The River Café was opened in 1987 by Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray and has become a London institution. Located near the Thames in Hammersmith, there is a long dining room and open kitchen. The premises was originally a Duckhams oil storage facility. The food is Italian, and the restaurant makes an effort to use good ingredients, though this comes at a price. On the a la carte menu today, the antipasti ranged from £25 to £39, primi from £30 to £39, main courses £64 to £68, and desserts £15, with cheese £18 (selection of three cheeses) to £30 (selection of five).
The wine list had 217 labels and ranged in price from £50 to £2,400, with a median price of £125 and an average markup to retail price of 2.9 times, which is quite fair by London standards. Sample references were Sorrentino Catalo Catanalesca 2021 at £58 for a bottle that you can find in the high street for £19, Pietracupa Greco di Tufo 2022 at £85 compared to its retail price of £26, and Vie di Romans Pinot Grigio Dessimis 2023 at £120 for a wine that will set you back £38 in the high street. For those with the means there was Tenuta Fessina Il Musmeci Contrada Caselle Bianco 2022 at £300 compared to its retail price of £94, and Tenuta dell'Ornellaia Ornellaia Bianco 2019 at £560 for a wine whose current market value is £233.
There were no canapes, but some pleasant bread appeared. Pizzetta featured Taleggio cheese with courgette flowers, capers and marjoram. The courgette flowers were pretty but the base of the pizza was very ordinary, essentially a flatbread with some toppings (12/20). I also tasted spaghetti with crab chill parsley and lemon zest, which was nice enough, though it didn’t compare well with a very similar dish that I recall at Zafferano in its better days. A grilled squid I tasted was also reasonable, avoiding the chewiness that this can easily have.
Risotto with Italian white asparagus had rice that absorbed its stock quite well and had good texture. However, the white asparagus had been cut into thin strips and was rather soggy, which rather defeated the object (barely 13/20). I am no chef, but I can make a risotto at home better than this.
Lemon tart was a little better than I remember it, having a good balance between sweetness and acidity. This was the best dish that I tasted today (14/20). An espresso, sourced from Volcano Coffee in Dulwich, was reasonably good.
The bill for three courses (antipasti, pasta and dessert, so no main course) was £137 each with just a glass of wine each. Given that the main courses were mostly over £60 it would be very easy to run up a much higher bill. Service was pleasant if a bit stretched at this full midweek lunch service. The River Cafe uses good ingredients and has an appealing menu. However, I can never really reconcile the price here with the quality of what appears on the plate. The meal was objectively decent enough, but £137 a head with a glass of wine is an awful lot of money for a decent enough experience. It was of a slightly lower standard than I recall at prior visits. Still, I am clearly in a minority here, as the place was completely packed on a Wednesday lunch in March.
BookFurther reviews: 10th Jul 2017 | 01st Dec 2008
John Curtin
Hi Andy, thanks for doing a sort of ‘emperors new clothes’ on this institution of the London scene. Apart from the ambitious pricing (though the winter set menu is reasonably keenly priced)what really bothers me are the tightly packed tables and the incredible noise levels. Off putting for couples who might want to have a conversation. At one lunch my wife’s phone recorded decibel levels reaching 86. Maybe not bothersome for parties of 3 or 5. Clearly not for the clientele who many seem to treat the place as their canteen. Good luck to RC (they won’t need it !)but I’ll stick with the Dysart or Koyal or Noble Rot on a quiet evening.
Daryl
After years wondering if it could live up to the hype, i booked a birthday lunch here and was severely disappointed. Not only ws the food and service mediocre; decor and ambiance were a naff eighties throwback, service was scattered, and nothing was even close to deserving the adulation and investment required. It was clear to me that the place is running on its past reputation.
Dawson
You're never going to get what is objectively "value for money" at the River Cafe. There's something undeniably magical about the place though. I don't think there can be many restaurants in England that exude quite the same aura. Loads in France and Italy I have no doubt.
Heather Martin
I make a journey once a year to the River Cafe once a year with a booking for their Winter lunch offer. £80 for anti-pasti,primi,secondi and dolci. And I always enjoy my visit,but if I had to pay the a la carte prices then my annual trip would probably be a thing of the past. And that`s the nub of the matter. I would give the place a slightly higher rating than you do, but value for money? Maybe not.