Garfunkel?s Restaurant, London, UK

While we were out exploring during our last night in London, we found ourselves in the Leicester Square area looking for dinner. After a couple of failed attempts at overcrowded restaurants, we ended up going to Garfunkel’s restaurant. We were hungry and the restaurant looked welcoming. Their menu had a wide range of dishes from the grill, pizza, pasta, burgers, and more. They have a section for British Classics as well as an Around the World section in the menu. They also have a famous salad bar option.

I later found out that Garfunkel’s is a chain restaurant under the The Restaurant Group, who operates a chain of restaurants and public houses under the names Frankie & Benny’s, Chiquito, Garfunkel’s, Home Counties, and Brunning and Price.



About Garfunkels (from their website)

“Established in 1979, Garfunkel?s Restaurants continue to be as popular today as they always have been. Combining popular British and American dishes, this brand successfully embraces the concept of being ?all things to all people.” Situated primarily in tourist locations, it also enjoys a loyal following of local residents and workers who have been visiting Garfunkel’s for years. It’s varied menu features many of Britain’s favourite dishes, from fish and chips to magherita pizza to chicken tikka masala – there is certainly something for everyone.”

We were promptly seated at a table in the quiet and less populated side of the restaurant. Looking at the menu, I was determined to order a dish from their British Classics section. I ended up ordering the Grilled Gammon Ham along with a bottle of Magner’s Cider.

I get so easily amused by British food terms. So far, I’ve come across a few. Bangers and mash is just sausage and mash potatoes. They say biscuits, we say cookies. French fries are known as chips and chips are known as crisps. Cottage pie is like shepherd’s pie but with minced beef instead of minced lamb. Yorkshire pudding is not really a pudding, it’s a popover!

My grilled ham steak came with a choice of a fried egg or pineapple ring and chips or jacket potato. I went with the pineapple and jacket potato, or as we call it, a baked potato. Pineapple and ham, in general, goes so well together.

Grilled Gammon Ham

Grilled gammon ham with a pineapple ring, served with mixed vegetables and a jacket potato.

Magner’s cider

Here’s what my colleagues ordered:

Irish Stew

Tender pieces of lamb and chunky vegetables in a thick gravy with traditional dumplings. Served with ciabatta bread.

This was another item in the British Classics section. I came pretty close to ordering this dish as well, but went with the ham last minute. This looks like a cozy dish.

Tropical Pizza

Sliced ham and chunks of pineapple on our classic margherita base.

Pineapple and ham – my favorite toppings for pizza. We call it Hawaiian, they say tropical.

Beef Chilli Nachos

Our classic tortilla chips smothered with hot beef chilli andmelted cheese, topped with sliced jalapenos and served with sour cream for dunking!

Classic Burger

Served with mayonnaise, fresh tomato, red onion, iceberg lettuce,dill pickle. With chunky chips and tomato chilli relish.

The food was pretty good and the service was great too. My gammon ham was thinly sliced and nicely grilled, not too salty. You can’t go wrong with a simple baked potato, either. My entree cost about 10 pounds, which is around $15 US dollars. Along with my beverage, my meal was probably around $20 US dollars in total. Come to think of it, the restaurant kind of reminds me of an Applebee’s, TGIFs, or Ruby Tuesdays kind of restaurant, in both the decor and the food selections. I would say the food quality is comparable as well. Anyway, it had a nice and casual atmosphere which was great for socializing, food, and drinks. Fun times indeed!