Towers of London

Last night I went to Rhodes 24: young Gary's restaurant on the 24th floor of Tower 42 in London.

I've always been fascinated by this building. I remember a day trip to London with my dad when I was about 10 or 11: we stood right at the foot of the tower and looked straight up to the top so that it appeared to be falling on us! I've always wanted to get inside it and yesterday was the first time I'd ever done so. The view was really interesting - I could see out to the very edges of greater London and identify loads of landmarks I recognised. I also leant my forehead against the window to see what it was like looking straight down to the ground, which was fun!

But of course it's a bar and restaurant, not merely an observation gallery, so how about I mention the food and drink?!

We sat in the bar first of all and ordered cocktails. I tried Barman's Revolution, which was very nice and refreshing. The barman had never heard of a Moscow Mule but managed to mix a passable one for my husband when we asked. The complimentary olives and mixed nuts went down a treat, too!

We went to the London Taste Festival a few weeks ago and sampled some delicious dishes from Rhodes 24, which is why I was so keen to book us a table. My husband, therefore, chose the ruinously expensive beef, since we already knew it would be delicious. I was a tiny bit miffed when it arrived and he discovered that it was slightly overcooked (medium rather than medium rare as requested). The saffron vegetable salad accompanying his cauliflower cream to start was also a slight disappointment: it was too strongly flavoured and overpowered the delicate cauliflower and vegetables.

My starter, haddock and leek pie, was amazing and I really can't fault it. This is the sort of traditional British comfort food I was expecting to find at this restaurant and I was thrilled with my choice. My main course - salmon with champ and smoked bacon - was also excellent and I was pleased to be *told* how the salmon would be cooked rather than asked my preference.

I'm not generally a pudding fan but I was looking forward to trying the signature pudding dish. A lot of good British restaurants seem to be making a name for themselves lately by raising their game pudding-wise (Brian Turner is a good example) - I might have to change my mind and get into desserts if the standard is going to be this high! I had a mini jaffa cake, a bread and butter pudding with creme Anglaise and a Baileys creme brulee, all of which were pretty good (possibly the B&B pudding was a bit too custardy, but that's all I'd change).

All in all I thoroughly enjoyed this restaurant and I was pleased with the quality of the food and the service. But ... well, I won't be going again in a hurry because it's simply too expensive. I don't mind spending some money on good food and wine, but some dishes seemed overpriced compared to others. We found ourselves having to scan the wine list for affordability rather than choosing according to quality (the £300 1991 Ribiera del Duero sounded great, but ...!). So I'll be waiting for Toptable to present me with a special offer for this place before going again.