## Step 2b - Reading

#### London restaurant review

You are going to read comments made by customers on a website about restaurants in London.

- Form groups of three or four pupils.
- Do assignment 1.
- Read the texts.
- Do assignment 2.

#### Assignment 1

Before reading the text discuss the following questions in your group:

- How often do you visit a restaurant?
- What do you like or dislike about restaurants?
- What could you say to recommend a restaurant?

Read the texts.

Text 1 We stopped into this quite British Restaurant/Bar as part of an East End food walking tour. We tried the bread pudding and got to look around at the restaurant. This is a really cool spot and very original. Inside is full of wood, pews and booths. Its adorable, quiet, and a dining experience that's unique and provides some privacy will getting that real English Establishment feel. The bread pudding was absolutely delicious. Decadent, rich, creamy and gooey. You can't ask for anything more from a bread pudding, and this filled my quota of cream and butter for weeks (but it was worth it). I can’t vouch for the food but the dessert and atmosphere made this a fun stop!

Text 2 Very disappointed by the food at this place. Tons of great restaurants in the area, don't waste your time or money on this one. Seated promptly, service was friendly, but the food was a real shame. Three of us ordered the catch of the day (fish and chips), but the fish was way over-fried, the less were not fresh, and the restaurant didn't even have tartar sauce. The chips were fine, but not enough to make up for the fish. Two others had the Sunday roast (one chicken, one beef) and they were slightly better, but still not great. Too bad. Had hoped for better.

Text 3 We came here for the full English breakfast, which did not disappoint. The hash brown was different from what I had expected ... I had thought it would be like a fried American hash brown but it was more like a little layered casserole. Very tasty. Also loved the hearty mushrooms and the fluffy scrambled eggs. The interior is charming. Great service. The coffee was also really good.

Text 4 I ordered the oysters for appetizer and fish and fries for my entree. However, I substituted the french fries for a side salad. The fish batter was cooked to perfection. Ambiance is super private in the booths. They have curtains separating you from the table behind you. We sat on the first floor. This was our last dinner in London and we made a good choice!

Text 5 I've always liked this place and stop by for a coffee every time I am near the market. HOWEVER, last week it was biting cold out. I popped in for a coffee and I noticed the inside clearly divided into a restaurant area and a cafe area. Has it always been like that? I went to order a coffee and asked if I could sit at a table, but I was told I could only sit in the "cafe" section, which was full up. The "restaurant" section was completely empty, not a single diner. So even though 2/3rds of the place was empty, I had to go back out in the cold, when my whole intention was to get a coffee to have a little sit-down with a book in a cafe I have always enjoyed. I don't know if this is a more recent change or I somehow never noticed, but I was really, really irritated. I mean, it was like 3 in the afternoon! Who goes for a sit-down dinner then anyway? Why would you have 2/3's of your cafe set for dinner and off limits to coffee-and-cake inclined afternoon patrons? I have to give it 3 stars because the coffee is quite good. I might pass through for a take-away drink in the future, but what a waste of a building as far as seating goes. I guess it is trying to be more of a restaurant now, but I won't bother going. The menu looked kind of pricey and the cloth napkins etc. were a big turn-off. The nice thing about this place was the rustic feel...really destroyed by the linen and rude people. A good case of a business needing to make up it's mind about what it is. Fine dining establishment or coffee house?