Hix - London

Fancy rubbing shoulders with so did The Who's who in London? Try Hix in Soho... food by a revered chef does not disappoint and that bar downstairs is smoky, trendy and transports you.

Caught up with UK family for lunch at the Hix Soho last month. The restaurant was bright, warm and welcoming on a chilly English summer day. The menu looked delicious from top to bottom with something for everyone.I started with the Pork Crackling impossible to go past, then ordered the lamb for mains, with some interesting and delicious sides including black and pink boiled potatoes. We shared mini puddings with custard for desert and left absolutely stuffed to the brim.Service was brilliant, food equally good. Ambiance was lovely with a jazz duo playing in the corner. Price was a little up there, but for a special lunch, quite acceptable.

Hix is primarily a British cuisine restaurant, however, it's basement is hiding a brilliant cocktail bar, with a great drinks selection and couches and a lovely atmosphere.<br/ <br/ On a Saturday night it is normally packed so, even if you may be be able to get a seat if you're lucky, I recommend booking in advance just to be sure. You will need to order a snack or dessert from the menu as they only have a restaurant licence and then you can spend the rest of time drinking cocktails.<br/ <br/ The staff are all very friendly and welcoming and there's always someone around to help you out and take more orders.<br/ <br/ The drinks are a bit pricey £10-15 per cocktail, £7 for beer) so you may want to have that in mind. I always say start from the nice cocktail bar and then move to a pub to drink properly but if you are just going for one drink and an early night it's perfect.<br/ <br/ In terms of taste, I think there are some better bars with more luxurious feeling drinks but also much worse so this would be the middle ground in my opinion. Not the best but good enough for a fancy bar.<br/ <br/ In general that is a great place in Soho for when you are with sb who doesn't like pubs and would only drink in cocktail bars because you can both show off your local knowledge and get some nice cocktails in.

The food took too long to arrive, but when the starters appeared, it was love at first bite. The oyster and bacon stew was rich, yet surprisingly light. It was perfectly salted (which happens far too rarely! and although there were only two oysters, they made all the difference.

Food is OK but wasn't anything to write home about. I had the Gamekeeper's Pie. Decent but my local serves similar at half the cost. Give the Black Cow Martinis a miss. The Rioja was overpriced at £40 a bottle. The bar area downstairs was cosy though. Came to £85/head.