Month: October 2016

The other day, my husband and I found ourselves on a nice long afternoon walk headed west on the Grand Union Canal. It was a beautiful weekend and the escape from the noises of the busy city and diesel-filled air was just what we needed. After about 5k, we stumbled upon a large restaurant and community center known as The Common. We decided it looked like a safe place to rehydrate and refuel with an afternoon snack.

An afternoon snack for my husband means a full meal, but I just literally wanted a snack. The menu looked like it had something for both of our needs, so we sat down at a table in the modern, industrial space that held a bar, cafe, dining area, and open kitchen all in one oversized room.

The decor was okay. It reminded me of the Home Goods version of Tom Dixon’s Dock Kitchen. A little budget, a little trying too hard. The booths in the dining area were very country to me in comparison to the globe lighting and open duct work. The full view of the kitchen was nice, and well decorated with copper lights, stainless appliances, and a nicely uniformed staff, but the scene was totally interrupted by the service station in front of the cooking area.

The service station was a sloppy mess. The small refrigerator that held oversized jugs of half-used condiments was completely tacky. Not only did it look like something you would see on the counter at the end of the night at a greasy spoon diner, but the staff never managed to consistently close the doors to the damn thing. This was a total violation of the health code, I’m sure, with an irregular temperature, but also a waste of electricity and the cause for me to get very cold.

The waitstaff’s oblivious attitude towards the fridge actually turned out to be the theme of my entire experience at The Common Restaurant. After we were seated, the server came to take our drink order and then never came back. We just asked for a bottle of water, which we were desperate for after our long walk, but you would have thought we asked for the world’s most involved cocktail or coffee drink with the time it took the bottle to get over to us. I eventually had to get up and ask a staff member for it myself.  We immediately ordered once I had someone’s attention, out of fear of abandonment. I order the small portion of the BBQ ribs and my husband chose the Chicken & Chorizo Burger.

The food came out pretty quickly and looked pretty delicious sitting in front of me. However, I was very confused by my small little £5.00 rib portion’s massive size. It was a double rack with fries, which seemed to be the other option on the menu that I did not choose. I alerted the server right away and he told me that’s just how it comes and that it was not an error. Okay, I thought, setting a mental reminder for myself to check the bill at the end of the meal for accurate pricing. So we dug in.

My husband was working on his sandwich–which he thoroughly enjoyed–while I started in on the fries. Then, I heard a cook talking to the server about ribs (because we were basically seated on top of the kitchen) and how they had given me another table’s dish. After I had already pointed out the dish was wrong, the server now was back to take it away and replace my dish with a smaller fry-less portion–AFTER I HAD ALREADY STARTED EATING THE FRIES. In my opinion, this was way too late in the meal to take a dish back after they already had the customer point the error out to them that they chose to disregard. Not only did they take the meal away, tacky, but they proceeded to bring my same plate to the correct table AFTER I HAD ALREADY STARTED EATING THE FRIES. Completely inappropriate especially because I let the server know that I had already touched the food!

I was fine with the new dish put if front of me (though completely disgusted with the staff) as it was the size and item I had ordered originally. The ribs were okay. More of an Asian BBQ than the American BBQ I constantly crave, but the taste was fine. They could have slid off the bone a little easier, or at all, but what can you expect for £5.00.

When we were through with everything we waited and waited for service and apologies, which never seemed to come. We paid and left, and on our 5k walk home, discussed the problems with the service industry and standards in London. It was clear that The Common Restaurant was a Don’t and that the only saving grace for the place was that it was cheap. But is a cheap meal really worth it if the service is nonexistent and your meal may have already been in someone else’s mouth? Your call…

Okay, an American gal may be BBQ’s toughest critic, so plenty probably enjoy Bodean’s. I, however, decided that I won’t be heading back to the Soho spot, therefore, making Bodean’s BBQ an unfortunate Don’t.

The menu had lots of choices, but my sole purpose of the evening was to have a pulled pork sandwich, so all I needed to do was choose my sides. My husband was a little undecided and made the mistake of asking for another minute. Then we never saw our server again. My stomach was eating itself or some small organ next to it while I cursed him for not being able to decide between the combo or basic “Burnt Ends” platter fast enough. I eventually flagged down a completely different man and bombarded him with our order. This was the first red flag of service issues at Bodean’s, and unfortunately it was waved within fifteen minutes of being seated. 

After that, I sat and watched and salivated towards the platter the couple who arrived later than us received. Finally, our food came, and it was pretty good. My pulled pork was definitely the winner over my husband’s “Burnt Ends” (smoked brisket), but doesn’t it always? The sandwich needed a huge kick of flavor and moisture so I added a heavy dose of the table BBQ sauces. The sauces had good flavor, though, so I didn’t really mind having to add my own finishing touches. My sandwich also needed some cheese, so I added our side of macaroni and cheese right on top and eventually had some version of perfection. The mac and cheese solo was also good, as were the sweet potato fries. I really sorted my meal out to recreate the combinations and tastes I miss from home. 

Unfortunately, there’s one other hugely important component of great BBQ. Corn bread. And this, my friends, was the worst corn bread I have ever had in my life. Like so bad. To the point that I felt the establishment should be paying me to consume a tasteless brick, not the other way around. I wondered if it was a bad batch, but it seemed unlikely. This was just a bland, dense recipe that the owners probably have never tried. They entrusted their chef to google one and throw it on the menu. Or maybe it comes frozen. It’s that gross. I would like to bring in a few of my outstanding BEST ever cornbread recipes to Bodean’s BBQ and say “See?! This is what it’s supposed to taste like!!”

But, cornbread in itself isn’t enough to take down the whole restaurant and land it in the Don’t category. The service is what sunk this ship. That horrible glimpse we got at the beginning of the night carried through the entire evening. We sat with empty plates in front of us for far too long. I pulled a server, yet again, to clear/wrap/bring the check. We then sat with our wrapped leftovers in front of us for far too long. I pulled another server to bring the check/run the card. We then sat with our check and card in front of us for far too long. I pulled a server, for the last time, who ran the card and we were finally free. It felt like we were escaping a basement prison cell by that point. As we fled through the upstairs quick-dining area, I wondered if we would have had an easier go up there.  But, after the annoying lower-level experience, I don’t think I care to find out.

As I said earlier, I’m a tough critic on this one, so at your own risk. If you have a better experience, please share, and Bodean’s, let me know if you want to try some quality cornbread!!

Bodean’s BBQ
10 Poland Street
London W1F 8PZ