Summary
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.
“Yes, the food is simply presented, yes, there are paper tablecloths, yes, it’s expensive… but it’s worth every penny!!” That’s still the winning verdict on Ruth Rogers’ world-famous canteen, where it’s “so difficult to get a table”, despite a hard-to-find location in a Hammersmith backstreet, and relatively humble – albeit “slightly starry” – premises. (The site started life as the staff canteen for husband, Richard Rogers’ architectural practice). That “this is the restaurant that pioneered the idea of produce first”, further enthuses its devotees, many of whom are longtime regulars (“we’ve been coming for 25 years and have never been disappointed”). And yet, despite all the positives, many diners just can’t stomach a bill that can seem “terrifying”, or even plain “ludicrous”. Hence, for the umpteenth year, it’s voted London’s most overpriced restaurant by the sizeable minority who feel “it may be absolutely exceptional every time, but on occasion, you do think they’re just taking the piss”. Is there a way of reconciling these two competing camps? A fair middle view is as follows: “£540 for four people with one bottle of cheapish wine and a couple of gins. Can a basic Italian meal be worth that much? Well, on a beautiful summer evening on the terrace by the Thames, it feels like being on holiday: so overpriced it may be… but worth every penny!”