St Pancras Restaurant

2 Reviews on “St Pancras Restaurant”

• Jamie Waters

  Tucked into a corner, just beyond a pair of du jour exposed-brick arches, the Fortnum & Mason tearoom offers a sanctuary of calm and a first – or last – taste of Britain for weary travellers.Rustic brick walls aside, you know what you’re going to get when you visit an iconic British institution such as Fortnum and Mason (even if this is a new outpost): neat white tablecloths, shiny silverware, polite (though, it has to be said, not overly attentive) service.More importantly, you can expect consistent high-quality eats and drinks. Ordering is a bit of a doddle – they do offer traditional restaurant fare (fish pies and lamb cutlets and whatnot), but if you’re at F & M you’ve gotta be having afternoon tea; it’s sacrilegious to overlook such a British classic at such a British establishment.Because we’re greedy and because I had been given a voucher (though I was in no way compelled to say anything, nice or otherwise), my friend and I ordered one serving of afternoon tea; a couple of cakes (one carrot, one apricot & almond); and a slightly rogue order of avocado and basil on toast. To drink, we were advised to try the light ‘Afternoon Tea’ tea. We acquiesced.The afternoon tea spread was, unsurprisingly, delicious. A coronation chicken sandwich, scones with jam & clotted cream, and a mini eclair were highlights. An orange, chocolate mousse and wafer slice was a tasty point of difference. Mini macarons and an overly-rich Austrian chocolate cake were somewhat disappointing. The accompanying tea was as advertised – refreshing, subtle and a perfect accompaniment to the sugary bites. The carrot cake, featuring moreishly moist cake sandwiched between generous layers of cream cheese icing, was my pick of the day. (That being said, I’m a sucker for carrot cake and anything with cream cheese icing, so nothing else stood a chance.) The sickly sweet apricot and almond tart, however, was one sugary step too far.In hindsight, my panic-order of avocado on toast was a stroke of genius. This simple and refreshing dish of diced (not mashed into baby food, as too many places do) avocado mixed with basil and a citrus dressing cut through all the sugar we had heaped upon our table. Like everything at F & M, it was not modern (the bread was white as opposed to sourdough or rye, the toppings were simple), but it was definitely enjoyable to eat. Fortnum & Mason at St Pancras certainly has some redeeming qualities. It’s peace and quiet, good solid food and tasty tea in equal parts. It also is like stepping back in time, which is not necessarily a bad thing (and let’s be honest, no one is coming here to go trend-hunting). It’s one shortcoming, however, is value for money. We over-ordered, but an afternoon tea spread for two anywhere near the vicinity of 50 is very steep. Like everything about the place, though, that shouldn’t come as a surprise. jamie-waters.com

  February 7, 2015, 5:36 pm

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• Leyla Kazim

  St. Pancras is an exquisite feat of architecture, with fitting commercial properties to fill it.The Fortnum & Mason tea room is great for a spot of respite to escape what can be heaving crowds at this international train station. The seating are can be found at the rear – with a few isolated tables at the front to indulge in some people watching – with the rest of the space displaying goods for purchase.Afternoon tea isn’t cheap, but is perfectly pleasant. Finger sandwich fillings nod to British classics such as coronation chicken, smoked salmon and cream cheeese, and cucumber. Be sure to ask for a refill though, as only three fingers are presented per person.Scones were well-textured but could have been warmer. A whole full-size jar of F&M strawberry jam is a generous accompaniment, and pastries and cakes were thankfully not too sweet.In terms of tea, alongside the famed F&M blends are single-estate brews. There’s also anall-day Anglo-French menu offering including crumpets, coq au vin and fish pie. thecutlerychronicles.com

  January 6, 2015, 5:47 pm

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