Golden Hind

A restaurant, even a chippie, which has been in continuous operation since 1914 must be doing something right. The Golden Hind has no prententions, but its brightly lit, basically decorated dining room was doing a roaring trade this evening.

A scampi starter (£3.60) had tolerable batter but perilously little in the way of langoustine (barely 11/20), while prawn cocktail (£3.20) was similarly very limited, with a few small shrimps and a bland Marie Rose sauce (10/20).

However the haddock and chips (£7.70 for the fish, £1.70 for the chips) was an altogether better affair, the batter crisp, the fish inside cooked through nicely, without skin (comfortably 12/20). Chips were hand-cut and tolerably crisp (12/20). Peas on the side (£0.90) were sadly tasteless (10/20).

Service was friendly. There are no alcoholic drinks served, but you are invited to bring your own wine, and there is a Nicolas wine merchant less than a minute away with a surprisingly good selection of refrigerated white wines on offer.

I would stick to the fish and chips based on this visit, but if you restricted yourself to these then you would have a perfectly enjoyable meal. It is remarkably hard to find even competent fish and chips in London, and the Golden Hind certainly delivers in this regard.