The Banana Leaf Canteen 75-79 Battersea Rise London SW11 1HN
Prawn crackers
It has been a long time since we ate Thai food so we decided to go back to the Banana Leaf Canteen near Clapham Junction. Usually it is less crowded than the Pepper Tree located in Clapham Common and it was the case again.
We ordered some crackers (£2.50), then we both had soup based noodles as main courses: the vegetarian Kau Chi Dumpling Noodles (dumplings with yellow wheat noodles with vegetable broth, served with pak shoy, shitake mushrooms, coriander and crispy shallot – £6.95) and the chicken Ying Yang Laksa Noodles (mixture of wheat and rice noodles topped with their house special mildly spiced coconut broth laced with grilled aubergine, tofu and bean sprouts. Garnished with lime wedge, coriander and crispy shallots and chicken – £7.85). As drinks we ordered a Tiger beer (£3.25) and an apple and orange juice (£2.85). The beer could have been colder. The juice was quite good.
The two main courses
Kau Chi Dumpling Noodles
The Kau Chi Dumpling Noodles were quite good. The soup arrived piping hot – that is, with risk of burning your mouth if you’re not careful! It was very tasty, with noodles still “al dente” in the soup. The dumplings were also pretty good, something that is quite variable in this sort of dish (i.e. I have had some pretty nasty dumplings in my time), and the vegetables fresh. The only thing I don’t care for here, but that seem to be added to most dishes at this restaurant, are the corn chips. Corn chips are one thing, but soggy corn chips in soup is quite another. That said, it’s perfectly easy to avoid eating them, so overall a good dish and very filling.
Ying Yang Laksa Noodles
The Ying Yang Laksa noodles was quite good, creamy and spicy. Only one problem: it was just too hot! I managed to burn my tongue with this meal which kept its heat for a long time. The portion was huge, I had trouble finishing it and I am usually a “big” eater.
Cost and conclusion: it was £25.74 including the “optional service charge of 10%” (if it is optional, why to automatically add it to the bill?). If you are near Clapham Junction train station, the Banana Leaf Canteen is a decent place for a quick and cheap lunch. The value for money is good. The service, while friendly, could have been better: for example, the prawn crackers arrived only after the main courses. Somebody needs to train her memory 😉 You can read the previous review about this restaurant at http://www.trusted-gourmet.com/2009/07/thai-restaurant-banana-leaf-canteen-75-battersea-rise-cnr-northcote-road-clapham-junction-london. Other recommended restaurants in the area are the excellent Italian restaurant Pizza Metro (reviewed here and here) just across the road and the great authentic Japanese Sushi restaurant Tokiya (reviewed here and here). If you are into burgers, the Gourmet Burger Kitchen in Northcote Road is quite good (reviewed here and here).
Zizzi Italian Restaurant 73-75 The Strand London WC2R 0DE
Nice cold Peroni beer
We go quite regularly to the Zizzi on the Strand, since it is close to the office but it has been over two months since the last review. I feel I had to post a new review since I saw a comment by someone complaining about the service for non-native English speakers, the food and the price (!). I too am a non-native English speaker but have not had a single problem at this restaurant. By the way, not many waiters at this Zizzi are native English speakers… They seem mostly to be from Poland or Italy according to their accent. As for the “rubbish food”, well it all depends on people’s taste but personally I find Zizzi quite decent and I have been in many restaurants. Still, everyone is entitled to their opinion. But what I find funny is when the whinger says “it could be, and should be much better taking into consideration the price” I almost choked on my can of coke laughing. First, a meal costs around £8-12 at Zizzi and this one is located in the Strand, which is not exactly the cheapest area in London. You pay the same price at any Zizzi so this one at least is offering a better value for money compared to the ones located in less desirable places. Second, even in absolute Zizzi is quite cheap: you eat well, the surrounding is not bad and air conditioning is nice when it is hot. Cheaper, is the McDonalds next door. Third, Zizzi offers discounts all the time! For example, the current offer allows you to buy any main meal and get another one for only £1! It is valid Sunday to Thursday until Sunday 11th October 2009. Just go to http://zizzi.co.uk to see the latest offers.
Pizzas cotto e funghi
Well, back to the review now. We ordered 2 pizzas cotto e funghi (£8.50 + £1 for the second pizza with their current deal), a bottle of San Pellegrino 500ml (£2.15) and a bottle of Peroni beer (£3.20). We chose that kind of pizza since we quite liked it last time we reviewed the place. It was good this time too, with a nice thin crispy base. The toppings were good, and we especially like the mushrooms and the creamy mascarpone
Cost and conclusion: It was less than £15 for two people. All tips and gratuities are discretionary at Zizzi and they really are since they are not automatically added to the bill. Great pizzas, very reasonable prices, excellent location for us but also for all the tourists visiting Covent Garden or Trafalgar Square where tourist traps are the norm.
Ship Inn Bar and Restaurant Mousehole – Penzance Cornwall TR19 6QX
Mousehole
Mousehole's harbour
The Ship Inn (in the centre)
The entrance
Mousehole! I had to come here because of its funny name but actually it is a lot more than that. It is a lovely tiny fishing village really worth the trip.
The Ship Inn is a hotel and pub/restaurant superbly located right in front of the harbour. The old building in stone is quite nice and inside there is a rustic feeling with the wall in stones, the beamed ceilings and the heavy wooden tables. There are several model boats near the windows. There is a pub area and a separate restaurant area.
Inside the Ship Inn
The choice in the menu is restricted compared to some gastro pubs: some sandwiches, some jacket potatoes, a rump steak, a double cheeseburger, mussels in white wine, home made fish pie, home made steak and ale pie, fish and chips and that’s about all. We ordered the beer battered fish and chips and a home-made fish pie. As drink we had a beer and a lemonade.
The drinks
Home-made fish pie
The home-made fish pie was very tasty. It was mainly potato and cheese with not too much fish and seafood, but there was enough to make it worth eating and both taste and texture were very good. It came with a nice fresh salad and some crispy chunks of fresh farmhouse-style bread.
Fish and chips
The beer battered fish and chips was good: well fried, and with a firm texture. The fries were not great but then I am not a fan of those thick fries. I prefer them when they are much thinner. The only thick fries I like are the ones cooked at Gourmet Burger Kitchen because they are crispy.
Cost and conclusion: It was just less than £25, not bad for decent food and for the excellent location. The Ship Inn is also a hotel so you can rest there and enjoy the view over the harbour from your bedroom.
Some other photos taken at Mousehole:
Another view of the harbour
The Mousehole
Funny!
Carnon Inn (Table Table) Old Carnon Hill, Carnon Downs, Truro Cornwall TR3 6JT
Carnon Inn (Table Table)
Inside
Good cold Stella beer
Carnon Inn (part of the Table Table restaurant chain) is a restaurant based in Truro, which is a city conveniently located for visiting most of Cornwall. From outside it looks pretty basic and it is next to Premier Inn hotel. Inside, things are much better with interesting decoration and large tables and decent space between tables.
As starters we ordered the Yakitori skewers (£3.95) and a duck pate (£3.99). We both took the same main course which was the duck and apples (£19.98 for the two) and as desserts we had a tasting plate with Eton mess, lemon tart and strawberry ice cream (£4.99) and another tasting plate with strawberry ice cream, chocolate tart and Belgian waffles (£4.99). The drinks were a bottle of sparkling water 330ml (£1.65) and a pint of Stella (£2.90).
The two starters
Yakitori skewers
The yakitori skewers were ok. They really looked like those already made food coming from Sainsbury etc that you just have to heat. They were a little too sweet.
Duck pate
The duck paté was nicely presented and good but far from a foie gras of course. The toasted bread and the chutney were good too.
The main courses
Duck and apples
The ducks and apples were not bad at all. They came very warm and the skin was crispy. They were like duck confits but not too greasy and the apples were a good balance to that dish.
The desserts
Tasting plate with Eton mess, lemon tart and strawberry
Tasting plate with strawberry ice cream, chocolate tart and Belgian waffles
The desserts were generally good. The strawberry ice cream was average, the Eton mess was a little bit too sweet but the chocolate tart and the Belgian waffles were good.
Cost and conclusion: it was just over £42 with no “optional” service charge automatically included to the bill and euphamistically “left to the client’s discretion” as restaurants often do in London. Here, there was no service charge at all which is very appreciated. Since the waitress was friendly we of course left a good tip. The food was not fantastic but it was better than in most pubs and the price was fair. Nice relaxing atmosphere too. I would not hesitate to go back there.
The Godolphin Arms West End, Marazion Cornwall, TR17 0EN
St Michael's Mount
The Godolphin Arms. View from St Michael's Mount.
The Godolphin Arms is a hotel restaurant wonderfully located on the sea wall at the end of the causeway to St. Michael’s Mount. You cannot have a better location. It takes about 10 minutes to walk to St Michael’s Mount which is a Cornish counterpart of the Mont Saint Michel in Normandy but much smaller. You only walk in low tide of course 😉 From Marazion you can also go to the Isles of Scilly by helicopter or boats. These isles are great for people into birds.
Great view
We took the Godolphin breakfast club full English composed of 2 sausages, grilled tomato, a hash brown, fried egg, toast, mushrooms and 2 rashers of bacon, with mug of tea or coffee (£6). They have quite an extensive breakfast menu with smoked haddock fillets served with scrambled eggs (£7.95), traditional kippers served with poached eggs (£7.95), rack of toast with butter, jam or marmite (£1.95), backed beans on toast (£3.75), scrambled egg on toast (£4.25)… They have breakfast baps, like bacon bap (£3.25), bacon & egg bap (£3.95), sausage bap (£3.25) or egg bap (£2.95). The dining area is quite pleasant, through the windows you have a great view over the St. Michael’s Mount. The breakfast was quite good and large. After eating it, we felt we could brave the cold wind more easily.
The toasts
The two breakfasts
Sausages, grilled tomato, hash browns, fried egg, toast, mushrooms and bacon!
Cost and conclusion: it was £12 for 2, not bad value considering the location and the quite decent breakfast. Highly recommended if you plan to visit St. Michael’s Mount!
