| Type: | Japanese Chain | | Address: | 1a Tavistock Street
Covent Garden
London
WC2E 7PG |
On entering this branch of Wagamamas I was a little shocked to find the restaurant is actually underground. I've been in other Wagamamas, mainly the Canary Wharf branch which I suppose is technically underground too - and you don't really go to Wagamamas for the view!
The menu is the standard Wagamamas fair of noodles (fried or in soup) and some rice dishes. All main meals are reasonably priced around £8 including the rice or noodles. The group decided on drinking green tea which is very refreshing and helps the digestion - so I'm told! I didn't have a starter but a number of people ordered the dumplings, 4 served on a small plate with dipping sauce. Wagamamas normally only places chopsticks on the table, but if you really need you can always ask for cutlery! The restaurant is very much like a large school dining hall, walls are bare, you all sit at benches across the room. I guess its probably called minimalist and it works! Starters are brought at the same time as main courses and often when ordering in a group some main courses arrive before others - this is just the way it works! You can easily fit Wagamamas into a tight schedule as service is generally fast (apart from when we tried to get the bill...). I had a personal favourite for fried udon with peanuts and prawns, with other people having the chicken curry or noodles with chicken in soup. I was tempted by the dessert menu, which is fairly expensive at £4.50 a dessert but which contains desserts with a twist of Japanese such as cheesecake with ginger and chocolate fudge cake with wasabi (Chinese Horseradish). I had the cheesecake which was very nice and arrived within about 2 minutes of ordering. Overall Wagamamas is a great place to go, especially with friends as the dining is a very social experience. Food is good value and portions are good, and service is fast if you need it - if not then it might seem a little pushy! There are many restaurants in this chain and all seem to follow the same formula, so I don't think you'll be disappointed where ever you go! |
