Farewell!

When initially faced with the task of writing a blog linked to both food and literature, I thought that I would struggle. Although an avid fan of both literature and cramming my face with food, I I suspected it would be difficult to combine them in a blog that would not only make sense, but be somewhat entertaining. However, I have thoroughly enjoyed the task, and have now discovered a tendency to over-analyse any restaurant’s menu including their writing style, ingredients used and even their font!

I have found that although it is ultimately the dishes served that attracts people to a restaurant or determines their popularity; the way the menu and surrounding marketing is presented, such as posters etc, is also extremely important. It can determine the atmosphere or how much the customer is willing to pay -and put up with! This blog has also given me the excuse to eat out as much as my student loan will permit, and also got me some very strange looks from surrounding tables as I took picture of every poster, dish and sentence of the menu.

Overall, I’ve found that it’s usually the less pricey and more often than not franchised chains of restaurants that pay the most attention to their marketing; obviously because they have the money and departments to do so. However, they also seem to go for a more jokey approach, attempting to lure customers in through their wit and comedy while the more up market restaurants take a more serious approach to their food.

For now, I shall bid you readers farewell and leave you with the wise words of Orson Welles, “Ask not what you can do for your country. Ask what’s for lunch”.

Refuel - Soho Hotel

As an avid fan of Top Table (www.toptable.co.uk), I often check the website to find new deals win usually unaffordable restaurants. This week, as a pre-theatre treat I sampled the culinary delights of Soho Hotel and their Refuel restaurant. Set in the heart of London’s West End, the restaurant is tucked away down a small alleyway which if not looked for, could be easily missed. We were welcomed into the seating area which was adjacent to the unusually busy bar for a Thursday night – it must be a popular place and we could soon see why. The decor was very original, with modern lighting that was complimented by large shelves filled with empty cans of old-fashioned motor lubricants. 

The menu was limited, with three options per course. However, the dishes offered were varied enough to satisfy most stomachs. The meals were presented, as we’ve seen in many restaurants whose menu’s I’ve analysed, as lists of ingredients with neither conjunctions nor adjectives. This simple approach emphasises the ingredients that have been used for the dishes, and allows the customer to focus entirely on their taste buds and preferences; seeking the meals that appeal to them most without the influence of descriptive terms. The meals were not out of the ordinary and involved pairings that would traditionally be expected such as pork with apple, and beetroot with feta. Although not particularly exciting, the customer would be reassured that their meal will taste good.

The complimentary wine that is offered with the meal encourages the customer to spend more on either a third course, or an added extras to accompany their main which are sneakily added on at the bottom of the menu so as to subtly remind the customer they are not included with their meal.

The service was exceptional and the food delivered promptly to the table. The courses were quickly devoured due to their yumminess and so the poor waiting staff were often returning to our table to remove the dishes not long after they were put down.

Student Living - The Union

The University student’s union bar is the social hub for students on any campus. Always full of students, music playing from a jukebox with drinks and food on offer, it’s the perfect hang-out for those looking for respite from dissertations and projects. The Union at Roehampton University is particularly playful, with paintings of London’s landscape on the walls, pool tables and a chilled atmosphere; it’s often filled with hungry young adults looking for a snack.

The Union offers a simple menu with a surprising amount of choice for such a small kitchen.  However, despite the appetising variety of food on offer, the menu itself looks as if it’s been written by someone studying for their GCSE’s what with the overuse of apostrophes. Grammatical errors aside, the menu design uses a ‘splat’ effect to look as if spillages have been made on it; playing on the messy habits of students and the equally messy environment of the bar what with empty glasses and plates dotted around.

Food such as nachos, pasta and fish and chips are cheap and easy dishes that appeal to the lazy student that can’t be bothered to cook for themselves. More elaborate meals such as roast dinners provide home comforts for the young adults now that they are away from their Mother’s cooking. The writing used for the menu boards themselves are simplistic and child-like, mimicking the living standards of the students reading it as well as continuing the fun and friendly feel. Alcoholic beverages are also offered alongside your roast beef including not your standard glass of Chardonnay or a cheeky pint, but a Bloody Mary or Margarita cocktail…for Sunday lunch. This is University after all.

 

The other way of incorporating alcohol into your lunch  is to choose the option of a burger and a beer. This encourages the binge drinking culture that this generation of students has become accustomed to. A meal…without alcohol?! What a preposterous thought. The typical ‘bar food’ encourages the students to participate in drinking whilst eating. Music plays loudly encouraging a social, laid back environment. The hip hop chip shop turns a simple concept and meal into a themed night out for students (who certainly don't turn down the opportunity to get dressed up and get on down) adding fun and frivolity to an otherwise plain idea whilst making a cultural reference in order to connect the union with its target audience.