Carvosso's at 210

Three of us arrived without notice and we were told in that rather pleasant, head-waitery, sing-song way that a table was available. My well-meaning mother-in-law had recommended this 'little secret' and my first thought was that I'm glad she did.

Close inspection of the menu revealed a veritable 'smorgasbord' of freshly cooked dishes, from Smoked Haddock pie (£11.50,) to Pork belly, with celeriac mash (£14.75). I opted for a 10oz Scottish Rib Eye steak, (£19.75) whilst companion 1 went for Wild Duck, with potato rosti and Cabernet jus. Bringing up the rear, so to speak, companion 2 ordered Spinach and Ricotta ravioli (£15.75). I can't vouch for my cohort's food, but the steak was perfectly cooked, nicely seared on the outside and juicy within. All was served by two delightfully attentive waitresses in an ambiance that can only be described as a kind of laid-back, (wooden tabled) gent's club vibe. Prices are a tad high, but only if you're feeling stingy.

Only one of us had desert, a gutsy, Homemade sticky toffee pudding which, I was reliably informed, was 'amazing'. I've deleted the f-word, of course.

Definitely recommend dinning at Carvosso’s, excellent value for top quality food and wine. My starter Pate Foie Gras de Canard with tasty blackcurrant jam was impeccable . My main dish of hoggish braised pork melted in my mouth, the crackling was just perfect, absolutely delicious. A fabulously selection of fine wines, we selected a bottle of Ripasso , a lovely refined red wine. No room for the selection of wonderful desserts, but I did manage to have a couple of spoonful of my partner’s chocolate fudge cake yummy. The staff were very friendly and efficient. What a great way to spend a night out in the town in a beautiful restaurant in a relaxed, friendly and fun atmosphere with excellent food and wine. Well done to Carvosso’s.

How many of us, in our drunk and disorderly youth, have ended up in a police cells, on our birthdays? Well, how about cutting out the middleman and going directly to jail, on your birthday? A former police station in Chiswick High Road can arrange this, without the stress, the hefty fine and the hassle of a bleary-eyed court appearance.

Part restaurant, part Old-School club, Carvosso’s At 210 is one of those places that attracts a completely mixed bag.

Our crowd (of 5) was all under 30 and we blended in admirably with guys looking like Mi6 agents, tailing a wayward Bond. The food is a tad pricey for a ‘grabbing a quick lunch’, but the quality more than makes up for this. There’s a ‘menu of the day’ option (at £13.50) or a delicious a la carte option, to umm and ah over. Service was warm and friendly and completely on the ball. I was ‘dragged along’ here, by my girlfriend and actually had a great time. No stress, no fuss, just good food in chilled out surroundings.

Oh, and the ‘edgy’ (drunken louts groping prostitutes) Tolouse Lautrec-a-like paintings add a dollop of good old decadence. Nice touch, so to speak.

Had dinner there last night in one of the 'cells'. The room was freezing and when we asked them to close the outside door whcih was letting the breeze in they refused, the service was appalling (we had to ask for the menus and also ask to order) The food was bad and over priced. Will not be returning ever again.

Had lunch a year or so ago which was very nice and was in the area on Saturday night so decided to eat there again. Really disappointing food - miserable fish pie akin to a ready meal from Tesco which I did complain about at the time. I was questioned rather disdainfully on what I had done to necessitate changing my napkin "what has happened here?"....I had spilt some wine on the table. Oh and our double espresso was served in a capuccino cup. Not good enough and will not return.

We dined at this restaurant on Saturday 18th October 2008
I ordered the fishcakes and my partner ordered the prawn starter both dishes were served with an extremeley hot chili sauce. We are both parfait with eating hot food but this was uncomfortably hot. Our main course of fillet steak arrived which was not cooked according to our request and the pepper sauce was bland. The servive was very hit and miss and we were surprised to hear the staff making derogatory comments in french for which I paid the pleasure of a 12.5% Service charge Merci! Will not return. (Catering Director London Fine Dining)