It’s so easy to get caught up in every day life, something most of us would probably admit to. Work, home, work, home, weekend. Repeat as desired. Or not as the case may be. I generally find that although I live in one of the most exciting and vibrant cities in the world, I don’t necessarily actually do the ‘London thing’ very often. Last Sunday I woke up and thought to myself, when was the last time I ventured into central London for the day and just acted like a tourist? I actually couldn’t remember, so I decided to refresh my memory.
I’ve always liked the area around London’s South Bank so decided that was the destination of the day. We left home in south London at around midday and headed for London Bridge station. The weather was a little stormy and warm, but no sunshine sadly when we reached London Bridge. We crossed over the road at London Bridge towards the south bank. We walked along the cobbles at Butlers Wharf, past the Golden Hind pub and then decided to stop for a spot of mid day coffee and people watching at a café. There seemed to be a lot of Welsh people about that were doing a bridge to bridge walk in aid of charity, all wearing matching pink T-shirts and some of them in cowboy hats. As we sat in the café a group of young American girls came and sat next to us and I quite enjoyed their non stop commentary as people wandered past. “Oh look at her, she’s real thin” or “Do you think that’s her boyfriend? He’s very old compared to her” We could still hear the music from a man playing classical music on a violin, accompanied by a backing tape, echoing out from under Blackfriars bridge. Coffee and cake dealt with we ventured on. The South Bank was busy as always, in places you had to stop to let groups pass by. But with no particular place to be we were happy to wander along at our own
speed. Eventually we reached the Tate Modern, and spent a very enjoyable two hours pottering around the exhibition within the Turbine Hall. Interestingly enough that was all on urban planning and profiled 10 of the world’s cities from a human geography perspective. We suddenly realised we were really hungry and as it was coming up to 3pm we decided to go and investigate our eating options. The weather was really starting to look a little dubious as we left the Tate and started to make our way towards the Waterloo end of the south bank. On our way we got a little caught up in crowds who were enjoying what looked like a Turkish food and entertainment festival. Wafts of delicious spelling Kebabs kept floating about making us feeling even hungrier. The food stalls were all crowded, so the food must have been as good as it smelled. Around that point we came to Gabriel’s Wharf, a courtyard type area that has a really individual feel to it. Stuck between the Tate and the National Film Theatre Gabriel’s Wharf contains a mixture of laid back food places and individual boutique type shops selling glassware, clothing and pottery. Since we’d already eaten at the Gourmet Pizza restaurant we decided to try Riviera restaurant.
First Impressions ******************* There is something a little bit Swiss looking about Riviera, although the cuisine is Italian. The restaurant is set upon several floors of a smallish blue wooden building overlooking Gourmet Pizza on one side and the Thames on the other. We had a brief peek at the menu board and noticing several enticing sounding dishes decided to take a chance and go inside. As we stepped onto the wooden veranda we were greeted by a smartly dressed woman in black and white clothing. She asked us if we would like to sit inside or out, and after looking at the greying sky we made the decision to eat inside. The outdoor area was full of people, and as we walked inside we noticed that the downstairs area was pretty busy too. The inside of the restaurant reminded me a little of a Pizza Express, just the blue everywhere and the use of cheery fake art prints. Inside the ground floor I’d say there was room for around 50 diners maximum. The crowd was very much a mixed bunch. Tourists, families and couples all featured.
The waitress took us up a short flight of stairs to the upstairs area. Here we were given a choice of two tables, and we took a rather small table for two in the middle of the restaurant. At the time we rather jealously eyed up a table for two next to the window, which had a reserved sign on it.
Service & Food ***************** We were seated within 3 minutes of initially looking at the menu outside, within 5 we’d been given menus, and had a drinks order taken. As I perused the menu I noticed that there were basically 3 choices, fish dishes, pasta dishes and meat dishes such as burgers and steaks. Although the waiter didn’t mention it there was a specials board right opposite us three several delicious sounding options:
Baby Prawns served with mixed leaf salad - £6.95 Tuna Steak with cannelloni beans and bread - £15.75 Calves Liver with new potatoes and caramelised onions -£14.95
Within the starters section of the main menu were a selection of Mediterranean themed dishes.
Bread with balsamic vinegar and oil Mussels in napolata sauce, Bowls of olives Simple salads. (Feta Cheese) Parma ham with rocket salad tossed with balsamic vinaigrette Soup of the day
The prices ranged from £2.75 to around £6 for a starter.
The main menu featured a selection of dishes including:
10oz fillet steak with pepper sauce served with new potatoes and vegetables Carbonara with bacon in a cream sauce Catalano burger – Prime beef burger topped with goat’s cheese Peperone burger – Prime beef topped with chorizo sausage with salad Char-grilled chicken breast served with salad and lemon dressing Whole sea bass with sage and served with cannelloni beans salad Linguine al pesto (pasta ribbons in a basil, pine kernels, Parmesan and Pecorino cheese sauce). Roasted butternut squash with goats cheeseroasted peppers, pine kernels, rocket and herb olive oil. Asparagus risotto
Mains ranged between £9 and £16
For our meal we chose the bread basket with oil and vinegar, followed by the Peperone burger for me and the Catalano burger for my husband. We also ordered sparkling mineral water and a bottle of Peronibeer for my husband.
Quality ******** We were delighted when the bread and drinks came out so quickly, however we weren’t quite so pleased when our mains followed in less than 10 minutes. We had barely had chance to finish a quarter of our bread basket. The main courses were served, and they looked really delicious. Large burgers with side salads and delicious looking golden fries. However the burgers were obviously not freshly cooked due to the timescales, which is a little bit disappointing. The goat’s cheese on my husband’s burger was cold, and the chorizo sausage on mine was far too thick and smoky to be enjoyable. I asked the waitress that served us for some mayonnaise and this wasn’t supplied, so I had to stop another member of the waiting staff and ask again. This time it was supplied.
To be perfectly honest the only thing that really lifted the meal from being average to memorable was that about 15 minutes after sitting down there was the most dramatic storm I think I’ve ever known in England. The thunder was right over head and the rain came down like sheets into the Thames. The point where we smiled was watching all the people that had been eating outside literally running for cover clutching their plates, and then watching the staff trying to find room for them. And those coveted window seats were suddenly a whole lot less desirable with the rain running inside in torrents.
As we were very full after the large burgers and bread to start we decided to skip dessert. However the options would have included:
Selection of cheeses Apple pie Tarta della nonna -lemon tart Sorbet
The restaurant had a fair selection of wines and beers too, as well as spirits. The cheapest bottle of wine was £12 for the house red or white.
The total cost of our meal was £31 not including service.
Facilities ********** From what I saw there was only a bathroom upstairs, and this was tiny. The ladies facilities were limited to two tiny stalls, which really were a bit of a squeeze, and no room for more than two people to actually be inside the sinks and hand dryer area at one time.
Overall Rating ***************** I’m afraid to say that I found Riviera a location over food venue. It really does have a wonderful view out over the Thames, and if you are looking for a quick bite whilst in the vicinity then its probably ideal. However its not very well set up for anyone looking for a nice slow paced, and fresh cooked, meal, or for anyone that has a problem with climbing stairs. My rating? 5 out of 10
Great review. . . I'm in London this weekend but doubt we'll go here...sounds nice though- i'd order the same main course as your hubby did....and some of the desserts sound lovely too - its a shame you were too full up!!! xx
fraquelty 02.09.2008 21:03
Suppose i won't bevisiting there when im in London soon!
poeta73 16.07.2008 09:01
a very funny review... for an italian man it's very nice reading about italian food in london.. i'll go there!
M.
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