"It's on the street with the guitars" said my friend, so I knew instantly where it is but couldn't possibly think of a restaurant on Denmark Street. Guess I haven't been looking hard enough because it's been there since 2008 and though it has recently been closed for a refurb and it's a small unprepossessing frontage.
This continues inside which is functional, and therefore not uncomfortable but still relatively spartan. And it's getting bigger too in both the front, and with the previously empty space outback being transformed into a new dining room. It's a big year then for the Giaconda Dining Room which, on opening, received strong reviews from the professional world for its high quality but low cost food.
Chef owner Paul Merrony, who trained with the Roux brothers, describes his food as 'French-ish with a couple of day trips to Italy thrown in' and there's much on there to like. The starters, which number over a dozen include some traditional (smoked salmon, beef carpaccio), some less obvious (toasted Crottin, pigs trotters) and some which serve up simply fine comfort food. In need of some comfort on the occasion of my visit, this is where I went.
If you like dairy, you will love the baked eggs with cream, cheese and tomatoes, which is great value at £6.50. Under the bubbling surface of creamy cheese there are in fact two intact egg yolks that when you cut into them ooze their yolk everywhere. It was already good before then, then it gets better. This dish however is right out of the oven and surface of the sun hot, so don't leave your second egg to the end as it carries on cooking and your next runny yolk might be a little less so. This for me was the right dish at the right time and I loved it. My friend had the crab bisque which was reported as similarly excellent, though similarly hot, and here leaving it five minutes to cool seemed a better and indeed necessary option.
This continues inside which is functional, and therefore not uncomfortable but still relatively spartan. And it's getting bigger too in both the front, and with the previously empty space outback being transformed into a new dining room. It's a big year then for the Giaconda Dining Room which, on opening, received strong reviews from the professional world for its high quality but low cost food.
Chef owner Paul Merrony, who trained with the Roux brothers, describes his food as 'French-ish with a couple of day trips to Italy thrown in' and there's much on there to like. The starters, which number over a dozen include some traditional (smoked salmon, beef carpaccio), some less obvious (toasted Crottin, pigs trotters) and some which serve up simply fine comfort food. In need of some comfort on the occasion of my visit, this is where I went.
If you like dairy, you will love the baked eggs with cream, cheese and tomatoes, which is great value at £6.50. Under the bubbling surface of creamy cheese there are in fact two intact egg yolks that when you cut into them ooze their yolk everywhere. It was already good before then, then it gets better. This dish however is right out of the oven and surface of the sun hot, so don't leave your second egg to the end as it carries on cooking and your next runny yolk might be a little less so. This for me was the right dish at the right time and I loved it. My friend had the crab bisque which was reported as similarly excellent, though similarly hot, and here leaving it five minutes to cool seemed a better and indeed necessary option.
the dining room
baked eggs with cream, cheese and tomatoes
crab bisque
Our main (for two people, £35) was the roast rack of lamb, tian & gnocchi alla Romana. The lamb looked a treat as it was brought to the table in its cooking bowl on a bed of tomatoes and courgettes, beautifully pink and delightfully tasty. The gnocchi all Romana (not pictured) was a great addition for the dish offering plump but light gnocchi dumplings with a delicate Parmesan note, making a first class Mediterranean treat just off Tottenham Court Road of all places.
roast rack of lamb, tian & gnocchi alla Romana
Colston Basset, which we ordered to share (£6.50) was enormous and in the supermarket, you would have paid more for a piece that size. Even sharing, we failed to finish it. For that alone, all sins are forgiven but it would have been nice to have some crackers rather than just bread as after all that we had eaten, bread was just too additionally filling.
Colston Basset
The Delice Joconde (chocolate and praline mousse, hazelnut sponge) was a one of those desserts where you wish you could lick the plate after. The mousse was fabulously light so despite what we had already eaten, this almost eats itself. Chocolate heaven.
Delice Joconde
What is also a key differentiator with Giaconda is that the wine list offers the same value as the food and it's a favourite of Jancis Robinson who described it as 'a list to drink from, not show off'. Our waiter for the day was a Sardinian who made us feel even more like we were anywhere except London while co-owner, chef's partner and running front of house is Tracey who is a no-nonsense Aussie, so communications are clear and direct.
The Giaconda Dining Room is a winner on every level, combining great value with great food. The menu is extensive, so everyone should be able to find something they like while everything we tasted on our visit was done well. You leave wanting to try more of the menu. While nearby Charlotte Street is perennially busy with hungry diners deciding where to eat, if you find yourself in this situation, think outside the box, or at least outside the street, and head instead to Denmark Street and The Giaconda Dining Room; I am hard pressed to believe that you would regret it.
Return to homepage
The Giaconda Dining Room website
The Giaconda Dining Room is a winner on every level, combining great value with great food. The menu is extensive, so everyone should be able to find something they like while everything we tasted on our visit was done well. You leave wanting to try more of the menu. While nearby Charlotte Street is perennially busy with hungry diners deciding where to eat, if you find yourself in this situation, think outside the box, or at least outside the street, and head instead to Denmark Street and The Giaconda Dining Room; I am hard pressed to believe that you would regret it.
Return to homepage
The Giaconda Dining Room website
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