, Lola Rojo caught my eye but she wasn't in the mood for Spanish food and further on, noticing Numero Uno, we both stopped.

It was a very traditional looking restaurant with small wooden tables, starchy white table linen and a selection of friends and families tucking into pasta and wine.  As if waiting for us, one table for two in the middle of the little outdoor terrace sat empty.  

The service here is traditional, old school Italian.  An older man, presumably the owner, walks the restaurant and makes sure everyone has drinks and is enjoying their food.  He is a real charmer.  We begin with the bread, provided under the £1.50 cover charge, which is soft French stick - fresh if a little boring.  It is, served, with a delicious paste that is a deep green and tastes of beautiful black olives and garlic.

Over tap water and a bottle of very decent house white Hannah and I indulge in 'Suzannah York', an apparently delicious pasta dish served with truffles and creamy sauce, and the homemade tagliatelle with clams, squid and prawns in a rich tomato sauce.  Often, I find pasta dishes with a tomato, as opposed to a cream base a little boring but this time it was utterly delicious.  The seafood was fresh and generous, too.

I was sad that we were far too full for a pudding as they were displayed inside on a dessert trolley - homemade apple pies, tiramisu, custard cream tart...

However, as the proprietor said, we were sweet enough as we were.

One course and half a bottle of wine: £20 per head

Value: 8/10

Service: 9/10

Atmosphere: 7/10

Food: 7/10

SCORE: 31/40

Numero Uno, 139 Northcote Road, London, SW11 6PX.  Tel: 020 79785837.

Daylesford Organic, Pimlico

So often I intend to eat at one place yet end up at another and so it was on Saturday when my cousin and I planned to eat at The Ebury before she caught her train home.

Upon arriving though I felt that the gastro pub term had been stretched to the limit in describing this place: red rope on silver stands marked the entrance, which displayed a framed menu - the cheapest option being £12.50 for one course.  The interior looked austere and every table was laid up as a restaurant, which frankly is what it looks like.  It just looked too formal.  We moved on.

A short stroll down the road brought us to Daylesford Organics.  As it was a sunny day the tables outside were full of well heeled locals eating Eggs Benedict for brunch or sharing fabric baskets of rustic breads.  There was space for two at the long marble bench that runs the length of the window inside, affording a view of the lovely street outside.  A couple next to us chose expensive furniture from a brochure over coffee and further down another couple sipped champagne.  Despite this it did not have a snobby or overbearing atmosphere at all and we were brought menus by a very pleasant waiter.

We ordered drinks - a fruit juice and a sparkling water - and food.  I decided on a crab salad and Arabella went for a wild rice and quinoa salad.  The food arrived about ten minutes later and was beautifully presented.  The crab was shredded and mixed with thinly shaved vegetables and a light seafood sauce, moulded into a cylinder, drizzled with olive oil and served with a long slim slice of French toast and a side of green salad.  Arabella had a very large portion of her salad in a simple white bowl.  I had to try some and it had a lovely delicate flavour, hints of lemon and coriander contrasted with the earthy brown wild rice.  Mine too was so lovely - no flavour overwhelmed another and it was just enough.  I savoured every mouthful.  Whilst we were eating we realised we had no drinks.  I summoned the waitress and she hurried over with them.  No detail was overlooked here either - the glasses were chunky and tall with a blue rim.

Slightly distracting were the various complaints we could hear going on down the counter - one couple had been overcharged, another had things on their bill that they hadn't had.  Indeed, when our bill came we had been charged for a freshly squeezed juice, not the bottled one we had, and a larger size of water.  I pointed these out and the waitress said "Oh yes, the bill's wrong" in a very matter of fact way, as if it happens all the time, which I suspect it does, and she whisked it away without apology.  She returned with our amended bill, and the amended bill of our neighbouring diners, and I studied it again, noticing that the juice was now a different price again, slightly more expensive than it is listed on the menu.  Upon enquiring about this, she looked puzzled, looked at the bill, looked at the menu and then just looked at me.  "Erm... this price is right." she said.  "So the juice is actually more expensive than listed?" I said.

"Yes."  Again, no apology.

As it was only 25p more, and we were now in a rush for the train we left the cash and left the building, slightly irked about the 12.5% service charged.

Even so, we would both return - the building and food were stunning, and we will give the sporadically smiley staff another chance at good service.

One course and a soft drink: £11 per head

Value: 7/10

Service: 4/10

Atmosphere: 9/10

Food: 8/10

SCORE: 28/40

Daylesford Organics, 44b Pimlico Road, London, SW1W 8LP.  Tel: 020 78818060.

The Prince Bonaparte, Westbourne Grove

The Prince Bonaparte was the venue for another Friday lunch with my work colleagues. We chose a table and ordered at the bar. The staff were very friendly and smily, if a little scatty (forgot a couple of drinks and had to ask us to repeat a couple of orders).

The food this time was even better than the last. I had a club sandwich and chips which was beautifully done - toasted brown bread with generous smoked bacon and grilled chicken, lettuce and really fresh and flavoursome beef tomato. Everyone else had a burger - some the larger 10oz and some the 80z but everyone was more than happy. It's the details in the Bonaparte's food that give it the edge - corn on the cob and a pot of chutney, homemade onion rings and lots of oozing cheese. The Commander could take some tips.

Once course and a soft drink: £8 per head

Value: 8/10

Service: 7/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Food: 8/10

SCORE: 31/40

The Prince Bonaparte, 80 Chepstow Road, London, W2 5BE. Tel: 020 73139491.

Santa Lucia, Chelsea

An original plan to visit Sophie's Steakhouse had to be written off: it was just too busy and only had one vegetarian option.  Wine Gallery was similarly packed and again had limited veggie appeal (eating out as a vegetarian can be hard and boring I have noticed).  Therefore we wandered across Hollywood Road and into Santa Lucia.  What a happy chance.

The six of us were seated immediately at a great table, despite having no reservation.  It felt just like being on holiday on Italy - authentic and relaxed but with crisp starched linen and excellent service.  The friendly staff brought menus over and happily provided tap water in large jugs.  

To begin we had two portions of their delicious garlic bread - more than enough for us all.  It was made from a thin circular pizza base topped with a light garlicky oil - not greasy and incredibly moreish.  Two of my friends had pizza which was served as one long metre length - half for each diner and presented on a wooden stand.  It was thin crust with fabulous fresh toppings.  They were delighted.  The pasta dishes were divine.  My rigatoni mamma mia consisted of giant pasta tubes, cooked al dente with five big homemade meatballs in a simple tomato and garlic sauce.  It was fabulously simple.  The seafood linguine was a sight to behold - atop with huge mussels, the pasta was full of fat prawns and squid.  Diane declared it delicious.  Both vegetarians chose the same - penne with a tomato sauce with aubergine and mozzarella.  The mozzarella sat on top of the dish, the size of an egg and both diners said it was beautiful.

I have run out of adjectives for the food - it was just simple, well done Italian fare.

The service too was great - I didn't notice it, yet wanted for nothing which is, of course, perfect.  Unusual requests such as removing the parmesan from the vegetarian mains and adding two extra toppings to a pizza were carried out without fuss.  Wine was refilled, as was water, without question.  The bill came with a complimentary biscotti.  I have made myself hungry again just writing this.  Needless to say, we will all go back.

One course, garlic bread and half a bottle of wine: £22 per head

Value: 7/10

Service: 9/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Food: 8/10

SCORE: 32/40

Santa Lucia, 2 Hollywood Road, London, SW10 9HY.  Tel: 020 73528484.

The Chutney, Wandsworth Town

The tables were turned and my cousin and aunt were now visiting London.  A relaxed evening was in order and walking to the East Hill, a lovely pub on Alma Road, we passed The Chutney.  I have eaten here twice before, once with my cousin in fact, and have had an average experience each time.  She, however, raved about it and its great choice of vegetarian options.  As neither of my fellow diners eat meat I agreed to give it another go.  We popped our heads in and reserved a table for 8.30.

The interior is fresh and modern: blood red walls and leather chairs with crisp clean white tablecloths.  We were led to a circular table set for four and they hurriedly removed a setting.  'They could have done that before we arrived' remarked my aunt.  I agree: it is so easy for places to get the details right, I am always surprised at how many don't.  To start we had a poppadom each, served with very tasty chutneys and raita. I noticed we were the only table without a vase of sparse carnations.

It was only when we had finished these, and half a bottle of wine, that we noticed noone had yet taken our order for main courses.  When side plates were cleared a waiter appeared with a pad and we selected.  I went for chicken korma razala (I reasoned that if my previous more adventurous meals had not been excellent, perhaps this simpler dish would win me over), my aunt for handi subje (seasonal mixed vegetables cooked with pepper, tomato, ginger and ground spices) and my cousin for vegetable jalfrezi.  The korma was very good, the sauce was creamy and coconutty but didn't overwhelm the tender pieces of meat.  My only complaint would be that it was a bit too runny.  The pilau rice too was lovely and not too dry as it often is.  The handi subje was raved about - lots of gorgeous veg in a flavoursome sauce - and likewise the jalfrezi which was quite spicy but not too much so.  The vegetarian options on the menu were apparently the best they had ever seen in an Indian restaurant.  The naan was soft, fluffy and not at all greasy.

Our tap water was constantly refreshed and the service was very polite.  Despite a slow start we had a great evening and agreed it is always better to have a bit of chatting time than the courses arriving seconds apart (which was another previous experience of mine at The Chutney).  It has redeemed itself, and I'll be back.

Poppadoms, one course and half a bottle of wine: £17 a head

Value: 8/10

Service: 7/10

Atmosphere: 7/10

Food: 7/10

SCORE: 29/40

The Chutney, 11 Alma Road, London, SW18 1AA.  Tel: 020 88704588.

Rococo, Shrewsbury

My cousin booked for us to visit Rococo, in Shrewsbury, during a weekend visit to Shropshire.  It was once Owen's, a reliable and good quality option that I have frequented for many years, and so I was interested to see if it could be bettered.

We called on Tuesday for a Saturday reservation, which was no problem.  I was glad we did for, within half an hour of being seated at 7.30, the place was full.  It is a large room filled with dark wood furniture, large potted plants and mood lighting and is very attractive.  A long bar runs along the back.  

We chose a bottle of pinot grigio and a jug of tap water whilst we perused the menu and eventually decided upon a mezze platter to share for starter, a vegetarian option of linguine for my cousin (I'm afraid I forget the sauce but I know it came with wild mushrooms and was creamy) and for myself a special - the crab and cherry tomato risotto.

The platter was very good - lovely bread (although only one piece each), generous squares of feta, big juicy stuffed olives, homemade tzatziki and smooth garlicky houmous.  The main courses were good but not excellent.  Apparently the pasta dish was tasty but a little overfacing and Arabella couldn't finish - it looked a little bit greasy as well.  My risotto was a lovely texture and consistency but was just a bit bland - the crab was tasteless and the cherry tomatoes were cold and hard instead of soft and oozing into the rice as I imagined they would be.  It seemed that they had just been chopped on top of the dish straight from the fridge.

We were too full for puddings, although they looked appealing, and pressed on with two cocktails each from their attractive menu.  They were very fairly priced at £5-£6 each and really added to the fantastic atmosphere.  From 9pm a guy played guitar and sang a mixture of old classics and current chart hits which wasn't intrusive but made a lovely backdrop to the evening.

We stayed until gone midnight and were never made to feel like we should pay up or move on.

A great night and nice restaurant which could be made fantastic with a few tweaks.

Two courses, half a bottle of wine and two cocktails: £35 per head

Value: 7/10

Service: 8/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Food: 6/10

SCORE: 29/40

Rococo, 18 Butcher Row, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, SY1 1UW.  Tel: 01743 363633.

The Commander, Westbourne Grove

If only the right management could get hold of The Commander it would be a great gastro pub.

It is situated just off Westbourne Grove in a quiet street and has been very tastefully refurbished with sofas and booths in the front bar and wooden tables and chairs in the more formal restaurant.  There is also a conservatory, closed for a party when we went, and a patio garden reserved solely for eating in (except for the gang of smokers hanging around out there when we went).  We chose to eat in the restaurant as there were eight of us and no table was large enough at the front.  

As we perused menus the only other table occupied, a group of three, were complaining over the wait for their food.  Not ideal as we only had our lunch hour.  The menu is at the higher price bracket of gastro pub food.  I had called before we came here to check prices and as an example had been told that a burger was about £8.95 and fish and chips similar.  The burger was indeed £8.95 but this was for a 6oz, listed without cheese.  The fish and chips were £10.95 and all other main courses about the same.

Four of us chose the burger, two medium well and two rare, all with cheese except one of the rare, one of us went for a croque monsieur, one fish and chips, two sausage and mash.

There was about a thirty minute wait for food but eventually the lad serving brought out two burgers, both medium well and both without cheese.  We asked about the missing dairy element and he became flustered saying perhaps the other two would be right and scuttled off.  The next two arrived both rare and both with cheese.  One person was happy, one accepted the rare with cheese anyway and the two remaining requested some cheese be brought out.

The croque monsieur was served open - two slices of white bread laden with two slices of ham and absolutely smothered in melted cheese (must have been where ours went).  It was so overfacing Mel had to scrape the majority off but said it was quite tasty.  The fish and chips looked good and were well received.  One sausage and mash arrived along with the disconcerting question to my remaining colleague: 'What did you order again?'.  Needless to say the remaining sausages arrived once the rest of us had finished.  Both diners proclaimed these delicious, though.

The burger was good.  It was small and the cheese that eventually arrived was cold sliced Edam I suspect.  The meat was delicous and cooked as requested.  It came with a small bowl of wedges that I enjoyed but the others thought were soggy.

It was, overall, a very disappointing lunch when it really shouldn't have been.  The Commander's food is good but it is too expensive and the sizes are not uniform.  The staff are friendly but incompetent.  The bar and restaurant are attractive but too quiet.

So nearly there, but yet so far.

One course and a glass of wine: £14.50 per head

Value: 5/10

Service: 4/10

Atmosphere: 6/10

Food: 6/10

SCORE: 21/40

The Commander, 47 Hereford Road, London, W2 5AH.  Tel: 020 72291503.

Fresco, Westbourne Grove

Bored of our usual sandwich or salad options we walked up Westbourne Grove yesterday to have lunch at Fresco.  

They have a large takeaway counter with wraps, kebabs and salads galore but we squeezed through and chose one of the little tables tucked away at the back.  I knew what I wanted: chicken, hummus and feta in pitta bread.  The chicken is always delicious here and yesterday was no exception - it is so tender and there is lots of it.  The same goes for the accompaniments.  My colleague had similar - chicken, hummus and tabbouleh.  They also serve us complimentary pickles which I love. We didn't fancy a juice (something they are famous for, but they will cost you £2.50), just a tap water, brought over in a large glass with ice without fuss.

The service is relaxed and you usually have to call someone over to order or pay but it's fine - it's a good lunchtime spot and you can take your time without issue.

Sandwich: £4 per head

Value: 7/10

Service: 6/10

Atmosphere: 6/10

Food: 7/10

SCORE: 26/40

Fresco, 25 Westbourne Grove, London, W2 4UA.  Tel: 020 72212355.

Racine, South Kensington

I had booked Racine two weeks early, as I knew my mother would be staying and would enjoy the food (from what I had read anyway - I hadn't actually been before).

There were meant to be three of us dining but at the last minute there were only two.  When the restaurant called to confirm the reservation the day before, I had just heard that we would be dining as a pair and the person calling was fine with that, and very friendly.  On the evening in question, a Wednesday night, we found ourselves in the area, and ready to eat, a good forty five minutes before we expected and so we went in to see if we could eat earlier.  There were two other tables taken at 6.45pm - a largeish group and a couple who obviously there a lot.  The waiting staff were delighted for us to eat earlier and the whisked us to our table, which was against the banquette.

The restaurant itself is very authentically French and classic.  The heavy purple curtain surrounding the door keeps the bustle of Brompton Road firmly outside and the cool calm atmosphere inside.  That is not to say it's stuffy, though, it's really not.  The staff are perfect - friendly, professional and discreet.  We ordered a glass of white wine each and tap water whilst perusing the menu.  The water came in glasses, which were refilled throughout the meal, without request.

We were early enough for the set menu - which you can order from before 7pm, a bonus of arriving early!  To begin, we both chose goat's cheese, which came with French toast and garlic.  It was a beautifully simple dish, very tasty and just enough.  There was a lamb dish as a main option which we both wanted but unfortunately it was the last portion.  My mum was not disappointed, however, with her beef onglet - tender and cooked perfectly rare.  My lamb, too was medium as requested and full of flavour.  Served with a selection of vegetables and new potatoes we had a really lovely meal and, at £17 for two courses or £19 for three, it was excellent value.

We were both too full for puddings and noone pushed us to have one, or more wine, although we were offered.  The service was truly exemplary - unintrusive yet attentive.

The only downside was the missing third diner, who I missed very much.

Two courses and a glass of wine: £25 per head

Value: 8/10

Service: 9/10

Atmosphere: 7/10

Food: 7/10

SCORE: 31/40

Racine, 239 Brompton Road, London, SW3 2EP.  Tel: 020 75844477.

Tapas Variadas, Battersea

It was a very muggy Tuesday evening and my mother and I walked down to Northcote Road in search of a light dinner.  Lola Roja caught our eye and we would very much have liked to eat there: when we entered its serene white decor and cool air conditioned atmosphere was bliss but it was all booked up.  We walked on.  I had Niksons in mind but en route we spotted Tapas Variadas.  With a family eating outside and another few tables taken inside it looked like a local's spot.  Inside, it seemed authentic, a view reinforced when a Spanish waitress came to seat us.  

After studying the menu we asked the waitress how many tapas she recommended for two diners (I find portion size varies between different restaurants).  She didn't understand the question and summoned another Spanish waitress to help us.  She also did not comprehend and informed us that no, we couldn't mix the dishes up.  In the end we ordered four to have alongside the bread and olives they had already supplied.  Tap water was no problem, and the house white wine was very nice, as was the service - despite the language barrier both waitresses who served us were pleasant and smiley.  The only issue was that they were really rather slow.

The green salad was plentiful, simple and fresh - more than enough for two and we couldn't finish it.  Lamb kebabs were really beautifully marinated and flavoursome and goats cheese with roasted vegetables was a pleasant dish too.  The Spanish tortilla was my favourite - I was surprised that it came as a circular omelette and not cut up into smaller portions - very generous.  

A nice night, and good to know about locally.

Tapas and half a bottle of wine: £20 per head

Value: 7/10

Service: 6/10

Atmosphere: 6/10

Food: 7/10

SCORE: 26/40

Tapas Variadas, 124 Northcote Road, London, SW11 6QU.  Tel: 020 79243566.