After 5 + City Pig’s Summary
Snapshot
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Cuisine:
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Coffee bar/breakfast/brunch and lunch – from Australia.
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Price:
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Here are some price guidelines:
Cappuccino £2.40
French toast £4.75
Burger and potatoes £11.50
Brunch meal for two came to £27 including service charge at 12.5%.
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Healthy:
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Healthy and contemporary dishes.
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Tasty:
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3/5
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Service:
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3/5
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Ambiance:
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3.5/5
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Address:
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27 Clerkenwell Road, London, EC1M 5RN
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Opening times
| 7 days a week – 7am to 6pm. (Very hard workers!) |
Eat in/Takeaway:
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Eat-in
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Recommended dishes
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Menu is seasonal. French toast and coffees are a must.
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Vegetarian dishes
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Eleven or more dishes that are suitable for vegetarians.
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Loyalty card
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No loyalty card scheme.
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Website
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After 5 + City Pig’s analysis
St Ali is another Aussie coffee bar that has arrived on to the London scene amongst others.The star of the show of course is the coffee and most people are attracted to this smooth beany taste.
I came here for brunch on a Saturday morning and it was already busy and heaving with lots of people while I was waiting to be seated.
It had a very chilled out vibe and you can see it was a popular hang out for the locals. The cafe have seats on the ground floor and on the first floor.
I ordered the french toast and my food partner tried the equivalent of an almost English breakfast (note you have a choice to add your own eggs and mushrooms etc . At St Ali's, you will find classic dishes that have been re-created with a twist of creativity planted across the menu.
The actual dish I tried is the "french toast, with Bramley lemon cure mascarpone caramelised cardamom apples, walnuts" and I added a portion of dry-cured bacon.
The combination really works as the sweetness from the caramelised apples and the saltiness of the bacon meet in the middle. However, the bacon was slightly burnt and became a bit too hard on the edges.
Similarly, the English breakfast, was slightly overcooked with the mushrooms being burnt as well. We notified the waiter and they immediately replaced them. I can see it may have been a blip as they were very busy but I was not pleased that two dishes had mistakes that should not have been served.
The design of the menu dishes are contemporary and is enough to tempt me to come back again. However, the execution of the dishes was a bit careless on this occasion.
The cafe has a very relaxed and vibrant atmosphere which is what you would expect from the Farringdon/Barbican scene.
I will go again and try something different giving them the benefit of the doubt that the execution will be perfect next time round.
French toast, with Bramley lemon curd mascarpone, £4.75 caramelised cardamom apples, walnuts
add dry-cure bacon (£3.50).
Cappuccino
Breakfast - compile your own
Orange juice and some tap water in a milk bottle
