tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post6710312837145854934..comments2024-03-27T11:45:40.393+00:00Comments on Cheese and Biscuits: Vinoteca, SohoChris Poplehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02668565800857295023noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post-58079052765267797702012-08-10T08:39:26.493+00:002012-08-10T08:39:26.493+00:00Im actually a vegetarian myself and more often tha...Im actually a vegetarian myself and more often that not do find that the restaurants i go to never quite put the same care and attention into their veggie dishes.. i think they almost view it as insult. I for one would not be trying that Curd Tart!John Coursehttp://www.tutorcare.co.uk/Food-Safety-Training-Courses.htmlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post-68148422865622179592012-08-09T08:36:42.991+00:002012-08-09T08:36:42.991+00:00I was frustrated with this place basically because...I was frustrated with this place basically because as much the food was pleasant, wine good and room nice, the service was a bit of a shambles. It started off great, but once our main courses had been cleared, we waited for 30 minutes for absolutely anyone to come over. No one even asked if we wanted dessert, an extra drink...We ended up calling them over and saying no one had come over, to which they just asked "what do you want". At that stage, just the bill. This is actually one of the few times where I said I wouldn't pay the 12.5 automatic service charge and asked for it to be taken off so we could give an amount we believed more fair for the service. When they asked what was wrong, I told them and they just went "okay", took the service off and didn't bat an eyelid. I was quite amazed as if they had at least tried to engage us in addressing the issue, I may have wanted to go back. A shame, as I really like the one in Farringdon.Sharmilahttp://www.riceandpickle.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post-84525135060460613312012-08-08T11:38:41.477+00:002012-08-08T11:38:41.477+00:00I agree with your views that the food was nice eno...I agree with your views that the food was nice enough - perfectly pleasant when I went (apart from a weirdly sweet horseradish).<br />However, when I went, the service was abysmal. For somewhere with that name, they barely knew their wine list - asking for recommendations was entirely pointless... e.g. "I was thinking of a full-ish white, maybe a new world Chardonnay" brought the response of flicking to the Aussie page of the wine list, and runnning their finger down til they found a chardonnay. Which just happened to be the most expensive. We then started choosing our own bottles, which caused chaos as they took about 20 mins to find where they'd stored each one.<br />Service in general was really slow, and even pitched as a wine bar with food it has some way to go to match Terroirs or 28-50.<br /><br />To top things off, they failed to collect payment from one of our table, then came back to accuse us of underpaying. When we gave them the cash, they came back demanding that we pay the final c. £2 of service (on a £200+ bill) rather than taking the hint that it wasn't up to scratch.<br /><br />If you want somewhere with a decent wine list, go to Terroirs/ 28-50/ Duck Soup/ Arbutus/ 10 Greek st, but not here.Piersnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post-40551793062858489802012-08-07T22:19:42.577+00:002012-08-07T22:19:42.577+00:00With a few exceptions, Byron for example, British ...With a few exceptions, Byron for example, British chains can be pretty shocking (Zizzi, La Tasca, Frankie & Benny's etc). However, isn't that partly the fault of the British public that tolerates mediocrity? <br /><br />In contrast, over in east Asia, there are many chains that have pretty uniform menus that are more than decent. I'm thinking of the likes of Din Tai Fung and Crystal Jade. If the standards of these restaurants dipped, they would close, as punters would eat elsewhere.Mr Noodleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13327242172810414292noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post-73020022545108380162012-08-07T22:17:10.582+00:002012-08-07T22:17:10.582+00:00With a few exceptions, Byron for example, British ...With a few exceptions, Byron for example, British chains can be pretty shocking (Zizzi, La Tasca, Frankie & Benny's etc). However, isn't that partly the fault of the British public that tolerates mediocrity? <br /><br />In contrast, over in east Asia, there are many chains that have pretty uniform menus that are more than decent. I'm thinking of the likes of Din Tai Fung and Crystal Jade. If the standards of these restaurants dipped, they would close, as punters would eat elsewhere.Mr Noodleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13327242172810414292noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post-82684208769155807752012-08-07T21:28:03.543+00:002012-08-07T21:28:03.543+00:00Hugh: I know. I can only apologise. Even more than...Hugh: I know. I can only apologise. Even more than usual.<br /><br />Anon: I have no idea what point you're trying to make, sorry. Do you want to have another go?Chris Poplehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02668565800857295023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post-80025182410010614722012-08-07T19:52:40.212+00:002012-08-07T19:52:40.212+00:00Vinoteca has a trick up its sleeve in that invites...Vinoteca has a trick up its sleeve in that invites a self-described freeloader for a free meal and - more importantly - to wage war on its serviceable wine list t no extra cost. You read the review, see the rating, and just can't reconcile it with other CnB (yes mate, you're almost self-important enough to have coined your own music genre) appraisals. Vinotecta is average (at best) as a restaurant but admittedly nice as a wine bar. Shame some of London's self-announced foodie messiahs can't distinguish the two.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post-68546497329201685172012-08-07T15:58:33.992+00:002012-08-07T15:58:33.992+00:00Jeez Chris thank goodness you describe what's ...Jeez Chris thank goodness you describe what's in the photos because the images themselves give *nothing* away. Had no idea that was an artichoke, I thought it was a Sea Monster from Doctor Who.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09488124266266755162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post-27661551785189417902012-08-07T15:09:59.704+00:002012-08-07T15:09:59.704+00:003That is one of the strangest veg options I've...3That is one of the strangest veg options I've ever seen! Well, at least they have one I guess..Yogi Kitchenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04675786498522531127noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1588051831069283523.post-39883988807781611422012-08-07T15:06:31.394+00:002012-08-07T15:06:31.394+00:00That is one of the strangest veg options I've ...That is one of the strangest veg options I've ever seen! Well, at least they have one I guess..Yogi Kitchenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04675786498522531127noreply@blogger.com