Review: Lunch at the Artisan Farringdon
On one of my recent jaunts around Farringdon at lunch time with 2 of my co-workers we decided to pop into The Artisan which is just across the square from our office. Having scoped out their website and their menu my team-mate Jenny was super keen to check out their burgers (she’s a huge burger fan).
The Artisan boast a homely comfort for those who cross their threshold, and they endeavour to provide a bolt hole from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, wanting the patrons to kick back and relax with good food and a beverage.
The interior of this pub is a mix of retro and modern with a lot of wood and metal in their design – a new twist on the traditional British Pub. The Artisan offers several areas depending on your mood – an informal restaurant, a relaxed bar area & several chilled lounges, perfect for chilling with friends & colleagues. There is also a move private space via the mezzanine with its own bar is perfect. When the British weather sorts itself out there is also a terrace overlooking the square offering a bit of al fresco dining.
On arrival we were shown to our table and had a chance to browse the menu, it didn’t take us long to choose as we had already looked at the menu on the website. My two meat-eating companions went for the buttermilk fried chicken burger with spicy tomato relish for £9.50 and I settled on the veggie burger with yogurt & cucumber dip at £8.95 – All the burgers on the menu come with a brioche bun & with triple cooked chips.
All the burgers looked very impressive as they arrived at our table sitting on a lovely wooden board with our chips in a traditional blue rimmed white dish. When confronted with a very tall burger I tend to eat it in layers, starting with the fluffy brioche bun and making my way through the salad and to the burger. I found the veggie burger was flavourful and a pleasant texture (sometimes they can be a bit soggy), I really liked the yogurt & cucumber dip which contrasted to the slightly zingy burger. My companions were equally happy with their chicken burgers which came with the spicy relish rather than the cooling dip.
One element that we were not all very keen on were the triple cooked chips – we felt that these were more like potato wedges as they were very thick and hard to eat in a dainty fashion. We also felt that the texture was a little strange, being triple cooked, we assumed that the cooking process had made them a bit too crunchy.
In all we had a great experience, the pub had great character, the service was pleasant and the burgers were delicious. It was a shame that the chips weren’t really to our taste, however, we still award The Artisan a 4 out of 5 and I will definitely be back – but I will order the polenta chips rather than the triple cooked chips.
