Lantana - cafe

After 5 + City Pig’s Summary

Snapshot
Cuisine:	Café - European
Price:	Average spend £14 per person (Main meal and drink)
Healthy:	Relatively healthy in comparison to the traditional fry ups.
Tasty:	4/5 – Food 3/5 – Service 2.5/5 – Comfort of dining in 4/5 – Overall rating
Address:	13 Charlotte Place Fitzrovia W1T1SN
Opening times	Monday to Friday – 8am to 6pm Saturday and Sunday – 9am to 5pm
Eat in/Takeaway:	Eat-in and take-aways.
Recommended dishes & drinks	French toast and latte.
Vegetarian dishes	Yes
Loyalty card	No
Website	http://www.lantanacafe.co.uk/
Notes	A chilled out place to catch some brunch. No bookings though.

After 5 + City Pig’s analysis

Lantana located near Goodge Street is a café that brings an interesting brunch menu.

It is a small café, neatly tucked into Charlotte place.

The brunch menu offers a mix of sweet and savoury dishes. The classic dishes such as sausage and beans have an added twist with other ingredients that changes the traditional dishes to something unique.

I opted for the French toast with berries, honey ricotta and toasted almonds. I initially fancied the “Maple French toast with crisp bacon, grilled bananas and candied pecans” which I found on the internet. However, I was informed this was the old menu that had not been updated.

When the French toast arrived, I was not disappointed that this new combination also worked well.

The French toast was cooked to perfection. The berries gave it an extra acidic bite and the ricotta helped bind it together like cream. After a while, it can be a bit dry which is where the maple syrup would have helped. Nonetheless, I was very satisfied and was it quite filling.

City Pig’s pal opted for the savoury dish of ham hock and beans. This was a very hearty and comfort dish. The beans were soft and covered with a tomato spice, and with two poached eggs and toast.

I personally preferred the French toast, as the flavours were definitely very moreish.

The latte I ordered, was just beautiful with the flower pattern on top. The taste was rich and very beany as I would expect from the Australian style coffee.

I came here at the weekend and it was already busy at 1pm. It was interesting to see a range of people in here from young families to twenty to thirty year olds catching up with friends in here.

There are some newspapers and magazines free to read if one is here alone. Lantana is quite small though and not the most comfortable place as seats is quite hard. For larger groups it may be more comfortable at Salvation Jane.

The sister newly opened restaurant in Old Street (Salvation Jane) is much bigger and comfortable. (Salvation Jane review will feature soon by City Pig.)

A café that brings new twists to traditional brunch menus.

Summary of Citypig’s meal with pal:

o   Sanpelle  Can                    £1.70

o   Latte                                   £2.50

o   French Toast                     £9.00

o   Ham hock and beans       £10.50

12.5% S.C                             £2.96

Total                                       £26.66

Pizza East

After 5 + City Pig’s Summary

Snapshot
Cuisine:	Pizzeria - Italian
Price:	Average spend £18 per person (Pizza and a drink)
Healthy:	Rustic pizzas – freshly baked. Pizzas are made up of dough so very high in carbs for those cautious of their weight.
Tasty:	4/5 – Pizzas and desserts. 3/5 – Service. 4/5 – Overall rating.
Address:	56 Shoreditch High Street London E1 6JJ ; T: 020 7729 1888
Opening times	Monday to Wed: 12pm - 12am (Kitchen open until 11pm) Thursday: 12pm - 1am (Kitchen open until 12am) Friday: 12pm - 2am (Kitchen open until 1am) Saturday: 10am - 2am (Kitchen open until 1am) Sunday: 10am - 12am (Kitchen open until 11pm)
Eat in/Takeaway:	Eat-in and take-away
Recommended dishes & drinks	All pizzas and desserts are a must.
Vegetarian dishes	Yes
Loyalty card	No
Website	http://www.pizzaeast.com/
Notes	Rustic style pizzas and a great place to catch up with friends.

After 5 + City Pig’s analysis

Pizza East sets itself to be different from other pizza chains as it focuses on making rustic style pizzas. The ingredients are very Italian focused and therefore, you may need the help of the waiter to understand the toppings.

Pizza East, has an edge of coolness as you walk in, you are greeted by the receptionists with their iMacs. It gets very busy here and so I would recommend booking a table.

I tried two pizzas, the spicy sausage and the pancetta pizza. Both were crispy and the dough light in perfection. The flavours were impressive and tasted very fresh.

The drinks menu is interesting in that it has a wide selection of cocktails. I opted for the Elderflower, cucumber soda which was very refreshing in taste.

The salted chocolate caramel tart was the most heavenly dessert I tasted. It really tastes amazing and is not too sweet or too salty. The combination is perfect and is clearly very memorable in my mind.

It is a place to go if you want a casual dinner and a few drinks. It has a great lively buzzing atmosphere and it is one of the cool kids from the East.

Nordic Bakery

After 5 + City Pig’s Summary

Snapshot
Cuisine:	Café/coffee shop
Price:	Average spend £5 per person (coffee and bun);
Healthy:	Relatively healthy in comparison to other cafes.
Tasty:	2.5/5 – Coffee 3/5 – Cinnamon buns
Address:	Nordic Bakery – Golden Square 14a Golden Square, London W1F 9JG Tel. +44 (0)20 3230 1077 (For other branches see website.)
Opening times	Mon – Fri 8am – 8pm Sat 9am – 7pm Sun & Bank Holidays 10am – 7pm
Eat in/Takeaway:	Eat-in and take-away
Recommended dishes & drinks	Cinnamon bun – sticky and chewy texture.
Vegetarian dishes	Yes
Loyalty card	No
Website	http://www.nordicbakery.com/
Notes	A refreshing change from chain coffee shops and a unique experience into Scandinavian style cafés.

After 5 + City Pig’s analysis

I came here recently, as I wanted to experience a different coffee shop that was not Italian or Australian.

Nordic Bakery is a Scandinavian style café and when I peered into the Golden Square branch it looked very simple inside. Simple is good, as long as the focus is on making high quality food and drinks.

As much as I wanted to try the sandwiches such as the Gravadlax, I was too full from lunch and so I opted for the cinnamon bun and cappuccino.

The cinnamon bun was sticky, and moist and bursting with cinnamon. It was delicious but also very different. I welcome the new Scandinavian style café – it certainly is a refreshing change to existing coffee shops and chain cafes. Most of the customers were either cool media types or students and was very busy.

Although, the cappuccino appeared to be flavourless, the bun itself was distinct and gives it a strong unique selling point.

I hadn’t tried the other cakes on offer but they surely looked tasty. It isn’t the strongest contender on the coffee scene but it does do delicious cinnamon buns.

Konditor and Cook

City Pig’s Summary

Snapshot
Cuisine:	Café/bakery/deli
Price:	Meal deals from £4.50 but hot meals average around £5-8 with a drink.
Healthy:	Yes lots of fresh salad selections but can be unhealthy as there are lots of sweet cakes available too.
Tasty:	3/5
Address:	30 St Mary Axe London EC3A 8BF
Opening times	Monday to Friday 7:30-6:00
Eat in/Takeaway:	Eat-in and take-away – fair number of seats.
Recommended dishes & drinks	Buffet salads and a bit of everything – chicken and pasta. Cakes and coffee.
Vegetarian dishes	Yes
Loyalty card	No
Website	http://www.konditorandcook.com/

City Pig’s analysis

Konditor & Cook for those that do not know is a well-known respected brand for its cakes, brownies and biscuits. Nicely located by the Gherkin on the ground floor, it also serves for breakfast and lunch savoury dishes.

At lunchtime, it is very popular and I went out to check out what was on offer. There are the usual cold chiller cabinet sandwiches all wrapped up or there are the salad selections, with pasta salad, quiches, chicken thighs, pizzas and baked potatoes with toppings.

Having been here more than three times now recently, I have tried most of the hot food here along with the deli buffet and have to conclude it is really good. This is a great place to even just have coffee or tea.

The selection is reasonably priced at £2.60 per slice. Salads are £3.25 for takeaway. It has an incredible buzz to the café and is a nice option to get away from the desk.

For those, that are ultra-busy, take-away is available. The cakes are credibly large and really tasty!

I have trouble not having the cake each time I go so those watching their weight – be warned.

Coco di mama - Italian

City Pig’s Summary

Snapshot
Cuisine:	Italian – mainly pastas
Price:	Approximately £6 per person – main meal.
Healthy:	Yes
Tasty:	3/5
Address:	115 London Wall, London, EC2M 5QA. Nearest station is Moorgate tube station.
Opening times	Monday to Friday 6:30am to 5pm
Eat in/Takeaway:	Eat-in and take-away – minimal seating.
Recommended dishes & drinks	Pasta and coffee
Vegetarian dishes	Yes
Loyalty card	Yes on coffees.
Website	www.cocodimama.co.uk

City Pig’s analysis

Coco di mama is an Italian eatery that offers new contemporary take on Italian quick eats. It is like a posh Pret a Manager but without the “chain feel” although it does have two branches one in Fleet street and this one in – London Wall.

It offers small and large pots of cooked pasta in a variety of sauces and two special sauces changes every day.

Personally, the coffee is extremely good quality and is one of the reasons I come here. Although, its pastas are tasty, fresh and not the usual stodgy pasta – it still is not the tastiest pasta I expect it to be. The packaging and the whole contemporary design of the Coco di mama products have been cleverly designed and is attractive enough to lure city workers in.

I have been here a few times and enjoy the simple food. I urge those with big appetites to choose the bigger size pasta tubs as the small is very small. Its pastas are well cooked al la dente and sauces are not too over empowering.

It certainly is not cheap but is comparable to other eateries I have reviewed.

The croissants are worth trying here if you want to try the breakfast range. I thoroughly recommend the cappuccinos and Americano here. There were tubs of free chocolates for diners which was a nice treat as well.

At London wall, it is a very small shop, but there are a few seats for those who like to eat in. A definite must try for those wanting more than Pret and Eat but not wanting to over eat days.