Queen Elizabeth Hall Cafe

Latest Reviews


  • Ok food, but with the price they are charging I can get much better somewhere else. They believe they can charger whatever they want to the venue goer…

  • I loved this spot; it's less of a catered bar and more of an explosion of people making the most of the summer sunshine. Their little outdoor cart ser…

  • Appearances can be deceptive. The Queen, for example, alluding to the fact that she has holiday this week in Scotland, must by definition of a holiday…


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Queen Elizabeth Hall Cafe is open for Caf and Bar. Queen Elizabeth Hall Cafe serves Cafe dishes. Incorrect or missing information? Make a report, or claim the restaurant if you own it!

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nightlifeoutdoor seatingwifino takeaway

Reviews

3 Reviews on “Queen Elizabeth Hall Cafe”

Average
3.3
3 reviews
  • Kenneth W

    Ok food, but with the price they are charging I can get much better somewhere else. They believe they can charger whatever they want to the venue goers. 🙁

  • Ali V

    I loved this spot; it’s less of a catered bar and more of an explosion of people making the most of the summer sunshine. Their little outdoor cart serves all the niceties of wine, beer and quintessentially British cocktails like Pimms, with a few nibbles to soak up some of the alcohol.I went on a Saturday evening alone and it was buzzing; super busy and with a great atmosphere. I did manage to find a chair (a lucky find!) and pulled it to face the sun, which was still beating down on that part of the world. From the outside view, you can see the river and watch the swarms of people walking along Southbank below.Its central location and late opening make it an ideal place for evening drinks, particularly before a performance in the nearby National Theatre.Relaxed, real and totally unpretentious; I strongly recommend spending at least one sunny evening here! londonismyplayground.wordpress.com

  • Mike Dalley

    Appearances can be deceptive. The Queen, for example, alluding to the fact that she has holiday this week in Scotland, must by definition of a holiday actually do something for the other fifty-one weeks of the year. So there I was, thinking that she sits around, waving and getting involved in other similarly exerting activities? (P.S. congratulations to them all on the birth of Prince George).The South Bank Centre is a comedically confusing Escher-esque maze of concrete buildings on the Thames. At first glance, theyre not much to look at. In fact, one can walk right past and could be forgiven for thinking that this is just another office complex that has been forgotten in the midst of the flashy new glass structures sprouting up both sides of the river, a little bit eastwards.Take a moment to linger around though, and there are cool things abound. Notwithstanding seasonal surprises, such as a sand pit for kids to bury each other in (its fenced off in the evening in case drunks try to piss in it), there is plenty going on. The skate park in the centres undercroft frequently stages serious talent, and the fact that it may soon be shutting is one of few reasons I will side with those of the baggy-trousered persuasion.The book market nearby is a great place to pick up unusual and cheap reads and Wahacas colourful van, along with the pile of shipping containers which have been turned into one their eateries are probably two of the best places to get a cheap quick bite anywhere around here. Not to mention inside the buildings, where artistes at least those who dislike sandcastles, skates or Sangrita will be kept more than entertained with um, well, music and creative things and stuff.For the rest of us, we have to rely on beer and wine, and luckily there is a hidden away bar at the South Bank Centre. Hidden in the context that you cannot see it from street level, not in the sense that its a well-kept secret (as the website claims, bizarrely-enough), because last Friday night, as the sun was setting over the Savoy, the Queen Elizabeth Hall Roof Garden was fricking heaving.You can see why. Venture up the yellow stairs from the riverside walk, as far up as you can get, and a vast expanse of grass, flowers, climbing vines and yes, a teeny bit more concrete will greet you, as well as a lovely big bar, as basic, efficient and enticing as the Tuborg tents you get at festivals. Alternatively, you can enter round the back from Waterloo bridge, where you venture through another lesser-known undercroft carpeted with faux grass where overheating drinkers can find some shade. This gives way into a overgrown allotment-style garden, if you fancy a drinking experience akin to Russell Crowe gliding through the wavy fields in Gladiator rather than sat on the grass at the front and river-facing end of the terrace. Admittedly, I wouldnt recommend sitting on the grass at all, seeing as on more than one occasion our party inadvertently dropped empty cups, crisp packets and eek at one point, an empty wine bottle, onto the laps of idiots who had somehow materialised at our feet.Despite me making the roof gardens out to be one massive overcrowded hay-fever risk with a lack of bins or tables, it is actually well-attended-to (the bus boy, who looked like an emaciated version of Russell Brand in a Barcelona shirt, simply couldnt make it through the crowds to where we were): put simply, the place is worth it. The wine is cold, the crisps are chunky and though the place is packed, everyone is in a good mood why wouldnt they be?And if youre up here, on the roof of the South Bank Centre, then a) you cant see what a concrete mess the rest of the building is, b) kids arent going to be able to throw sand in your eyes and c) at nine in the evening on a Julys evening, you get to see one of the best sunsets in the whole damn city.For full review, please visit http://www.thefunkytruth.com/2013/07/29/oasis/ mikejamesdalley.wixsite.com

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020 79210758

Directions

South Bank Centre, Belvedere Road, South Bank, London SE1 8XX

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