The Bermondsey Yard Cafe
One Sunday morning I didn’t feel like cooking so suggested that we head out and grab a bite to eat from one of the many restaurants and cafes that have appeared in the past couple of years. It has become a very ‘hipster’ area and restaurant ‘Pop-ups’ or ‘Craft Beer’ are everywhere! Although called The Bermondsey Yard Cafe, it actually is behind London Bridge Station. The Station has had an upgrade recently so if you’ve not been to the area recently, you might not recognise the place! I do recommend you don’t drive as although there is some on-street parking, the area does fill up quickly and you are unlikely to find a space to park.
Inside the Cafe
The Bermondsey Yard Cafe was quite a nice place. There are plenty of bars/pubs so it was nice to have something with a little more of an informal set up. It did have good selection of craft ales if thats your bag, but it wasn’t what drew us to them. What pulled us in was the menu.
The Menu – The Bermondsey Yard Cafe
The menu isn’t too fussy. On a Sunday they do offer a Sunday Roast and during the summer they offer BBQ if that is something that interests you. Appealing to us was Homemade Gnocchi and the Burger. Gnocchi is something that is simple to make at home but for some reason I never do. Burgers, on the other hand, are a staple restaurant dish I do enjoy. You can tell a lot about place by house it cooks and presents it burgers. You can check out the rest of The Bermondsey Yard Cafe menu here.
Our Food
As I outlined above, we had the Gnocchi and the Burger.
house made gnocchi, mushrooms, broccoli, baby onions, garlic butter, parmesan & rocket
The gnocchi was ace. The garlic butter worked perfectly with the parmesan and the gentle seasoning they put over the dish. Although not mentioned in the menu, they used chestnut mushrooms and these helped to complement the combinations of flavours in this dish. The only thing probably that I’d change would be the rocket – this could have been replaced with lambs lettuce or pea shoots.
Angus beef burger, emmental cheese & tomato with burger sauce & chips
Now there is a whole movement of people on line who are looking for restaurants to bring back plates! I don’t think the presentation of the burger was improved by serving it on a floorboard/spanking paddle. I also tend to think that kitchens don’t clean wooden boards correctly. The wooden board did give them the opportunity for them to Caesar my burger with a knife straight through the middle. Another serving suggestion I’d be happy for them to pass on next time.
The burger was ok. The brioche bun is a popular bun choice at the moment – thankfully we’ve moved away from the tough ciabatta rolls that were en vogue the last decade. From this photo you can see that they didn’t put much care into the building of the burger and maybe that is why they chose to stab it! The meat in the burger was cooked to my liking (medium) and the chips were good but there could have been more of them. When the person you are eating with is a known chip-thief, it is dangerous to have so few of them!
Special Guest Appearance – Dessert
Usually I don’t have a dessert. This day was not an exception. However, on the dessert menu there was something that my dining guest absolutely loves – sticky toffee pudding!
Sticky toffee pudding, pecan toffee sauce and vanilla ice cream
At least this was served on a plate! I’m not a fan of STP as it contains dates. I do love a bit of vanilla ice cream so I tried this and it was ace. I am reliably informed that the dessert was good – none was left over so that definitely a good sign!
The Cost
We ordered 2 main courses, a drink (and some water), and a single dessert. Including a 12.5% service charge this came in at just over £40. The food was nice and we had a relaxing meal in zone 1 London. I’m torn between whether it was worth it but knowing I’m in London and you can rarely eat lunch for less than £30-35 for two people (excluding the tip) I think it was probably acceptable. On the plus side, there are plenty of other places to eat nearby so hopefully I’ll be trying them before I am back here.
Other Reviews
If you’d like to check out my other restaurant reviews then check out this link.
https://thereverend.co.uk/blog/category/food/restaurant-reviews/