Canteen, Royal Festival Hal

Canteen - Royal Festival Hall

Royal Festival Hall

Belvedere Road

http://www.canteen.co.uk

Book online

Celeriac, leek and mushroom POI and mash - with onion gravy and spinach

Both of us have been to Canteen before but we decided to do a StB because it offers such good value on a traditional English menu.  The atmosphere is busy and sometimes one has to wait a few minutes at the bar for a table - no hardship there are some very fine cocktails on offer.

There are monthly and daily specials and the ingredients are pleasingly fresh.  The canteen approach is not to rush customers which is great - they unfailing put water on the tables and the young front of house team are helpful, courteous and enthusiastic (also very happy to have a laugh).  It presents a wonderfully "open house" effect but the big space allows for privacy at tables too.

I started with an English classic - Devilled Kidneys - there's not much I can say about it other than the kidneys were beautifully cooked.  Anyone who cooks kidney's knows how important it is to get this just right.  The sauce was tangy and the toast ample.  No complaints at all.

Sourdough toast with fried duck egg and mushrooms

LM: I had sourdough toast with fried mushrooms topped with a duck egg and chives. Robust, tasty, nothing to dislike whatsoever.

SN: There seems to be plenty of Crozes-Hermitage about - it is a favourite of ours so the choice was easy and the price was right. The wine list is flexible and comfortable: high quality but affordable.  Casual dining is there thing and the drinks on offer match that aspiration.

SN: We both had a delicious pie - it's worth noting for carnivores and veggies alike - that the pie options change regularly and there is always one of each on offer.  The pies are served with either chips or mash, stacks of greens and a small jug of gravy to match.  Our choices were vegetarian - which I'll leave LM to describe.  For those inclined the offer was spiced mutton for omnivores.  I went for the veggie option on this occasion.  

LM: Celeriac, leek and mushroom pie was light and crispy and packed with vegetables - fresh vegetables at that - in some sort of creamy sauce - an absolute delight. 

SN: I reckon this unnoticed star of this dish are the glorious buttery greens - I'm guessing these could be anything from sprout tops to spring cabbage, but the real point is that they are glorious deep green leaves which are tasty and substantial, not an after thought.  All hail greens and gravy!

sticky sticky toffee pudding

LM: Sticky toffee pudding was divine - rich, unctuous and hefty without falling into stodgy territory. I'd be lying if I said I could remember much more, but it vanished rapidly and accompanied by appreciative noises.

SN: My pudding, not for the first time, was a succulent Apple pie with custard (so old fashioned it should be pronounced the proper way -  cus-Tard) - it ranks highly because there's something massively comforting about an apple pie made properly without the mangling a supermarket might give it, or I dare say a patisserie.  The sauce is pale and not to sweet or too rich and offers no hints of the kind of colour one ordinarily sees for cus-Tard in cans, boxes, cakes and pastries.  It is delicious and a belt-loosener - be warned!

Overall I like Canteen as the kind of place I can drop in with a friend and have a grand meal or sit after work on my own, eating and communing with my social media world over a light meal and glass of wine.  If I'm lucky someone will swing by...when they do Canteen welcomes them too.  With Louise, the critical faculties are sharper, the wit is drier and the meals much longer :-) StB isn't always about fusion, tasting menus and £100 bills - Canteen is in our top ten.

PS - worth looking at how responsive Canteen is to the comments on Trip Advisor - their overall rating is way off my 5 star dining experiences over the last 3 months, but they seem determined to address that.  Just shows how it is worth reviewing your experience.