Nuki Nuki

We are having  some work done on our kitchen, so what better excuse to try a new local eat.

We fancied a Thai and had recently tried Butlers Thai for a takeaway, so were keen to try it 'eat in' - however they weren't open on this lovely bank holiday, so we looked elsewhere. We'd heard of the newly opened Thai competitor - Nuki, on Northfields Avenue which had so far been spoken fondly about - so we gave that a go.

So new, they only so far have a Facebook page and no website, Nuki's operates much like a cafe during the day and restaurant by night. With a 'Cafe Open' sign stood outside, not quite to the same theme as its stylish exterior.

The inside is cosy, and a bit more cafe like - but also pleasant for an evening's dinner.

We had luckily called ahead and reserved, as it seemed most other tables had also done... each had a reserved sign on it when we arrived, and the space quickly filled. All evening there was also a steady stream of customers coming to collect their take-away (it made us think that perhaps they don't offer delivery yet - which has been confirmed on their Facebook update on March 7th, something they will look at in future). It is also bring your own bottle (BYO), though they are now charging £2 per head for this, and applying for a liquor license in the meantime.

The menu was great, and seemed to offer most of the fresh Thai dishes we like, except for a lime chicken salad which we've sampled in a few other places before.

We ordered the dim sum and chicken satay to start... so were surprised to be brought (in error) someone else's Tom Yum soup... which was relatively quickly corrected. The starters were delicious, and we particularly liked the little heart dishes of soy that the dim sum arrived in (very practical for pouring that last drop of sauce on top of the Dim Sum on your plate).

For mains we shared a chicken Penang curry (coconutty and creamy), a Som Tom salad (limey and fresh), Pad Broccoli (nicely crisp) and some egg fried rice and steamed rice. This was more than enough for us both with the starters too. It was all really good, except for the steamed rice which was a little on the under-cooked side. We also observed that the salad, although amazing in taste was not quite as delicate as some others we'd had in more upmarket places in the past - perhaps to be expected for the reasonable prices.

As for dessert, the menu was amazing - a full array of Thai options. We ordered the bananas in hot coconut milk, but this somehow got lost in communication at some point and we instead had the banana fritters with ice cream - which weren't a disappointment.

Despite some teething issues perhaps in the service, the food was tasty, and I'm certainly tempted to head back soon for their £5 lunch deals and to tick off some more of the dessert menu.

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	3.5
Drinks Tastiness:	3
Service Skills:	2
Atmospheric Vibes:	3.5
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	4
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	3
Total average score:	3.2

Papaya feasting

We’ve been to Ealing’s Sri Lankan special nearly three times this year – so it is about time we blogged about it :o)

As some of you may know, Sri Lankan restaurants are in fact hard to come by, even in our cosmopolitan London town. The new, and trendy ‘Hoppers’ restaurant in Soho has recently drawn more attention to this much understated cuisine, although with its no-booking approach it is often hard to get a table. We have also been to another restaurantin Tooting, and heard about some authentic Sri Lankan eats on Sunday evenings at a pub in Sudbury Hill. However our Sri Lankan friends tell us that they aren’t as common as we might have expected.

We first tried Papaya before we really knew what Sri Lankan food was. Having dined in many Indian restaurants and having spent time in South India, some of the dishes on Papaya’s menu seemed familiar. With over 11% of the national population being Tamil, Sri Lankan cuisine shares many dishes and influences from South Indian Tamil traditions. On our first visit we un-adventurously ordered those dishes that we were familiar with, such as dhal and curries. 

Earlier this year however, we were fortunate enough to attend a friend’s wedding in Sri Lanka and get to sample the culinary delights and delicacies that it has to offer. One thing that was striking to us was the delicate flavours and textures that Sri Lankan dishes host – of course this is in comparison to our experiences of Northern Indian British restaurants which just don’t seem quite as fine or well tuned.  Several Sri Lankan dishes are made up of finely chopped ingredients and a multitude of aromatic spices and flavours.

Photo: Papaya's Kothu Roti

In Sri Lanka itself our British appearances prompted the question at each mealtime “how spicy would you like your dish”. We mainly went for medium, although the one “spicy” dish I did try was really pleasant, and with a few breathers in between made for a delicious meal. This is one thing Papaya doesn’t match to its heritage roots – a few of the items on the menu are labelled with “Mild”, “Medium” and “Hot”; however by our measure the one “Hot” dish (the chicken madras curry) did not live up to the chilli used for in-country dining.

One of our favourite dishes is the Kothu Roti. Imagine an Indian flat bread (the roti) copped into strips of about 1cm wide (or less) and fried up with meat, vegetable and those aromatic spices we mentioned...and there you have it, the Kothu Roti. Traditionally eaten in the evening in Sri Lanka (rice and curry are reserved for lunchtime sittings), we would argue that Kothu Roti goes down a treat at any time of the day. Since having been in Sri Lanka, this is now a regular on our order when we visit Papaya.

 

Photo: Kothu options at Papaya (string hopper is a bit like vermicelli)

Another traditional dish is the Egg Hopper, a south Indian pancake made from fermented rice, cooked with a fried egg in the centre. When I first saw this in Sri Lanka I was convinced it was a breakfast fusion of Indian Dosa (the pancake) with an English breakfast fried egg! How wrong I was – hoppers, and egg hoppers are a traditional eat for any meal all over the island.

During our most recent trip we went with some friends excited for a Sri Lankan feast. We ordered a lot of food and decided to also sample the starters. Most of the starters tended to be dry-ish fried bites – such as fishcake cutlets, lentil balls, samosas and so on. I thought they were delicious, but one of our guests did comment that she wished she’d saved more space for the phenomenal curries instead.

 Photo: Dahl, curry, rice, and another favourite - coconut sambal (finely ground coconut with spices to sprinkle on any dish)

By its own measure Papaya is “The best Sri Lankan Restaurant in the UK” (as it states on its restaurants homepage, claiming the Sri Lankan Community Award). Aside from the homemade Sri Lankan food we’ve been lucky enough to sample by the mothers of our good friends, we would agree that Papaya has been a delight to return to every time we get those Kothu Roti cravings.

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	4.5
Drinks Tastiness:	4
Service Skills:	4
Atmospheric Vibes:	3
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	5
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	5
Total average score:	4.25

Chick chick chick...Chooks!

A rare lunch catch up with my sister and her boyfriend at the weekend, offered the perfect opportunity to try something new, and knowing them to be connoisseurs of trendy urban eateries, burgers and the like...I booked us into Chooks

Chooks is the new diner style restaurant on Haven Green, the second site for the restaurant originating in Muswell Hill. Chooks is Aussie slang for Chicken. Funnily enough, hubby and I were trying to figure out what exactly is Australian cuisine...and despite the name, we are none the wiser. But whilst the name is just about the only Aussie thing about the restaurant, they do do some 'beaut' chicken.

At 1pm on a Saturday we arrived to find the place pretty empty, so there was no trouble taking our table for the 4 of us plus baby in pram. However, there were a number of bookings that filled the place up over the next hour or so. The atmosphere was relaxed, the music was loud but ok and we settled in to look at the menus.

Perusing the menu

Between us we sampled a good selection of food. I had the High Noon Chicken Tacos, Hubby had the 'Hog 'n Chook combo', my sister had the buttermilk chicken with mash 'n gravy, and her boyfriend had....the burger! We all agreed that the buttermilk chicken was really delicious, and better than other similar dishes we've sampled in the local area. Even the self-declared chicken hater relished the juicy meat and nicely spiced batter. The ribs were sizable, the chips fairly average. The mash was good and creamy, and the slaw interesting and a nice variation on the normal.

High Noon Chicken Tacos

Hog 'n Chook Combo

For drinks, 3 of us ordered milk shakes. These came in the usual flavours vanilla, chocolate etc as well as banana maple which was yum. These were extremely filling though and didn't leave much space for dessert. 

The one dessert we did try was the peanut chocolate cheesecake donut. Quite a mouthful in more ways than one. It was a nice size, and a tasty indulgence to end the meal. We will return though as on the menu was a deep-fried mars bar...definitely one to try another time!

Service was excellent, good fun and attentive. They were also very accommodating of our pram and welcoming of children with colouring in sheets available. Decor is modern but not overdone. 

Chooks is a welcome addition to ever expanding Ealing restaurant scene.

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	4
Drinks Tastiness:	3.5
Service Skills:	4.5
Atmospheric Vibes:	3
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	4
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	3
Total average score:	3.6

Monty, Monty, Montys?

A (not so) wintery Friday night took us to finally try out one of the three Monty’s Nepalese restaurants in Ealing.

As you may have noticed ‘Montys’ appears not at one, or two... but three locations across Ealing. So the story goes; three partners who founded the original Montys went their separate ways in, and each started their own restaurant with the same name... and logo! Today Monty’s Tandoori in South Ealing still stands after the original opening in 1980.

Montys of London in Ealing Broadway, and Montys restaurant in West Ealing, all have unique websites and operate as independent businesses.

Being the closest, we decided to first try out the one in South Ealing. We booked a table online (just in case it happened to be busy) and arrived on Friday evening.

It was indeed pretty busy, and had a great bustling atmosphere in a relatively cosy setting. It might have been the delicious scent of the Asian cuisine, but the place had a feel of mountainside restaurant with its large window at the front and long, almost cave-like interior. 

The waiters were notably friendly, but also professional – attentive and yet not intrusive. We were served quickly and tended to politely. 

We overindulged on some delicious starters followed by some traditional Nepalese curries. The food was delicious, though we couldn’t help compare it to its spicy Indian competition. The dishes we ordered were relatively mild by comparison. 

When we ordered our bill we discovered that by having booked out table online we were also eligible for a 20% discount – a welcome bonus to the already very lovely evening.

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	3.5
Drinks Tastiness:	3.5
Service Skills:	5
Atmospheric Vibes:	3.5
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	4
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	4
Total average score:	3.9

Santa Maria la Pizzeriaaa 
 
A relaxed summers Sunday evening, and we had an old friend visiting from overseas. We hadn't been to Santa Maria for a while so it seemed like a good option for a relaxed night out and some yummy food to fill our tums.

The pizzeria is famous for it's long wait for tables, whilst you drink in the pub next door (not a bad alternative). However this was Sunday (a quieter night for most restaurants), so we only waited a few minutes for our table (sadly missing out on the beer ;o)

We sat on a table near the front of the restaurant feeling the heat from the pizza oven and ordered our Italian beverages (beer and limonata) to go with our food. The decor was fun (having been refurbished back in Feb this year)

"Santa Maria was just what we were looking for on a lazy Sunday evening. Local, casual, relaxing but with a great atmosphere and some truly fantastic pizzas. The Italian team running the show are great - what an Ealing gem." Luke - visiting Ealing 

We hadn't been here for a while, but noted that the prices are now competitive with L'Oro Di Napoli just down the road (where we have been more recently). This is probably due to the increase at L'Oro Di Napoli, given its bedding in since its quite recent opening.

We ordered a selection of pizzas, and they didn't disappoint. We all commented on the rich tomato sauce used - it was delicious. Alex had gone for the special (with no tomato) which was really juicy even without the sauce. There was a good helping of toppings, and the bases were indeed from a good wood-fired-oven pizza.

We didn't have deserts, and although I was slightly dissapointed that there was no peppermint tea on offer - I accepted its upholding of traditional Italian vibes. I also got to take home the third of my pizza (that wouldn't fit in my tum) for lunch the next day - so was happy enough :o)

As you are told on the website, Santa Maria is listed in Time Out's 2012 Guide, and the restaurant has continued its standards as it was voted in the Evening Standard's top ten pizzas to try before you die. We would agree on the tasty pizzas - but although the service was friendly, we did feel a bit rushed. There were a few people waiting outside at odd points, but a smooth flow that kept the restaurant full all evening. We certainly got the sense that quick turnover was on order.

Despite the runs, all in all, this place still stays top for us in Ealing and we had a fun night. It gets itself a STAR EAT!

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	5
Drinks Tastiness:	3
Service Skills:	3
Atmospheric Vibes:	4
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	5
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	5*
Total average score:	4.2

*Seeing as this was our second visitor we've taken here to technically 'show off Ealing' :o)

Felling pretty Fat Boy

Friday night and too tired from a hard weeks work to cook...so a night out on the town in search of some Thai food. Fat Boys seemed right up our alley (well near enough at the Broadway).

We arrived quite late at 9:30pm and luckily enough to get the last table for two, and without a booking. The smell as we went in was incredible! Fragrant warm curries filled the air.

There were quite a few big groups in - clearly a good place to celebrate Friday nights. As it was full it was quite noisy, but didn't feel too cramped...and the food did make up for it!

The menu was filled with a vast selection of authentic dishes and got our mouths watering. We spied the shared starter platter that the ladies next to us had ordered and had to have the same.

The shared platter included the most meaty prawn toast we've ever had, some delicious satay, and some really elegant chilli sauce.

We also sampled some exciting treats from the Mocktail menu - mine was a lychee and kiwi mix and Al's was apple and melon. The latter was a bit sweet but the lychee was delicious.

For mains we had the traditional Thai green curry and prawn sweet and sour with some coconut rice - which came under its own coconut shell. Al thought it was the most creamy and delicious coconut rice he'd ever had :o) The dishes were great, and the curry quite hot - but in a satisfying green curried way.

By the end we definitely both felt like Fat Boy and girl.

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	4
Drinks Tastiness:	4
Service Skills:	3
Atmospheric Vibes:	3
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	4
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	3.5
Total average score:	3.6

A Swimmingly good evening in the Turtle Bay


We had been trying to get into Turtle Bay for months and it was always full! However, with a little leg work and one phone call a table was booked. Due to the place always looking busy the hype was high but I think its fair to say it lived up to expectations. Our first attempt back in January failed miserably one Friday evening when we found that it was completely full all night! Ealing is obviously becoming such a popular place to eat out, it now seems the norm to have to book in advance...we learnt our lesson and this time booked for a smooth bank holiday afternoon out.

Turtle Bay is a Caribbean restaurant, serving jerk chicken and Caribbean curries (among many others). It has a great menu with an even better cocktail menu. We were eating relatively early because of Levi's bedtime (he's only 1 year old :o), so we came across happy hour on the cocktails which was great. The waitress kindly gave us happy hour 10 minutes after the 7pm deadline!

 
"Lived up to the hype, good food, great drinks." Pete

The place was buzzing in a fun way - lots of people waiting by the bar for tables, lots of groups out celebrating like we were; a regular Monday night. Inside they have forgotten to finish the paint job in most places, and left in the shipping container as the kitchen. It all added to the evening - good vibes all round.

Levi got a good child seat (for those interested), fully secure and clean! He had a fancy pizza from the kids menu which went down a treat, however, his views aren't reflected in the scoring.

"Great range of cocktails and soft-drinks for the drivers or mums-to-be!" Sarah

Unusual Caribbean burgers were on the menu, along with some great curries. We even got to try some goats meat (the new in-thing for London apparently). Of course deserts also had to be tried and went down a treat.

It was reasonably priced and the food was really yum! We did love the decor, but also couldn't help but think that it felt much more like an independent eatery than the chain-restaurant that it really was. This did create a bit of debate over our final scores, but it still turned out on top!

We would definitely go back there, everyone agreed - there was plenty of food envy and not enough time to try everything. There are many more interesting cocktails to give a go next time!

"Great evening a really easy place to relax. Cocktails were phenomenal and reasonably priced. Food was authentic." Mark

Check out the scores below... a huge 4.1 - making it a STAR EAT*

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	3.9
Drinks Tastiness:	5
Service Skills:	3.2
Atmospheric Vibes:	4.5
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	4.8
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	3.4
Total average score:	4.1

[*STAR EAT = all eateries scoring 4/5 or more!]

Uno Momento, per favore

On Easter Saturday, Pete and I stepped out from our building site and make-shift kitchen and into the wilderness of Northfields at Easter. As we strode up the high street, we felt increasingly foolish for thinking we'd need to book a table as everywhere was deserted! But we wanted something tasty (and not microwaved) so we persevered to our destination - Momento, on Northfields Avenue.

Having done a little bit of research on Tripadvisor and Zomato, Momento seemed to offer all that we wanted - good, inexpensive food, in a relaxing restaurant setting. Happily, not only were we not disappointed, but the few intrepid explorers remaining in Ealing on that Saturday evening thought the same, and Momento was the only restaurant with more than one other couple dining!

The restaurant itself is modern, simple and well presented. There is a small bar and around 10 tables, with the kitchen and wood fired pizza oven at the back. The atmosphere was relaxed and informal, we felt at ease chatting away despite the relative quiet.

Looking at the menu, we succumb to not one, but three courses! For starters we choose olives and the mushroom fritti to share. The mushrooms were more than enough for two people!

For mains, we had to try the pizza. The oven blazing away behind us was too tempting, and they were good. The crust was evenly thin and crispy, which made a change to other local pizza places where the crust is puffed and the base soft. The toppings were good and plentiful.

Finally, dessert was the triumph. I enjoyed the caramel bananas with salted caramel ice cream, and Pete lapped up his enormous wedge of tiramisu, which was surprisingly light.

Overall, we had a really lovely evening. We weren't rushed and enjoyed all of the food. The bill, which came to ~£50 and included two soft drinks and two glasses of wine, felt like great value. We would definitely go back again. 

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	4
Drinks Tastiness:	4
Service Skills:	3.5
Atmospheric Vibes:	4
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	3.5
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	5
Total average score:	3.9

Japanese Please...

A Friday evening craving for some good Japanese food took us to the Hare and Tortoise. Lou had had the pleasure of running a two day training for students from a Japanese University, and one lunch time we had some sushi. This had only whetted the appetite for more.

Her Google search for Japanese restaurants in Ealing don't yield too many results, but Hare and Tortoise is one. We later realised however that there are many more independent ones in the area - which will have to wait for another trip.

Reservations aren't taken on Fridays, but we arrived by 7pm and got a table OK, towards the back of the long restaurant (arguably a bit less nice than the front). There was a great selection of food and drinks, so we shared some sushi and edamame beans for starters then also got a main. Prices were reasonable and service was quick, though not very personal - I guess that can be expected from a busy chain serving quick eats.

For mains we tried the teriyaki chicken, and the eels - both served with rice, and the eels came with some miso soup. We've tried eel before but it was a bit disappointing in this dish - an acquired taste perhaps. We had more than enough food, but still managed to share three mochi ice cream balls (if you haven't had these before...think scoops of ice cream in rice-flour coat - delicious).

Overall a nice meal, but nothing very special. We would go there again, but also keen to explore and compare other Japanese restaurants in the area. So far I've seen:

• Kobe Sushi nr Broadway
• Kiraku nr Ealing Common
• Okawari nr Broadway
• Atari-Ya nr Ealing Common
• Momo on Hanger Lane
• Yo Yo nr Broadway

Let us know if you would recommed trying any of them? or have more to add to the list?

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	3.5
Drinks Tastiness:	3
Service Skills:	3
Atmospheric Vibes:	3
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	4
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	3
Total average score:	3.25

When the Walpole Cafe does dinner!

It was valentines evening in Ealing. So a new local restaurant to try was in order.

We had heard all the rumours from online reviews; from our friends; and even from Marco Pierre White that The Walpole Cafe was the place to try. It was said to transform from the specialist provider of the full English breakfast into Friday and Saturday nights 'best restaurant in Ealing'. I called ahead to book a spot for Alex and I to sample their famous dinner. Two sittings were available  - 6pm and 9pm, so we went for the earlier option; as it seemed most others also had (we watched them re-lay tables when we left at 8:30pm).

Having walked past many times, I had always been intrigued by the greasy-spoon-looking façade, with its interior hidden behind the red and white checked curtains hanging in the lower half of the window. When we arrived for dinner, I was pleasantly surprised by the warm décor, nicely laid tables with candles and retro tin-plated adverts hung on the walls. We were greeted at our table by the chef's lovely wife - certainly proving a welcoming family feel to the night.

 

I had heard that the menu was small, but there seemed to be more than enough for us to choose from. We also realised that we have never noticed a menu to be too small in any restaurant, and perhaps it this was an indication of our non-fussy/greedy eating habits. It was hard to choose. 

As usual we made sure we ordered different dishes and ate off of one another's plates (or did a few plate-swaps across the table) for the rest of the evening. The evening offer included two-courses for £19.95 or three for £24.95 (we didn't decide in advance - but headed straight for the starters).

Starters were ginormous! between us we had the treacle-cured-salmon on a bed of beetroot, ginger and apple relish and the spicy soup complete with the largest sausage-roll slice we've ever seen. The soup and sausage-roll won on deliciousness here, and the chunky salmon was unfortunately overpowered in flavour from its punchy relish - which would have been better served in about 1/20th of the quantity (the table beside us also had to leave some of their relish untouched).

There was a good selection of wine, and we had a nice bottle of red to join our meal - since we both ordered meaty mains. And meat we did get! We certainly had eyes larger than our stomachs, or at least we had plate-fulls of food five times the size of our stomachs. Alex could sadly only make it through about half of his steak, even with a little help from me. My duck leg complete with sausage and red cabbage did a little better, though also not completable.

We ate far too much and conceded our predictability to the research experiment which proves that you eat 36% more if you can see a bottomless source of food in front of you compared to when you are blindfolded! 

A steak measuring one-hand please! And 2 inches thick!

Of course there is always room for a little sweet thing...and hot tea, after a big meal. We shared the sienna cake and truffles which were yum (and half came home for Sunday afternoon tea the next day). From the friendly waiter we learned that sienna cake is an Itallian, dense, spicy and nutty cake that sets quickly in the cold of winter. Italy's answer to nougat we decided.

Overall it was a great experience to dine at the Walpole, not the cheapest of eats, but very friendly, fun, and tasty. We will go again but make sure that we go prepared for the portions of a lifetime!

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	3.5
Drinks Tastiness:	4
Service Skills:	5
Atmospheric Vibes:	4
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	3.5
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	4
Total average score:	4

Ealing Park dinner at the Tavern

The first dinner for a long time when all six of us could make it along. And a great evening it was too. The newly refurbished Ealing Park Tavern (EPT) provided a fantastic venue for a friendly pre-dinner drink and tasty mid-week meal.

Sarah had made a booking (which seems to be needed these days in popular Ealing eateries), and we met beforehand in the bar. Dark-wooden walls, high ceilings and stuffed hunting trophies hanging from the walls. A warm but regal interior. It certainly lived up to its 'lovingly restored old coaching inn and brewery', now 200 years old. The bar was fine, not cheap, but average for London. The restaurant was excellent.

We knew in advance that Monday evening was also quiz night, but we decided to try that another day. We were intrigued by the 'bring your own bottle' option at the restaurant (yes an appendage to the bar/pub). So that we did...a bottle and some dessert wine :) This of course meant that the in-house microbrewery will have to wait to be tested properly on another trip.

The restaurant was a similar interior to the bar, though slightly cosier, and felt a bit like being in the Natural History Museum cafe :) we particularly liked the stuffed puffin on the way to the bathroom. Between us we tried the fish and chips, the burger, and the lamb pie...all were wonderful. Louise even got to save half her pie for lunch the next day as it was so big!

To make sure that we got a good sample of the menu, and to have something to go with our desert wine, we ordered puddings. There seemed to be a bit of confusion in the kitchen and our puddings were delayed coming out, but when they did they didn't disappoint. The chocolate mud-pie was huge and yummy, and the doughnut holes were mini doughnuts served with 'custard' - Abi and Louise agreed that the custard must have really been cream :o)

Having sampled the delights of dinner, Sarah and Pete returned for a Sunday roast, with parents in tow! Sunday lunch is a different affair, noisier and more lively that Monday evening dinner, probably due to the number of children in attendance. Relaxing into the pleasant buzz we explored the lunch menu - a sharing set of roasts mains, making for a twist on the norm. For one person there was beef or pork. For two, there was a whole roast chicken, for three lamb, for four beef and for eight....a sucking pig (to be ordered in advance)! We had two individual beefs and a roast chicken for two. The chicken is a novel idea but when it arrived it was skewered on a bowl with a prong, with a knife poking from it! After much head scratching as to how to carve it...we gave up and asked for an extra plate to do the job. Whilst it was very tasty, it was almost more hassle than it was worth. Really, the waiting staff should carve it for you at the table. Other than the logistical challenge, the portions were hearty and we all left full and happy.

All in all two wonderful meals, really friendly staff, reasonable prices and delicious pub-eats. We all agreed we would go there again!

(Left over doughnuts also made for a good work snack the next day)

Summary score table /5
Food Deliciousness:	4
Drinks Tastiness:	5 (for BYOB)
Service Skills:	3.5
Atmospheric Vibes:	3
Recommendation Score for a Casual Eve:	4
Recommendation Score for Showing off Ealing:	4.5
Total average score:	4