Good restaurants around Moorgate,London

[Gavin Convery]

I've just moved office to near Moorgate station and I'm looking to expand my list of decent restaurants in the area for lunch.

I've done the obvious Coq d'Argent and the excellent K10. Any other ideas?

[Simon Majumdar]

I would walk north to Finsbury Square and try the excellent Fox gastro pub( run by the people who ran the now defunct French house Dining Room )

There is a superb chippie on the north east corner of the square whose name I can never remember but who make all their own pies and pasties and they are just delicious

Further up ( if you have time ) is The Real Greek in Hoxton market.  There no booking meze place next door has had mixed crit but is good for a quick lunch

For a great sarnie, try Apostrophe on Great Eastern St which serves the truly great Poilaine.

S

(Edited by Simon Majumdar at 8:13 am on Dec. 7, 2001)

[Gavin Convery]

Simon, Thanks for that, I'll definitely give the Fox a go and funnily enough I am planning to go to the Real Greek or its sibling next week - have you tried the new Meze place - I read a good review on the thisislondon website.

[Jon Tseng]

young bin, up on the barbican highwalk does and quite a nice lunchtime buffet. now i know the words "nice" and "buffet" do not usually co-exist in the same sentance, but it is actually quite yummy. about a tenner, though prices may have gone up.

also check out the "sushi and sozai" booth by the station entrance (on the west side of the road). it does great japanese lunchboxes at rock bottom (well, cheaper than moshi moshi) prices.

theres a nice wagamama-alike in the arcade opposite liverpool st station. have to get there early though.

cheerio

j

[Gavin Convery]

Young bin - what sort of restaurant is it? I know of a japanese restaurant called Noto up there but didn't rate it. Now that I have found K10 (a kaiten just off London Wall) I wouldn't go anywhere else for japanese.

Thanks for the other tips....

[Jon Tseng]

tis korean - its in the time out guide

j

[chaudfroidoeuf]

Consider Club Gascon, located within 3 minutes' walk of the Barbican Tube (1 stop away from Moorgate).  There's a gastronomic restaurant where reservations are necessary, and an adjacent bar with informal tapas-like offerings.   This restaurant focuses on Gascony products, including foie gras (which is offered in 5-10 different preparations, including sometimes as a dessert with a sauce made from violets).  I recently had red grouse at the restaurant -- interesting too.  Decent Gascony wine selection.

Also, within 10 minutes' walk of Moorgate is 1 Lombard (1 Michelin star; reserve at gastronomic side).  This restaurant within 2 minutes of the Bank tube.  I would recommend Club Gascon over 1 Lombard, though.

[Simon Majumdar]

Good call on Club Gascon although I would urge you not to bother with the shoddy little wine bar they call Cellar gascon or their risible "deli" Comptoir Gascon

The bottom or middle bit of Smiths of Smithfield can be ok for a cheap lunch.  The top floor is much more hit and miss

You are also not far from The Eagle, The Quality chop House on Farringdon Road and Moro on Exmouth market

S

[Gavin Baxter]

I'd like to second Simon's recommendation of the Quality Chop House. Went there for lunch last Sunday and enjoyed a lot.

Steak and Kidney Pie was like mama used to make, and Boudin Noir with apple compote and mashed potato was very pleasing.

Well worth putting up with the buttock-numbing benches.

Gavin

[SamanthaF]

1 Blossom Street. Not far, and wonderful in the summer when the terrace is out.

[cabrales]

I've done the obvious Coq d'Argent

I found my first lunch at Coq d'Argent last week average. There is a prix fixe lunch for around 25 pounds for 2 courses, and 30 pounds for 3 (?). I received an uneventful amuse-bouche (that there is one speaks to the restaurant's French-ness), followed by a smooth (in a bad way) pea soup. The soup was slightly sweet, and lacked, for me, granularity and the "pick me up" of bacon or other sources of smokiness.  However, the little piece of seared foie gras on top of the soup was not bad.  The braised pork belly entree was better than the soup, but not by enough to justify my liking the meal overall.  Good utilization of the dense texture of the skin and the copious amounts of fat.  Also, nice taste of the pork itself. The apple puree included was unnecessary, and too sweet.  However, a good pork belly overall. Dessert was a limp armagnac ice cream.  

The surroundings were not bad (a rooftop with a view of adjacent buildings and a modern interior), and service was relatively rapid when time constraints were described. The wine list contains a fair number of bottles, with some items at acceptable prices and others very overpriced. The sommelier with whom I dealt was more comfortable speaking French than English. That's the kind of place this is -- napkins folded upon a diner's departure from the seat, etc.  I usually like this type of establishment   , but I do not plan to return to Coq d'Argent.