TheOval Lounge, 24 Clapham Road, The Oval, Kennington, London SW9 0JG

on Sunday I said good bye to my laptop and met my friend that I passed it on to along with her friend with whom she was staying.  The Oval Lounge is quite a trendy bar restaurant that serves a wide range of bottled beers and some on draft though I was on coffee after a gentle beer or so the night before!  I am glad to say that the coffee was of decent quality.

 

This pub sells a decent  range of food that I would describe as modern British which means British with a silly twist such as crispy leeks which means they can bang up the price!

 

The food in this bar is not cheap.  Roast lamb with the trimmings cost just over £11.  The lamb was of high quality and was advertised as being Welsh lamb.  There were various vegetables including carrots broccoli and shallots as well as courgettes that tasted as though    they had been cooked in vinegar.  Generally though the veg was well cooked.

 

The roast potatoes were rather a disappointment.  They tasted as though they had been roasted and then put in the microwave.  This gets rid of all their crispiness and this is the whole point of roasting potatoes in the first place.

 

Generally,  the portion size was excellent.  The lamb was generous and thick.  There were plenty of vegetables  and though the courgettes were not to my personal liking I would say that the only part of the meal that let it down was the potatoes.  At this price I expect everything to be of decent quality.

 

One of The 2 people with me had Tuna Steak and mash with Crispy Leeks.  She said the tuna was good and the mash was excellent.  Tuna is easy to overcook so this is good news.  She said the crispy leeks were paper thin and crispy but pointless.  I think they were more there for decoration which is a shame as they were the only veg with the meal.

 

Coffee was over £2 a cup and a pint of admittedly real apple juice cost over £3.50

 

The staff were very helpful and more than happy to read the menu.  This counts for a lot if you go out with friends or for a business meal when you want things to just go smoothly without a hitch.

 

I would give this place a 7. It was let down by price and the roast potatoes and rather pointless way in which leeks were served.  I would visit this place again I think.  It is only about 3 minutes walk from Oval Station.  For anyone interested its out and head right, over a couple of side roads.  Someone suggested I should put some brief directions in my blog and that’s a good idea I think.