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RestaurantsLondonHammersmithW6

survey result

Summary

£150
£££££
2
Average
1
Poor
2
Average
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

“Things have gone crazy, price-wise, but it’s still magic” – that’s the perennial and worsening trade-off at Ruth Rogers’ world-famous, Thames-side icon, tucked away between the Thames and a Hammersmith backstreet. Started in 1987 in the canteen of her late-hubbie’s architectural practice (in partnership with Rose Gray), it’s still faithful to its mission of “brilliant, simple, honest Italian food, from top-quality ingredients, superbly executed”. And while “the food is uncomplicated in the sense that it is not fussy, there is nevertheless a sure-footed sophistication in its preparation”. So far, so good, and pretty much everyone agrees that if money were no object a visit here (especially outside by the river in summer) is “just perfect”. But verdicts on the ever-fraught juggle here between price, quality and value are increasingly going haywire. To its most loyal habitués (often arriving by chauffered car from posher postcodes): “is it expensive, yes, but worth it? Absolutely. I’ve never had a disappointing meal and have been going since 1990”. To those who ‘know the price of milk’ however, it’s “monumentally overpriced” and increasingly risks “spiralling to the clip-joint level” (“It’s actually beyond a joke now, financially. Gone beyond very expensive into ‘you don’t actually want normal people here at all, do you?’ territory”). “It would also help if they could get their staff organised”. The “casual” service from posh public school girls on their ‘gap y’ar’ has always been of the love-it-or-hate-it variety, but can plain jar at such a premium price.

Summary

£150
£££££
3
Good
2
Average
3
Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

“Just keeping on delivering outstanding quality, year after year, with the highest-quality seasonal Italian food that’s not over-elaborate” – Ruth Rogers’ iconic Thames-side café in an obscure Hammersmith backstreet remains one of the most talked-about destinations in our annual diners’ poll. Since its debut in 1987, it has helped drive culinary fashion. “They take the best fresh ingredients and the open-plan kitchen allows you to watch them work their magic” – an “exceptional” ingredient-led approach that’s now practically ubiquitous in top kitchens. And it popularised the idea that top-notch food can be enjoyed in a “casual” setting, without flunkies and flummery: the bright, “noisy”, “packed-in” space having originally been created as the canteen for her late husband’s architectural practice (it helps that “it has a gorgeous riverside setting, especially outside on the terrace on a summer’s day”). But, “while it’s simply great, my God, do you pay for that simplicity”. Yet again, it tops our list of ‘most overpriced’ restaurants as its “absurd prices seem to be multiplied by the number of years it has been open”. As always our reporters have mixed feelings on this question of value. Some are unquestioning (“it’s expensive, but you never feel ripped off”). For others, it’s a struggle (“it never disappoints… so long as the heart attack when you get the bill doesn’t end the evening prematurely”). And this year, those who “find it increasingly difficult to justify the expense” are gaining ground, particularly as the “beautiful” servers have seemed “very flakey” or “impersonal” on numerous occasions this year. “If you live near an airport, consider a day trip to Milan for lunch instead: it would work out cheaper…”. Top Tip – “the winter weekday lunch is absolutely fantastic value and so delicious”.

Summary

£132
£££££
3
Good
2
Average
3
Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

“Soldiering on with flair and confidence” – Ruth Rogers’ world-famous café is “still the ‘go-to’ location for “exceptional quality”, “ingredient-led”, “expertly served” Italian cooking” (“even Italian winemakers are impressed by its authenticity and quality!”) Stuck, “out-of-the-way”, between a quiet Hammersmith backstreet and the Thames, a chic crowd (many of them regulars who live in the centre of town) cram themselves into this bright, unadorned room which started life as the staff canteen for Ruthie’s late husband, Richard Rogers’ architectural practice (“is it my imagination or are the tables getting even closer together nowadays?”). But, while practically “no one can doubt the quality of the food, even so the gobsmacking prices are hard to justify” and it is yet again voted the most overpriced restaurant in London in our annual diners’ poll. As is now customary, comments mix awe at its virtues with frustration at the level of value: “I do love it, but I always get buyer’s remorse afterwards” as “the pricing leaves a bitter taste after a fine meal”… “and yet we still go back…” Top Tips – 1) On a warm day, its location becomes a reliable attraction in itself: “it’s enchanting sitting outside on the terrace beside the Thames”. 2) When it comes to the menu, “it changes so much that it’s pointless to pick out too many individual dishes but the fish and shellfish are cooked with great skill and attention to detail; and timeless favourites include the Ribollita and the Chocolate Nemesis”.

Summary

£114
£££££
3
Good
3
Good
3
Good
* 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!”

For 34 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).

Have you eaten at The River Café ?

+−
Leaflet | Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Thames Wharf, Rainville Rd, London, W6 9HA

Restaurant details

Highchair,Portions
Yes
18
No dress code
130
Yes

The River Café Restaurant Diner Reviews

Reviews of The River Café Restaurant in W6, London by users of Hardens.com. Also see the editors review of The River Café restaurant.
Clifford B
Let me be clear. This place has iconic sta...
Reviewed 19 days ago

"Let me be clear. This place has iconic status. The ingredients used are first rate and the wine list is ‘interesting’ but there were mistakes and, more than anything, an overarching feeling of being ripped-off that has resulted in it being hard for me to avoid the ultimate ‘accolade’ of 1,1,1. At 1/3 of the price it may have received 3,3,3. In detail: a crab starter was carefully ‘picked’ and as fresh as a daisy: a veal chop was tough, seemingly not rested at all, charred on one edge but near raw at the other and the accompanying sage was tasteless: a panacotta with rhubarb and grappa was pleasant enough. The service was very friendly and polite and, for the most part, efficient but there were small mistakes with the delivery of the wine and other minor order errors. Inside is SO loud as to be migraine inducing- it resembles the noise levels of a factory canteen Xmas lunch or match day at a Sports bar. The outside terrace, where we sat, was again, nice enough’ but somehow lacking any ‘wow’ factor. It’s the prices. Oh those prices. They are stratospheric. A good example was our red wine choice. A single bottle was circa. £100. Use of the Internet, while at the table, and I found it available for home delivery at £172 for 6 bottles (inc. delivery charge). So a bottle of wine available at £26 was marked up by £74. A mark-up of 284%. I will not say this place is terrible but it seemed to me that there were many ‘regulars’ visiting and it is doing better than surviving at a difficult time by their acceptance of the unacceptable. Are you really that rich or lacking in common-sense? I WILL say to those regulars that there are many, many, many other places in London where the food is better, the wine list is more interesting and the prices are not set because of a historic reputation but on what is delivered currently. At the prices that I experienced - avoid and go elsewhere. If the prices were halved I, personally, would probably would not revisit. The pricing is just SO wrong. It’s ticked off the list but should it have been on there anyhow?"

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Hugh N
Prices are eye-watering (£40 starters, £7...
Reviewed 1 months, 8 days ago

"Prices are eye-watering (£40 starters, £70 mains) for good italian fare, but it still performs as everything is just right"

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David C
I’ve eaten here occasionally since it fir...
Reviewed 7 months, 5 days ago

"I’ve eaten here occasionally since it first opened, but never been a fan. I agree the quality of the ingredients is very good, but not much is done to them that I couldn’t do at home. And at much less cost. So I would say as well as most overpriced, as per your list, it vies as most overrated with the Mansour au Quat’ Saisons. Yesterday was different. Grouse at £74 was served virtually raw. Americans at the next table, were so astounded as to stop at our table to check. To be fair when the Maitre D’ was informed, he was also astonished, and insisted it be reheated, and removed from the bill. But too late, despite his genuine concern, and the experience essentially ruined, as was the grouse of course. A one off maybe, but something so wrong shouldn’t happen, especially in a one star Michelin"

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A M
Fabulous bill but also fabulous visit...
Reviewed 9 months, 17 days ago

"Fabulous bill but also fabulous visit"

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Tim W
I am back in love with the River Cafe. Th...
Reviewed 11 months, 6 days ago

"I am back in love with the River Cafe. The food is uncomplicated in the sense it is not fussy but there is a sure sophisticated touch - be under no illusions this is fine dining. Meriting its Michelin star. It is generous too - yes, expensive but a proper tranche of Turbot and always good portions. Ask for a table inside that is by one of the French doors - out of the heat and a good breeze . I had a wonderful steak tartar with broad beans a pecorino - who would have thought it. "

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What the Newspaper Critics are saying

The Daily Telegraph

William Sitwell enjoyed a meal at the world-famous River Cafe’s offshoot next-door, declaring that it felt “very much like an office canteen”, thereby harking back to its parent’s origin four decades ago as an in-house dining room for Ruth Rogers’s husband’s architectural practice.

This was intended as a compliment. William was impressed by the “charm and serious quality” of the place, where the simple, unadorned Italian dishes were “a lesson for chefs of the grace to be found in restraint”. “For accomplished balance, flavour and an historic lesson in getting it right, this café is so good they named it twice.”

William Sitwell - 2025-01-19

Prices

Traditional European menu

Starter Main Veggies Pudding
£28.00 £54.00 £0.00 £15.00
Drinks  
Wine per bottle £55.00
Filter Coffee £12.00
Extras  
Bread £0.00
Service 10.00%
+−
Leaflet | Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Thames Wharf, Rainville Rd, London, W6 9HA
Opening hours
Monday12:30 pm‑2:15 pm, 7 pm‑9 pm
Tuesday12:30 pm‑2:15 pm, 7 pm‑9 pm
Wednesday12:30 pm‑2:15 pm, 7 pm‑9 pm
Thursday12:30 pm‑2:15 pm, 7 pm‑9 pm
Friday12:30 pm‑2:15 pm, 7 pm‑9 pm
Saturday12:30 pm‑2:30 pm, 7 pm‑9 pm
Sunday12 pm‑3 pm

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