Searching for wines from the Loire, we had found this restaurant. The name RSJ stands for rolled steel joist, and you can see the supports holding up the old building, which is painted clean white inside and out, with charming arched windows in the upstairs dining room overlooking a quiet side street.
The set menu included soup of the day. The parsnip and chestnut soup was one of the best soups I've ever had, enhanced by salty flat ribbons of parsnip on top.
My main course of chicken and white beans with green spinach was rather so so. (I must admit Heinz baked beans have been a best seller for years, but I still think I'd rather have potato.) The fish dish came with potatoes. Somebody on the a la carte menu had fish with large chips. The risotto was very good but not wonderful.
Dessert time was again a mixed blessing. I opted for the rhubarb with white chocolate womethign and shortbread. The white mousse mould was boring, neither good texture nor flavour. However, I managed to swap part of it for somebody else's dessert, and got a taste of the nut tart.
The mints with coffee were good but not superlative. So why was I so pleased with the restaurant and why were my two companions so thrilled with it?
The answer is the wines. (Plus service and decor.) Let me tell you about the wines. The wine expert amongst us chose a wine with the Huet family label, from the good old days. A sweet wine. Delicious. It pleased those who like sweet wines and those who like dry wines. It was aromatic.
I confess that what we chose would not be everybody's choice. The man who runs the restaurant said their best seller was not the sweet wine but the Sauvignon Blanc. The fact remains that if you like Loire wine, this place has a huge choice.
Decor? Plain and clean. Some colourful paintings for sale on the ground floor. Some caricatures on the staircase. Attentive staff.
Bust of somebody on the reception desk on ground floor. See the description on the base of the sculpture.
Warning: The toilets are down a flight of stairs in the basement and the restaurant is up a flight of stairs. Our friend with a walking stick managed, but better check if you are likely to have a problem with stairs.
Getting There
We walked from Waterloo station. Satnav on a smart phone sent up to Coin Street. We made the mistake of taking the section which seems barred at both ends. (I wondered, how do the cars get in?) The restaurant is on the corner, so when you reach Coin Street, look both ways across the main road for the restaurant, instead of marching impatiently in the wrong direction.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, researcher, author and speaker.
The set menu included soup of the day. The parsnip and chestnut soup was one of the best soups I've ever had, enhanced by salty flat ribbons of parsnip on top.
My main course of chicken and white beans with green spinach was rather so so. (I must admit Heinz baked beans have been a best seller for years, but I still think I'd rather have potato.) The fish dish came with potatoes. Somebody on the a la carte menu had fish with large chips. The risotto was very good but not wonderful.
Dessert time was again a mixed blessing. I opted for the rhubarb with white chocolate womethign and shortbread. The white mousse mould was boring, neither good texture nor flavour. However, I managed to swap part of it for somebody else's dessert, and got a taste of the nut tart.
The mints with coffee were good but not superlative. So why was I so pleased with the restaurant and why were my two companions so thrilled with it?
The answer is the wines. (Plus service and decor.) Let me tell you about the wines. The wine expert amongst us chose a wine with the Huet family label, from the good old days. A sweet wine. Delicious. It pleased those who like sweet wines and those who like dry wines. It was aromatic.
I confess that what we chose would not be everybody's choice. The man who runs the restaurant said their best seller was not the sweet wine but the Sauvignon Blanc. The fact remains that if you like Loire wine, this place has a huge choice.
Decor? Plain and clean. Some colourful paintings for sale on the ground floor. Some caricatures on the staircase. Attentive staff.
Bust of somebody on the reception desk on ground floor. See the description on the base of the sculpture.
Warning: The toilets are down a flight of stairs in the basement and the restaurant is up a flight of stairs. Our friend with a walking stick managed, but better check if you are likely to have a problem with stairs.
Getting There
We walked from Waterloo station. Satnav on a smart phone sent up to Coin Street. We made the mistake of taking the section which seems barred at both ends. (I wondered, how do the cars get in?) The restaurant is on the corner, so when you reach Coin Street, look both ways across the main road for the restaurant, instead of marching impatiently in the wrong direction.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, researcher, author and speaker.
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