The Soho wasteland

[Hallie]

It was a complete fluke that I ended up having dinner with a friend in Soho last night. The two of us were engrossed in conversation and ended up pounding the pavements in this neck of the woods, looking for somewhere to eat, passing by Quo Vadis and Mezzo and Busabi Eathai - we just wanted a simple, reliably good meal that wasn't overpriced. Is it me, have I missed something or has Soho just become a graveyard for has-been restaurants and a conservation area for crappy little cafes? We ended up at some mediocre North African-Middle Eastern place where throughout dinner we were rattled by the drilling going on in the restaurant's basement. It seems that they were putting in a new function room and attaching plasterboards to the ceiling that lay beneath our feet (this was after 7pm - I hope they were paying the builders well). I particularly loved the owner's way of getting rid of us as we lingered over our bill and the last sips of mint tea. He pointed to our table and shouted across the room at the two men waiting for seats, 'This is your table, they are leaving now!'

This whole experience just seems to highlight why I never eat in Soho anymore. I've had so many run-ins with boring food and rude staff and bad value for money. I can't help but to think that there is something better to be had here and I just haven't found it yet.

[MobyP]

I used to hear stories from my parents about an old woman from Bologna who ran an Italian place - this was in the 70's - in Soho. He said you could go there and, for a couple of quid, have the most amazing traditional 4 or 5-course Bologna meal.

But as long as I've known it, it's always been the graveyard you describe.

[Jonathan Day]

Is it that much worse than any other tourist-thronged part of London? There are some horrid places in Covent Garden, as well, and in the Knightsbridge/South Ken area.

I haven't found Soho completely devoid of good places. Le Pigalle (though I haven't been there in awhile) was honest and good for what it was; Alastair Little's restaurant had decent food; L'Odeon could produce good food. There are decent places in and around Chinatown e.g. Joy King Lau on Leicester Street.

If you're prepared to walk south into St James's or west just a bit there's the Wolesley, Greens (Duke St St James's), Alloro (Dover St), the Mint Leaf (lower Regent St), etc. These places are more expensive, though.

The economics of running a small restaurant in Central London are truly daunting. I find it amazing that most of these places stay in business at all.

[circeplum]

the Mint Leaf (lower Regent St),

don't bother with this overpriced, inauthentic, style-over-content, hakkasan-in-indian-clothing clone.

x

[MobyP]

the Mint Leaf (lower Regent St),

don't bother with this overpriced, inauthentic, style-over-content, hakkasan-in-indian-clothing clone.

x

Yeah, but what do you really think?

[Suzi Edwards]

there's andrew edmunds on (i think) lexington. they've always fitted me in when i've called and it's pretty good food. i recommend it a lot.

but you're right, soho is poor.

while we're on the subject, can anyone recommend bars in soho? i never know where to meet....

[Jon Tseng]

Bodeans perhaps?

Gay Hussar?

Chinatown?

But yes, agree in terms of ratio of decent places to vast tide of crappy no-name joints

cheerio

J

[howardlong]

passing by Quo Vadis...

I quite like Quo Vadis - pre theatre menu is pretty good value.

...and Mezzo

I have no problem with your decision to pass Mezzo by... a poncified fish and chips joint with a meat market attached as I remember it. Ah, those were the days ;-)

Cheers, Howard

[Scott]

there's andrew edmunds on (i think) lexington. they've always fitted me in when i've called and it's pretty good food. i recommend it a lot.

but you're right, soho is poor.

while we're on the subject, can anyone recommend bars in soho? i never know where to meet....

I second that rec.

Andrew Edmunds is fun, easy, and cheap.

It's always my first choice in soho.

apart from Pied a terre, where I enjoyed another stunning 8 courses last night!

[howardlong]

There are some horrid places ... in the Knightsbridge/South Ken area.

As a resident I should resent that remark, but you are right! It has taken many years of disappointments to find my favourite locals. Racine is the most obvious exception to spring to mind, but then at the top end of the scale you also have The Capital, Foliage and Aubergine of course. Even the Cadogan Hotel used to be quite enjoyable (Sunday Lunch brings out the local blue rinse set), although I had an awful service experience a couple of weeks ago in there.

At the bottom end I do have a penchant for Ciro's pizza joint in Beauchamp Place. Probably not for the food, but for the string of models from the agency upstairs who are between jobs working as waitresses there... ;-)

I haven't found Soho completely devoid of good places.

True, Escargot and Richard Corrigan.

L'Odeon could produce good food

Although the food is OK, I always found the service in there awful - lots of people serving, but no-one was in control. You could easily ask, say, four times for another bottle of water and still fail. Not just once, but several equally irritating service blunders each time I went. Most frustrating. Hence I haven't been there for about seven years or so. Maybe it's changed.

Cheers, Howard

[PoppySeedBagel]

I'd second Andrew Edmonds & Pied à Terre and used to love Alastair Little - though I haven't been to AL for ages

[Akiko]

Le Pigalle (though I haven't been there in awhile)

Sadly, its no longer there. My husband and I trudged our way over to be very disappointed.

I'd love to know what happened and where he's gone...

[circeplum]

As a resident I should resent that remark, but you are right! It has taken many years of disappointments to find my favourite locals.

howard

just moved to knightsbridge and am having the same probs. the obvious ones i know - but desperate for any other little out of the way places i could lunch in.

have you been to the swag and tails?

x

[Jonathan Day]

I wonder whether we've drifted a bit from the original post in this thread. My guess is that Hallie was looking for that small place that serves honest food at reasonable prices, where you can get a starter, main and pud from the carte for something under £20, and where drinkable if not elegant wines are available at around £10. The kind of place you could afford to eat in regularly, and that was small enough and stable enough that you could become a regular. Le Pigalle (RIP) had some of that feeling.

With the exception of some Chinese places, Soho no longer has many restaurants like this. But neither does anywhere in Central London. The economics are against it.

[Hallie]

My guess is that Hallie was looking for that small place that serves honest food at reasonable prices, where you can get a starter, main and pud from the carte for something under £20, and where drinkable if not elegant wines are available at around £10. The kind of place you could afford to eat in regularly, and that was small enough and stable enough that you could become a regular.

Yes, in fact Hallie was looking for that place...she failed to find it though. The question is (if I may reiterate) has anyone else found it?

[howardlong]

just moved to knightsbridge and am having the same probs.  the obvious ones i know - but desperate for any other little out of the way places i could lunch in.

Etranger is another place I like, although it's at the top end of Gloucester Road so not really Knightsbridge but perhaps could still be considered South Ken.

The Anglesea Arms (Selwood Terrace, off the Fulham Road) isn't too bad, but sadly they no longer do the fantastic real pork scratchings in the bar.

My favourite pub in the area is the Nags Head on Kinnerton Street which was a serious local of mine for several years until my body and mind could no longer take it. A proper boozer oozing both character and characters. Don't go there expecting anything special in the food department though.

I am rarely in the area for lunch during the week - 99% of the time I do dinner. Many of the decent places are shut on Saturday and Sunday lunchtimes.

have you been to the swag and tails? 

I have walked past the Swag and Tails many times over the past twelve years or so I've lived there, but never been in. Never realised it had quite such a following. Thanks for the suggestion.

Howard

[Jamsie]

For Soho, i think you can't go wrong with Vasco & Piero's Pavillion on Poland St.

I always enjoy it there and have recommended it to many a friend.

Tremendous value.

[oenomania]

I always end up going South for Chinese food or North to Rasa or Pied a Terre; I wonder though whether Soho has changed much or whether I am just getting older. It seems a long time ago that the then Hamine on Brewer street was new, or similarly the laksa joint on Great Windmill Street...

[oenomania]

He said you could go there and, for a couple of quid, have the most amazing traditional 4 or 5-course Bologna meal.

Was this Bologna as in Emilia-Romagna, or Bologna as in bologna sandwich?

[Hallie]

I wonder though whether Soho has changed much or whether I am just getting older.

You know, its funny you should say this - that is precisely what my friend and I were discussing when we were having our less than brilliant meal in Soho. Its partially what inspired me to post this topic in the first place.

Now that you mentioned it I'm coming to believe that its not just that we are getting older but that Soho has actually 'died on the vine' so to speak. I think it was one of the places about 7 - 8 years ago that reasonably priced, interesting food could be had in London before things began to pick up. Since the mid 90s the gastronomic scene in London has changed massively. Perhaps some of that original energy was focused in Soho and has since dispersed.

I do worry about the getting older bit though. Maybe Soho ceases to appeal because I'm now over 30

[John Whiting]

I hesitate to recommend it, but after half a century there's still Jimmy's. I love it for what it is and make no apologies for what it isn't. (I do, however, apologize for Richard Bradford's intro, which I didn't write.)

[ladyh]

Is the French House any good these days? It's a nice room, and I've always had good food there in the past. Don't know who current chef is though.

[Andy Lynes]

I thought I had read that it had stopped serving food, but squaremeal.com still lists it. Name of chef not listed however.