On the Hoof Bistro

[gillyjp]

Some good reviews so far - hubby and me cant wait to try it. Happy to splash the cash in support of a local business......

[WeatherGirl]

We went here for Sunday lunch today, completely delicious. The best Sunday lunch any one of us had experienced in a long time. We left very happily stuffed to the gills and will return very soon.
Let's support this wonderful addition to our high street.

[paultreacy]

Make sure you take a few minutes to take a peek at my photographs out back while you're in there. They'll be up for another few weeks. There's a wee book to follow soon. "Seeing Sydenham" at On the Hoof.

http://paultreacy.com

[Spiaria]

Went for dinner on Friday, it's great! Food was very good (chicken liver starter in particular was yummy). The house wine was lovely too and very reasonably priced. It was quiet though - I hope the initial interest doesn't wane too much. We fully intend to visit regularly, it's exactly the kind of place Sydenham needs and we want to support it. Anyway, just a lurker's tuppence worth!

[Liliput]

Had a great meal with the family last night. Great service, well done.

Diner

[Pat Trembath]

And a great Sunday lunch today.

[sydenhamboy]

I think it might need to sort its timings out a bit. It looks great inside and it's encouraging the food is going down well. Perhaps at the weekend it should open later - a nice candle lit bistro meal needs to go on later on a Fri/Sat evening than 9:30pm - I nearly went but was put off by that. I don't want to go to dinner at the weekend ... just a thought ...

They need to put the signage up now as well.

It

[JMLF]

Group of us went for dinner last night - absolutely delicious food (especially the chicken liver and chorizo starter) and wine.
Interior is lovely, especially the pics of locals, little homages to the opticians and the little hidden outdoor spot out back.
Think a little bit of background music would be nice, especially at times when it was a little quieter (though most seats were taken by 9.30).
A wonderful addition to the high street

[Tim Lund]

I met up with a friend there yesterday for a coffee, which was really nice. And as we were there, another friend passed by and joined in the conversation. OK - I know a few coffees in the morning don't help the place make that much money, but it felt really good - an atmosphere which is a great addition to Sydenham Road.

[leenewham]

It is a wonderful place. I had a fantastic meal there and I was popped in yesterday and joined Tim enjoying a coffee. It's a really lovely place to be inside, the service is great but the best bit is the food. It's a real treat. Proper quality and something different.

The desserts are also fab!

[leenewham]

We have been raving (along with others on Facebook) about the Sunday lunches here. Simply outstanding. Really good food, made with skill AND live. Jeremy, the chef kept coming out with extra Yorkshires and other goodies. By FAR the best roast dinner we have had in London. In fact probably the best roast we have had anywhere (sorry mum). The gravy was so tasty I'd have been happy to order it as a soup! Everything was bursting with flavour. The chicken was by far the tastiest chicken I'd ever had. Moist, succulent. It's also a little different to what everyone else does. The extra cauliflower in mournay sauce was great on its own. A lovely place and a business that seems to attract a good mix of people. It was busy too (in a good way) but it was easy to hold a conversation and the noise levels were fine (I hate noisy restaurants). People from other areas seem to be talking about it, which is good for the high street.

[robbieduncan]

Ate there on Friday night (our third visit since it opened). Food was excellent as ever and it was quite busy although no where near full when we arrived. We had booked a table for 5 days in advance yet this seemed to cause an issue as they did not have one set for that free when we arrived at 6pm. It seems that they had directed another group of people who had booked for 4 to the table for 5. That was sorted quite quickly but menus were not provided. I had to ask for them after waiting about 5 minutes for them and was therefore taken aback when we were then asked to order having barely had a chance to read them! New staff issues asside it was a great meal and we'll be back.

Yet to try the Sunday lunch (we usually go to Westow House up in Crystal Palace for that) but it sounds like it'll be worth going for. Do they server the normal menu on Sundays as well? Or is it roasts only?

[leenewham]

Hi Robbie, the menu is both roasts and the normal menu (at least that's what we were given).

My mouth is watering thinking about it. And the Ice cream with Advocat, walnuts and raisins we had afterwards (luckily our 3 year old realised that it was not for him!) is a brilliant combination.

[Hissing Syd]

We went there for the roast recently. It was a thoroughly lovely place to be inside - loved the decor and the noise levels were perfect. The hospitality was spectacular; the lady in charge could not have been more welcoming or lovely.

However I'm sorry to say we were disappointed with the food. For £12.50, to be served one roast potato each is poor - and the Dauphinoise that bulked up the plate really have no place in a roast. Packet stuffing was also a bit feeble, and there was next to no gravy - more was promised but never came. Also it was very irritating not to have salt and pepper on the table, especially the former as it really needed it.

I don't like to criticise, and to give the benefit of the doubt, maybe some of the above was due to going there late on a Sunday. The chef did indeed come out offering extra batter puddings, as noted above, and like the lady in charge, he really seemed to care. I think it's a lovely addition to the high street, they seem like really fantastic people, and we have every intention of going back (the chicken liver & chorizo dish mentioned above sounds great) and giving it another try, albeit not for Sunday dinner.

[samshiles]

A group of four of us went last night. It was the first time in as long as I can remember that every single person agreed so absolutely about a meal. A pick of the comments:

"Worst meal I've had in about 2 years"
"Drier than cardboard"
"Did I order a huge pile of coleslaw with my steak?"
"Shall we go somewhere else for desert?"
"Does this look like a sirloin or a quick fry steak?"
"Do you think they ran out of salt and pepper?"

We were so looking forward to having an eatery that looked so promising on our doorsteps but in future I think we'd probably be better off going to Chefs Delight. At £85 for just mains and a drink, it wasn't exactly expensive but when you consider how much delicious take away you could get for half that price, it really does put it into perspective.

Judging from all the comments on this board, we either had a stand-in chef, or all the previous posts are friends of the owner.

Very disappointed and will not be visiting again.

[Annie.]

First post a bit negative! Hmmmmmm

[Eagle]

Very sad to see such a negative post . However every one entitled to complain if they are unhappy with their meal.

[sarahsyd]

It seems a shame to join a forum specifically to criticise a new business just getting off the ground, however I don't know the whole story.

I haven't eaten there yet as I have a new baby, but everyone I know who has eaten there has been positive.

It is a very attractive addition to the high street and we will eat there soon.
I believe it is also open for tea and coffee - is that right?

[Tim Lund]

Judging from all the comments on this board, we either had a stand-in chef, or all the previous posts are friends of the owner.

Very disappointed and will not be visiting again.

Well, I think that would be a shame, but I suspect you are right about a stand-in chef or some other such problem, because when I went with the rest of my family, I had a similar experience. The ambience was good, and it was great to have such a place open on Sydenham Road, but the food wasn't good - much too greasy, in my case, and unusually, no one else ventured into comments on what they were eating, and we've not talked about it since either.

This is normal - people don't like being the first to give negative feedback, which is why I do not criticise samshiles for coming on here for the first time and posting as he/she did. It is far better if people can say what they think without fear of being criticised for it. I certainly do consider myself a friend of the owner, and knowing her, I have no fear that being prepared to say what I think will not damage that friendship.

So, samshiles, please watch out for the right sort of feed back about On the Hoof in due course, and come back to it. We might even be able to meet there face to face, and talk to Ela.

[sydenhamboy]

The sign looks great. Well done ... nice to have a bistro on the high street ...