| Ambiance: |  (3.5 / 5) |
| Service: | (2.5 / 5) |
| Value for money: | (1 / 5) |
| Toilets: | (3 / 5) |
Whilst carrying out some commercial property research, I came across Clerkenwell. This was an area I’d never heard of so I was intrigued to find out more, as it was a) considered to be in the “city” and b) the property on sale looked very encouraging and at a very low rent. Despite living in London for the past 18 months, Ben didn’t know the area either so we decided to try out Giant Robot, which had been recommended to me, and was in the heart of Clerkenwell Road.
On first impressions, it was pretty cool. We liked the logo and design of the venue. It was also the busiest restaurant/venue on that street which was a positive sign. However, we were seated on the top floor, next to the window which would usually be perfect for me but the way Giant Robot has been designed, with the bottom floor having the bar and the ‘atmosphere’, we ended up feeling a little bit left out and most annoyingly, cold (because of the windows). The menus came, the presentation of which I’m indifferent about but we liked the simplicity of it. But when really studying it, there really wasn’t a lot to choose from. You can only get flatbreads during the daytime, and the sliders are effectively just the ‘balls’ with a brioche bun. Ben made the good point “I just don’t understand why people would come here for food, there’s nothing on the menu!” And it’s true, there were only four main courses to choose from. So we decided to have a mixed crostini and mixed sliders and then go somewhere else for more food.
The wine list was also a little limited, there were six of each type (2 for rose) and the majority were Italian so we ended up choosing the house white from Veneto, which I’d never usually do but Italian wine is usually pretty good so we chanced it. Giant Robot do offer free water which is something I really do appreciate in a place, even if I don’t end up actually drinking it I do like the choice! Despite taking about ten minutes to get to us, the wine turned out to be very easy to drink so I’d recommend you getting that if you take a visit.
Mixed Sliders & Mixed Crostini
The food followed almost immediately after the wine and on looks alone, looked pretty appetising. As I like my food hot, I dived into the sliders. In all honesty, the first bite I had was mouth-watering. Maybe it was the perfect mix of moist beef and melted Monterey Jack and a little bit of hunger but I wish I’d ordered the burger if I knew it would have tasted that good! Unfortunately the other two sliders – meatloaf and turkey and sausage didn’t stand up to my first bite. And, I’m not sure the crostini is worth talking about. We were giving a selection of three – carrot and orange, smoked duck with red cabbage and devilled shrimp. All of which just tasted like combinations which shouldn’t be put together.
We were only in Giant Robot 30 minutes before we rushed out of the door £30 poorer and a little rattled that we felt a little unsatisfied and completely ripped off.
Recommendation
Maybe I was expecting too much but I felt completely disappointed by Giant Robot. If you’re going for food, just order the burger and don’t expect much choice.
