|
Review: David Munro
WAS it destiny, which brought me to the door of Destino,
a delightful Spanish-themed restaurant, in the Upper Richmond
Road, Putney?
Destiny, fate, call it what you will, came to my aid when I
discovered The Blue Pumpkin,
my old haunt of the area, does not now open before 6.30pm, or
7pm - which, if you are going to the theatre, as I was on that
occasion, is not a good time.
There I was, with two friends and a pretty girl to dine, so I
turned to Destino, a few doors down the road, in my hour of need
- 6pm, and I was not disappointed. It is also open for lunch from
12pm
One of my guests, who does not suffer fools, nor new restaurants
gladly, arrived with his daughter - saw that it was described
as a Restaurant and Tapas Bar, and immediately decided he wanted
to go elsewhere.
After I had persuaded him that it was this or nothing, he was
reluctantly pushed into the cool and spacious room, with its blonde
wood tables and chairs and crisp napery, and, to coin a phrase,
was 'struck all of a heap' by its welcoming ambience and quietened
down.
Greeted by Pepe, the affable Maitre d', we were ushered to our
table, where, after a glass of exceedingly good red wine - Ampares
- an air of bonhomie started to permeate our party.
The menu, like Gaul, is divided into three parts. An A la Carte
section, a Tapas selection and a very reasonable two course table
d'hote - lunch, £9.95, dinner £10.95. There are also
daily specials.
My friend and I elected the table d'hote, while his daughter
chose from the A la Carte a Tricolora Salad and a sirloin steak,
which she declared were delicious.
My other guest had Baby Calamares, followed by a ravioli, with
which he too was well satisfied.
Off the set menu, my friend and I both had salad starters, although
there were more ambitious choices and, to follow, he had baked
cod, while I continued in the salad vein with an excellent, and
I mean excellent, cold poached salmon, which was moist and full
of flavour.
Two of us were able to sample the attractive dessert menu that
offered fresh fruit, as well as chocolate cake and Tiramasu, which
proved an acceptable climax to the meal.
|
 |
The prices for the A la Carte ranged from between £3 to
£15, per plate, dependent on choice.
The Specials, which included fresh Turbot, Lobster and Prawns,
in addition to meat dishes, is more expensive, with a top price
of £15 for the Turbot.
The Tapas menu, which I intend to sample before long, had all
the items one associates with a Tapas bar, with prices ranging
from £3 to £5 per plate.
The quality of the cooking of meals makes me believe that the
Tapas will have an equal degree of excellence but, as I have said,
this is a delight I intend to savour on another occasion.
My only cavil, and this is one I level against many restaurants,
is that there is a separate charge for bread which, as you are
given no option to refuse it, becomes a cover charge by another
name.
I strongly feel that it should be made clear, on arrival, that
such a charge is to be levied, so as to give the guest an opportunity
to reject it before it makes its unwelcome appearance on the bill.
My friend, by this time, had been transformed from a curmudgeonly
bear to a cooing and well comforted dove and insisted on paying
the bill, which, for four and two bottles of wine, came to about
£88 - and we made the show in time, thanks to the speedy
yet unobtrusive service.
As a result, I was able to persuade him to accompany me to see
whether another day and another menu confirmed or shattered our
good impressions.
We were not disappointed, the lunch was, if anything, better
and this time we could sample it more leisurely and without the
pressure of having to attend the theatre.
Off the set lunch menu, we chose a starter of Scallops and mushrooms,
with perfectly cooked liver to follow, which was, quite frankly,
to die for.
Destino will definitely be my destination in Putney from hereon
in.
DESTINO Restaurant and Tapas Bar, 141 Upper Richmond Road,
Putney, London SW15 21X. Tel: 020 8789 4304 Fax: 020 8788 3844.
|
