Restaurant review: THE BREAKFAST CLUB (Soho)

The film is iconic, setting the bar for talky-dramedies channelling teenage angst for years to come. So famous is it, that is has been name-dropped or riffed on in several teenage-orientated movies, including Easy A and The DUFF, and most recently, Ready Player One.

The restaurant was established a good 20 years after the film was released, but such is the goodwill and strong reputation it has forged, that The Breakfast Club is as crucial to any London-based foodie’s itinerary as the film is to a movie buff’s viewing list.

I had long been scared off eating here, however, because on any random walk past the restaurant, it had always had a massive queue outside it. Having succumbed to the marvels of Eat Tokyo and On the Bab, my favourite Japanese and Korean restaurants in London, respectively, however, I modified my outlook on queuing.

Both these restaurants don’t take reservations, yet the food has been worth the wait, so with my fingers crossed, I hoped The Breakfast Club was another example of this.

As it so happened, I needn’t have thought about it so much. Whilst the restaurant is hot property during brunch times of 12pm – 3pm, we went a little after this, so we were seated straight away. So if you have an aversion to queuing, worth bearing in mind!

Between us, we had ‘Huevos al Benny’ and Korean fried chicken pancakes. With both priced at £10.50, I considered the portions to be very reasonable: -

RESTURANT REVIEW: BiBimBap (Charlotte Street)

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of dining at BiBimBap, a delightful Korean restaurant on the happening Charlotte Street. To kick off proceedings, I had some Korean plum wine. It was served in a glass a little larger than a shotglass, with an actually grape in the glass. Cute!

I had two sides: the indispensable seafood pancake, which, as ever, did not disappoint, as well as squid. Both whetted my appetite sufficiently for the main meal, and, graciously, managed to be delicious without being inundated in sauce, meaning you could actually savour the flavour of the food. In the region of £6 each, these both represent good value for such healthy appetisers. In addition to the taste, what really struck me about each of the BiBimBap dishes were the flood of colours in each of the dishes. Every dish was presented meticulously and gorgeously, looking as good as it tasted.

For main, I had the chilli chicken bibimbap. The balance between the meat and the greens was spot-on, and the fried egg on top added to the visual and sensory pleasure that was the meal. The staff were super-attentive throughout my stay, and unlike at other places where they disappear off and forget what you ask for, I was looked after within seconds of my request, which impressed me greatly. Furthermore, for a little extra, you can get brown rice (cooked so that it is deliciously crisp), further boosting this place’s healthiness credentials.

I was the first one in the restaurant when it opened at 6pm, but it got busy very quickly. Considering the cultural treat that a visit to this place was, I’m not surprised! The prices are very reasonable and the down-to-earth, hospitable atmosphere makes this a perfect place to bring friends to for a fun night out. Don’t miss out. You can check out their website here.

Grade: A

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RESTAURANT REVIEWS: Assa Japanese and Assa Korean (Tottenham Court Road)

Since attending a central London-based university at the beginning of October, I’ve wined and dined at several of the restaurants situated around the Tottenham Court Road/Oxford Street/Goodge Street area. Terrific for my tummy, less so for my poor River Island purse!

I went to the Japanese Assa a month ago, for lunch.

Being a sucker for salmon, I opted for the salmon tray, and had Japanese beer. It was a very well-presented dish, and I have absolutely no qualms with the quality of the salmon, which was tip-top. The sushi and dumplings also tasted great. In fact, the ensemble was only really let down by the lump of rice, which was presented unimaginatively, and tasted completely bland. There was also not nearly enough. I don’t eat half as much as I do for dinner at lunch, so I shudder to think how starving I’d be had I come here in the evening, but even for a quick lunchbreak between lecturers, even with the extra calories of a beer, I wasn’t near fed enough. My friend had a similar-style dish, again, presented stylishly enough, but not enough there. Thus, in terms of efficacy of a RESTAURANT, I’m afraid I have to give Assa Japanese a C-.

The Korean Assa was visited on Monday evening, and I had a much better gastronomical experience, for smaller prices! We had a seafood pancake to share for starters (wonderful, and delightfully moreish), and for my main I had spicy chicken stir-fry, which, gracefully, didn’t burn my tongue off, but tasted great. The fact that drinks were on the house (cold Korean tea) added to the appeal of visiting this place, and for central London, it was very reasonably priced indeed. I can definitely see myself going back, particularly as it’s so close to my uni. A-.