My lovely wife was out with friends on Saturday so I had sole charge of baby G. He had been fed and watered and with the sun poking through the clouds I decided to take him out for a walk and a trip to the swings. About 5 minutes into the walk he had fallen fast asleep. This presented a dilemma, I could continue on my walk until he woke up or I could use the baby downtime to grab some food. As I was still feeling a bit jaded from Friday night at the Churchill I opted for the food. Unfotunately I was near High St Kensington which is a bit chain tastic. I was in the mood for a burger and chips but after a very poor meal at "Byron" last year I avoided there. Then I remembered "Sticky Fingers". I walked past it and was a bit worried that the loud music might wake baby G. However hunger ruled and we rolled in.
The head waiter was very helpful, I explained the baby was asleep and I would prefer to keep him in his pushchair so he gave me a big table for 4 to myself with plenty of room for the pushchair. The menu came promptly so I had the rock and roll burger (bacon and cheese) and a shandy. The restaurant itself is very old school burger joint, none of the stark austere decor of the new breed but lots of booths, some great Stones memorabilia on the wall and a rock soundtrack. Quite good fun really. The clientelle was a mixture of familes and tourists who seemed to be enjoying themselves. The food itself was a bit average. The beef burger was very dry but the toppings were nice enough. My chips were very bog standard and went cold very quickly. the side salad which is usually a real afterthought was actually very nice. all in all I've had a lot better elsewhere. I wished I had had the ribs which from looking at other tables seemed to be the dish to have.
Service was friendly but didn't really go the extra mile. It would have been nice to be offered a selection of sauces with the burger and a towelette after the meal would have been handy. Most places serving this sort of food provide it. The bill came to just under £17 which was not great value, i've eaten better for less. Having said that I was very comfortable sat there and the baby slept through lunch so he obviously enjoyed it. It looks like the place to come with kids so possibly I will be back but they do need to up their game here. With a bit more effort it could be a really good spot. I think the lack of competition has breed a bit of complacency.
Tuesday, March 08, 2011
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 7