City Cafe, Westminster

[Andy Lynes]

In my former life as a business traveler, City Inn came as a welcome alternative from the endless stream of anonymous Hiltons, Marriots and Thistles. Aiming for similar territory as the Malmaison chain, City Inns are stylish and contemporary without being threateningly trendy - perfect for your thirtysomething Guardian-reading financial analyst. Rooms are spacious and decked out with cd players and flat screen TVs and that all important comfy bed for falling comatose into after too many beers at the bar.

Like Malmaison, City Inn put a lot of emphasis on their food and beverage programme. Executive chef Peter Lloyd joined the group in November last year from Bank restaurants and overhauled the menus; the hotel even has its own cookbook. But while the company appears to have nailed the accommodation side of things, they still have a fair way to go if they are to be recognised for the excellence of their restaurants if my recent lunch at the City Café in Westminster is anything to go by.

Although the service I received during my meal was perfectly adequate, other tables didn’t fair so well. I’m still wondering what was going through the minds of the waiters who served a table of two with bowls of soup, which they placed in the centre of the table, and two main courses which they placed before the astonished guests. The diners calmly explained that they would like to eat the soup first and then be served their main courses. When the main dishes were bought to the table again, one of them was wrong and had to be replaced a second time, leaving one guest eating and the other waiting for food.

At another table, the maitre’d asked a diner who complained of being served the wrong starter if he would like to eat what he had been given or wanted the dish changed. And all this in a dining room not even a quarter full. Other aspects of the service were just plain irritating – laboriously pouring first olive oil and then balsamic into a dish at each table for dipping bread in was a pointless affectation. It offered no theatrical value and diverted a member of staff from the business of actually providing service.

Asking diners if they had dined at a City Café before was hauntingly reminiscent of walking into a Harvester (yes, I’ve been to one, and on more than one occasion). Explaining that portions on the set kitchen menu were kept small in order to keep the cost down and that dishes from the “City Café Grill” section “don’t come with too much in the way of garnish” were just a little too honest. I couldn’t help but wonder why the chef hadn’t used ingredients on his set menu that were cheap enough to allow him to offer a decent sized plate of food; and why the grills were priced the same, or more, than the al a carte dishes which were garnished.

And I’m still pondering the question of why anyone would serve lobster and black pudding tortellini on a pool of apple puree. In fact, I haven’t yet figured out why you would put black pudding and lobster together in the first place. It was a poor dish with thick pasta, an undistinguished filling and dull lobster sauce that clashed badly with the puree.

Far better was a rack of Welsh lamb served with a side order of rich, buttery mash attractively served in a miniature cast iron cooking vessel. Another side of French beans was needlessly gussied up with shallots and parmesan that served as an unwelcome intrusion to the dish.

Rhubarb crumble tart with stem ginger ice cream was a disappointing end to the meal; a bland pastry case filled with the sharp fruit appeared to have been sprinkled with the crumble mixture and flashed under the grill. The ice cream was too strongly flavoured for my palate and I was unable to finish it. The coffee that I’d requested to be served with the dessert came long after it had been cleared away.

I can’t claim this was the first disappointing meal I’ve had in a British hotel, but it was particularly deflating to have had the experience in a hotel that apparently prides itself on its food. Dishes such as rabbit and pear tarte tatin with almond dressing or monkfish with braised oxtail bourguignon and parsnip puree seem misguided at best, as was the service. With some main courses costing over 20 pounds, the City Inn is not cheap; if it wants to reach out to an audience beyond its hotel guests, then it really needs to get its act together.

[PoppySeedBagel]

rabbit and pear tarte tatin with almond dressing

the mind boggles hard, and fails to imagine what this would taste like, except not very nice...

And well said about the olive oil & balsamic pouring ceremony - this idea seems to have come out of nowhere, and is bizarre. Also, am I the only person in the world to prefer ordinary, to balsamic [particularly the cheapo stuff] vinegar in her salad dressings?

Edited May 13, 2005 by PoppySeedBagel (log)

[Andy Lynes]

I believe the idea of serving little dishes of olive oil instead of butter was introduced to London by Alastair Little way back when. When the pointless addition of balsamic entered the equation, I can't say. Nothing wrong with it per se(apart from the fact that I prefer butter), its just so tedious having a waiter hovering over your table for what seems like an eternity, although it only takes 30 secs maximum I suppose.

I much prefer red or white wine vinegar in my salad dressings.

[erica graham]

I experienced the balsamic and oil thing in Dome Brasserie in Selfridges, London years ago, I couldn't believe it when I read people were still suffering it! (It was served with parbaked French baguette if my memory serves)

[Andy Lynes]

rabbit and pear tarte tatin with almond dressing

the mind boggles hard, and fails to imagine what this would taste like, except not very nice...

←

Fruit features in a total of 5 of the 11 starters on the a la carte menu I ate from. As well as the rabbit and lobster, king prawn cocktail with avocado salsa came with pink grapefruit; chicken liver and foie gras parfait was served with pear and apple chutney and cured venison came with apple carpaccio. The set menu featured carrot, almond and orange soup, and the apple and pear chutney made a re-appearance with a duck salad.

[curlywurlyfi]

Also, am I the only person in the world to prefer ordinary, to balsamic [particularly the cheapo stuff] vinegar in her salad dressings?

hear hear - supermarket red wine vinegar is my choice every time. and I actively dislike balsamic - or any other vinegar - in olive oil for dipping. Salt + pepper at a push, but keep your nasty caramel-flavoured dark brown goo away.

[Andy Lynes]

I experienced the balsamic and oil thing in Dome Brasserie in  Selfridges, London years ago, I couldn't believe it when I read people were still suffering it!

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I think its meant to be sophisticated.

Its a shame actually as City Cafe's are nice spaces (I've also eaten in the one in Birmingham) and if they sorted out their services issues and calmed the menu down a bit, they'd be quite an attractive proposition.

[Gary Marshall]

rabbit and pear tarte tatin with almond dressing

the mind boggles hard, and fails to imagine what this would taste like, except not very nice...

←

Fruit features in a total of 5 of the 11 starters on the a la carte menu I ate from. As well as the rabbit and lobster, king prawn cocktail with avocado salsa came with pink grapefruit; chicken liver and foie gras parfait was served with pear and apple chutney and cured venison came with apple carpaccio. The set menu featured carrot, almond and orange soup, and the apple and pear chutney made a re-appearance with a duck salad.

←

think it was one of nico ladenis's core thoughts that fruit with savory dishes should be avoided. I agree.

though i'd feel compelled to order the rabbit tarte tatin out of interest!

Edited May 13, 2005 by Gary Marshall (log)

[adt]

think it was one of nico ladenis's core thoughts that fruit with savory dishes should be avoided. I agree.

That's one hell of an edict, and wipes out a few classics ancient and modern. Don't know how keenly "duck a l'orange' will be missed, but I'd be unhappy to lose apple with black pudding, and I bet a few signatures dishes would go out of the window if this came to pass.

(And Gary - no more mango with salmon cheeks, rhubarb with suckling pig, sweetbreads and mangoustines...?)

Of course I'm not defending combining rabbit meat and fruit in a tarte tatin. I concur that I might try it, or better still talk someone else into ordering it and try theirs.

[Gary Marshall]

think it was one of nico ladenis's core thoughts that fruit with savory dishes should be avoided. I agree.

(And Gary - no more mango with salmon cheeks, rhubarb with suckling pig, sweetbreads and mangoustines...?)

←

haha good point !

cheers

gary

[Basildog]

They serve oil and balsamic in the same dish at The Beach Hut down here in Cornwall, with shite bread, whats the point really?

[adt]

This oil and balsamic thing - what are we objecting to here?

1) Pouring of oil and balsamic at the table

2) Adding balsamic into the same dish as the olive oil

3) Providing balsamic at all, rather than just olive oil, with bread

(1) is pointless, (2) means you can't easily avoid the balsamic (or if it's a deep bowl, can't get at it). Having good, grassy olive oil alone (3, no salt) is lovely. But after a certain amount of oil, especially if the oil is unexceptional, I must admit I'm not averse to a bit of piquancy, from some good balsamic vinegar or some capers or whatever. And yes, if I had a bath I'd keep coal in it.

[Stigand]

I think that balsamic with the olive oil is an American thing. I certainly ran into it first when I moved to the US in 1999 - in chain Italian restaurants. Not really a fan either.

[Basildog]

By objection is the serving of shite bread.