POMINO

25 Bellevue Rd, Wandsworth Common. SW17 7EF
Telephone: 020 8672 5888
Website: Pomino



We set out to Pomino’s on a chilly Friday’s night in high spirits. There was much to celebrate. Our friend from Sydney, after a whirlwind tour around Europe, has finally decided to grace our shores with her gentle presence. All Aussies eventually wind up on English shores some how or the rather. Just like the English and Irish in Oz.

We entered the restaurant with high spirits and expectations. Prince consort was half-drunk anyway and would have bounced into Burger King in the same manner. We always pass it on the way to work and it looks chic, inviting and always jammed to the brim. We kicked off the evening by ordering a bottle of Chianti (always a safe bet) and started yattering away –there was loads to catch up on, the last time we saw her was two years ago.



We were seated right in front of the open- plan kitchen. It was a real treat to see the chefs working their mojo. The head chef and his team have actually moved from Tuscany to London to give the English something to talk about. To the front of the kitchen was an open-furnace where they grilled their meat. The place is very charmingly decorated with a Tuscan feel.





We decided to skip the entrees and head straight for the mains. All the mains were presented on mustard-yellow plates. Yuk. White would have been a better choice. The yellow clashed head on with everything served on the plate – a real eye-sore. I ordered the cod. I was very disappointed when it came – and I think the cod was too. It looked like a school dinner (pre-Jamie Oliver). Bread crumbs packed onto the surface of the cod with a brown sauce surrounding it. Very unattractive. It looked like multi-coloured fish puke. The taste? Very bland and boring. I had to constantly add pepper and salt in a fruitless effort to put some oomph into it. Poor cod. What a waste to end one’s life in this manner. I would rather be packed in an Asda supermarket deep-freezer.



Prince consort had the Porchetta - roast pork, wild fennel seeds, garlic, roast potatoes & black cabbage. This was probably the nicest dish of the lot. The pork was succulent and tender. It actually tasted very Chinesey (is that a word?) in that the sauce was very plummy.



Our guest of honour ordered the lamb chops which looked and tasted exactly like someone at home would make it. No imagination at all. B-O-R-I-N-G. She did like the side-dish of roasted potatoes. No one had anything complimentary to say about the garlic and chilli spinach side-dish – except for, where was the garlic? Where was the chilli? Enough said.





We decided not to stay for desserts for fear our tastebuds would pack up and leave our tongues and sue us for indecent assault.

All in all, our dinner cost £67 for three people (including wine). In my opinion, that’s a lot of dosh when your meal tasted like it was made by a blind pygmy who can’t reach the spices on the top shelf. Blah!!

HRH

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