"A surprisingly bland offering from Geronimo Inns"

Added Thu 24 Jun 2010 by Leila

Tufnell Park is not reknowned for its eateries, however this gastro-pub, which is part of the Geronimo Inns chain, is a short walk up the hill from the tube station.

There is plenty of dining space both inside and in the conservatory, which backs onto a garden that also has seating, however British summertime is doing its usual thing and it’s too wet to sit alfresco. The outdoors also appears to double up as a herb garden, as we spy someone from the kitchen picking leaves off a plant, and we become excited at the prospect of these herbs ending up in our dinner.

Back inside, the winding bar leads to some steps up to another dining room called The Chapel, which can be hired privately and features table service, which is not usually offered in the other dining areas.

While we peruse the menu we are brought some amuse-bouche: two mini-prawn cocktails, olives, Parma ham, and two croquette-shaped cheesey potato cakes.

I order the pork belly salad as a starter, and the smoked kippers with bubble and squeak for the main, only for the waiter to warn me that this is rather a big meal, particularly as the starter is larger than usual. “Don’t let her size fool you” Friend accurately remarks.

I’m expecting mammoth amounts of food, but what instead arrives is a medium-sized dish of cold crispy pork belly with slices of orange, cubed beetroot and a nest of leaves. It’s hardly the huge starter I was expecting, and I can’t say the orange, beetroot, watercress and cold pork go that well together, especially as the salad lacks dressing.

Some garlicky sliced mushrooms lie atop a piece of French toast that is slightly burnt, which is a pity, as otherwise the mushrooms are really quite tasty.

My main course arrives and looks uninspired; the smoked salty kippers look sad dumped next to a mound of mash potato with cabbage. Yet again it is not a particularly large portion and I am able to finish it.

Meanwhile Friend is having more luck with her seabass. It’s nicely cooked and comes with crispy scallop potatoes and a heftier version of the cheese and potato amuse-bouche we had earlier.

Sadly the food at this North London pub is bland in comparison to other Geronimo Inn venues, which up until tonight have been consistently good. That’ll teach us to eat such big meals.