English Tapas at The Somers Town Coffee House

While London Euston is a fantastic transport hub, it can be a little impersonal full of chain restaurants welcoming people from the four corners of the globe who want a quick bite.  However, five minutes’ walk away you find little London neighborhoods with hidden foodie gems and a few gorgeous pubs including The Somers Town Coffee House.]

A glorious mixture of local drinking hole and after work pub, The Somers Town Coffee House recently unveiled an English tapas menu which works with its traditional yet funky vibe.  So where else would a South African Londoner meet her BFF who happens to be a Mancunian of Chinese heritage for a long overdue catch up?

Having fought our way to the bar, we set about menu negotiation.  That’s what tapas is about isn’t it?  I’ll give you squid if you give me chicken wings but neither of us wants the superfood salad?  We are PR girls but really not that type of PR girls!   Having ordered, we proceeded to deconstruct our weeks, lives and everything in between as we kept checking the pass to see when dinner might pitch up.

Everything arrived at about the same time which was no mean feat given the array of options we chose!  Chicken Waffles (not very English I know but who is going to argue about succulent crispy chicken with a soft sweet waffle ... heathens that is who)  complemented the oozy carby goodness of the 'Hash and Eggs' .   No fighting right?  You know BFF's right!  

Personally I believe everything tastes better with Pork and ribs can be a work of genius.  If only Leonardo had given up that art thing and focused on what was important.  However, the braised sticky ribs in BBQ sauce seemed to lack just a little punch.  Not bad but not quite steal a car and travel cross country to taste either.

Some people are wine connoisseurs (lady petrol as the boy keeps calling it) but my friend and I know chicken wings.   We know good chicken wings, we know bad chicken wings, we know emergency post awards ceremony chicken wings.  And the  The Somers Town Coffee House delivered  "Peri Peri Hot Chick Chick" as they like to call them.  Spiked with chili and spring onions they were extremely moreish but the chili fiend in me could have handled a little more heat.

A good Caesar salad is a thing of beauty - crispy croutons, punchy anchovy and salty Parmesan.  The kitchen had tried to elevate this offering by adding chicken and bacon (sadly not the crispy kind) and while it was nice, it was a little like putting lipstick on the Mona Lisa.  Unnecessary and not entirely satisfactory.

All in all the food wasn't bad but there was one big issue - it was luke-warm!  Yes, all the work that had gone into making these ingredients into something special and it arrive at the table tepid.  Admittedly, it was a busy night but it was so very disappointing and the waitress looked confused.  Yes, hot food please.

So, should you visit?  Most definitely - but make sure that you check the food when it arrives as it could move kind of good to great!

L xx

Don't forget to follow me on twitter @littleofwhatyou