Just recently my partner and I had some meetings in London, and when we were done we had a couple of hours to kill before our next train. So, we decided we would get some food, the only problem with this is; we are only eating #vegan food now, and it's never easy finding good #vegan food anywhere! Anyway, we did an online search for local restaurants to try and find somewhere close to Kings Cross Station, and found #mildreds, so we thought we’d give them a try, as they were only a ten-minute walk away.
Their website says they serve internationally inspired vegetarian and #vegan cuisine, which is fresh, colourful, full of flavour, and cooked daily on the premises; and they only use #organic ingredients, where possible, and try to source small businesses for their supplies. They also boast their food has seduced even the most hardened of meat eaters, who then come back time and time again for more of their delicious food; and they like to extend a warm welcome to all of their customers, both old and new and now also cater for people with allergies. This sounded perfect for us, and we were really looking forward to trying #mildreds food.
We arrived at #mildreds at around 5.20 pm and I told them there are three of us in our party, one of which was our working dog for the #deaf called 'Ryder', but don't tell him I said that. I swear he believes he's human! We received a nice warm welcome, and when we were seated at our table they even got a bowl of water for 'Ryder' without being asked. Which was great for 'Ryder', (and now he thinks he's special, as well as being human). However, they kind of ruined their initial welcome, because no sooner had we sat down, and they were looking to take our order, to which I politely told them we hadn't even looked at the menu yet! Now, as this was our first time in #mildreds, we were a little bit excited and wanted to have a good look at what they had on their carte du jour, but every minute or so, we would be asked if we were ready to order. It felt like we were being rushed along, and that warm welcome we first received, was beginning to seem about as fake as a politician’s promise!
When we were actually given the chance to look at the menu, I have to say it looked pretty good, but in a #wetherspoons kind of way, not à la carte! The waitress as ever, was ready to take our order and we asked for some drinks first, which was two bottles of 'Helles Freedom Organic Lager’, and this turned out to be bloody lovely, and very moreish, but had an over the top price tag of £4.50 per bottle. In the way of food, we decided to be a bit #romantic and share a starter of smashed avocado, lime, chilli, and organic corn chips. When I say #romantic, I actually mean "holy cow, if we want another beer, we better just share a starter". When it came out it looked OK, but what can you do with smashed avocado, other than throw on some purple corn chips to make it look appetising? Joking aside, it all tasted pretty good, but a little on the bland side for me. It definitely needed more lime and chilli!
For our main course we both decided to go for the 'Polish, beetroot, white bean and dill, in a #vegan brioche bun with iceberg lettuce, red onion, mayonnaise, pickled cabbage, gherkin', "♫ and a partridge in a pear tree ♫". At that point it looked like the food was going to be pretty good value, that was until the waitress asked us if we wanted any chips with it, and if we did, it would cost us extra, but at least the basil mayonnaise was free! To our surprise the main meal came out before we had finished our starter, which automatically made us rush the rest of our hors d'oeuvre, because we didn't want our main meal to go cold (did I mention earlier that I felt like we were being rushed).
Looking at it, it certainly looked tasty enough, and there was lots of it on the plate, but the proof is always in the tasting. First of all those chips were the best thick cut chips I've ever tasted, and easily worth the extra few quid we paid for them. That's right I said it! They were seasoned to perfection, and had that awesome combination of a lovely crispy outside, and that melt in the mouth fluffiness on the inside. They were bloody gorgeous! However, the burger was a bit of a mixed bag; first of all it was huge, and practically impossible to get my mouth around it, even when I squished it down! Now I know that's not a bad thing, but I felt a little ashamed when I had to attack my burger with a knife and fork!
In regards to the taste of this multi-storey burger, I have to say "it was OK", the vegan brioche was nicely toasted and tasted amazing with all the fresh trimmings, but it was all let down by the Polish burger itself, which was very dry, and clawed at your throat on the way down, and it had the look of being left on the side for far too long. If anything, the other ingredients and the #vegan brioche saved it from being awful, and it's definitely something I won't be buying again!
A few other things we think you should know about are; when we arrived at 5.20 pm it was pretty empty, but within half an hour of us arriving it was absolutely packed, and people were cuing for tables. The overall look of the place is a bit like a school or works canteen, and all I could think about when I was there, was school dinners, which as many of you will know, is enough to turn your stomach. I think this was because of the long communal tables and really uncomfortable chairs, which are clearly geared to get you in and out as quickly as possible.
Also, when #mildreds got busy, it became really impersonal, and is definitely not the place to go to if you want a romantic meal with your partner, as they really pack you in. We were practically shoulder to shoulder with other customers, so, any type of private conversations were almost impossible. The last thing we wanted, was a couple of guys sat next to us talking about how hard their day had been, and could we pass them the salt! What we really wanted was a quiet meal to pass away a couple of hours and just relax, but to be honest with you we never got that!
Overall #mildreds not the best restaurant we've been in, but it's certainly not the worst either. It had it's good points and it's bad points as well, but if you like flying #easyJet, and paying for all the add-ons, then you will love this place, the only difference being, flying #easyJet is more comfortable. However, what I will say is this; this is our experience of #mildreds and what we tried was only a small portion of what they have on offer, and I'm sure there are many people out there who have enjoyed their experience more than we did ours. In saying that, the add-ons and the school dinner tables and chairs remain the same for everyone!
Welcome: ★★★☆☆
Drinks: ★★★★★
Food: ★★★☆☆
The Setting: ★★★☆☆
Experience: ★★★☆☆
Value for £: ★★★☆☆