It was meant to be lunch for six girls but three of the working brigade dropped out leaving one worker and two pensioners! Our venue was “Babylon”:http://www.virginlimitededition.com/en/the-roof-gardens at The Roof Gardens on the 7th floor of a grade 2 listed, but rather non-descript building just off Kensington High Street and overlooking the Daily Mail offices.
We were on an offer of 3 courses for £25. The pensioners arrived early and as it was a sunny, glorious autumnal day, waited for the worker on the terrace. A glass of prosecco seemed ideal, but having looked at the wine list, we agreed it would be better value to have a bottle (£42). The waiter persuaded us to spend £4 more on what he described as a smoother prosecco. The autumnal views over London were stunning and we looked down onto a splendid tree with big red apples.
We’d booked at 2pm, but we were enjoying the sunshine so much we didn’t go inside until 2.30pm. We sat down and ordered food and wine and asked whether we’d finished the prosecco. There seemed to be a little confusion over what had happened and so were presented with a complimentary bottle.
There was a choice of four starters and four mains. My cheese and onion risotto was heavenly: a smooth, creamy risotto with crispy fried shreds of onion and balsamic glazed baby onions around the edge. I could have eaten it again as a main course. The cured Scottish salmon in a beetroot ‘soup’ was pronounced equally delicious. Pork belly on a bed of green beans and white borlotti beans was good but the crackling was a big disappointment. Chicken breast and broccoli looked good and must have tasted equally good as there was a clean plate.
Puddings seemed a little heavy with a sponge pudding and tart on offer and so even thought as the waiter pointed out, they were free, we declined.
As well as superb views over London, the loos provide an interesting vista: instead of a wall between the ladies and gents, there is wall of glass with fish in and although there is strategically placed reeds in the tank, the view is interesting!
