The Don

I’ve always heard people raving about The Don but have never been so when, at a work party, a contact was complaining about never being invited out to lunch anymore and proceeded to list is as one of his favourite restaurants, I felt I had the excuse I needed to try it out. Come Monday lunchtime we were picking our way across the cobbled yard and down the stairs to the Bistro in the cellar (apparently they used to lay down some sort of sherry here, and they still offer their own wines).

The room was a brick arched cellar: we were seated in the second part which had widely spaced tables and comfortable blue chairs. I was sitting by the wall and there was a faint smell of damp, or chill, that faded as the place filled up and the food came out. At 12.30pm the place was still pretty empty but was almost full by the time we left.

Most of the menu choices are tempting (and hearty!) but as I was going out for dinner as well I thought I’d limit myself and went for a beetroot, goats cheese and chicory salad followed by wild mushroom risotto. My colleague was similarly spartan in her choice of soup butternut squash soup and risotto again, while our guest had pate and confit duck. Strangely, we weren’t given the wine list until after we’d placed our orders, although bread and water were forthcoming. I didn’t choose the wine but we ended up with a full bodied red – the waiter warned us that it was quite a heavy hitter but it suited the meaty mushrooms and duck.

Gossip came in the form of the upheaval at the Telegraph, the impact of the freebies on the London newspaper market and, indeed, environment, and the joys of Christmas shopping. Apparently the average spend per head on presents is a whopping £435. I can see the electronics bods rubbing their hands with glee. My starter salad was made up of good components and a classic mix of flavours. Simple, done well. The soup and pate were polished off too. The risotto was delicious with a generous portion of mushrooms and flakes of parmesan. It’s a bit like eating baby food, with the grains of rice adding the necessary bite. And they provided us with spoons to complete the picture.

Sadly there was no room for pudding but they looked terrific. I made do with a pyramid of chocolate that came with the coffee. As I didn’t see the bill I can’t comment on the price, although they mistakenly charged us for a cocktail. Going by the prices on the menu it’s a reasonably priced City staple and seems sure to stay that way for the foreseeable future. I’d definitely go back.