Gilgamesh, Camden, London

The Sitch

A friend and I (god this is a recurring theme) decided to go for dinner. Although we work for the same company, we're in different projects and catching up can be a lesson in endurance. Therefore we finally agreed upon a day and as she's a complete foodie - hurrah - she sent me lots of lovely restaurants to look at.

We decided on Gilgamesh for several reasons: our first choice was full for that night, it had good word of mouth reviews and they had a taste menu on toptable.com (getting sick of that yet?) for £20 each. We thought this was too good to be true and booked it then and there, both of us getting quite excited about the night ahead.

The Place

The building is incredibly funky, there's no denying its charms. Its entrance is dominated by a huge sign and an escalator takes you up to the restaurant level. The main restaurant is huge and open-plan with Thai wooden engravings and amazing tables and chairs that are very solid and Thai-looking in appearance. The restaurant is on a few different levels which is a nice touch and the bar and kitchen faces the tables. There's also a sort-of lounge behind the bar and a private room fenced off on the way to the toilets.

The staff were rude which, unfortunately, I feel I must point out. The man on the front desk didn't even deign to speak to us on arrival or departure, merely pointing us in the direction of his colleagues who were also very dismissive. It almost felt as if we weren't as good as those who were paying full price which seemed rather ridiculous to me.

The Food

Taster menu:

Starter
- Duck spring roll with hoisin sauce
- Salmon sashimi salad
- Steamed prawn & chive dumplings

Main
- Thai Green crispy fish curry, Thai basil & lime leaf
- Grilled beef Japanese chive mash, sweet soy glaze
- Jasmine rice
- Stir-fried Asian greens

Dessert
- Chocolate & lemongrass brulee

The food was lovely in flavour (can't comment on the dumplings; I'm allergic to shellfish) and very well presented. The sauce on the sashimi salad was a tad fishy for me but Michaela lapped it up.

My biggest problem with Gilgamesh is the portion-size. We're two girls with a decent appetite and we were both mostly hungry when we had finished our meal. There wasn't nearly enough and I didn't feel happy parting with my money afterwards. I refused to pay the service charge because I felt as if a. the staff had been dismissive and b. I hadn't had a good dining experience. I didn't want to go back.

The Decision

I wouldn't go to Gilgamesh again unless I could afford to have a non-set menu. I feel it's overpriced, overhyped and worse, it believes in its own hype. The staff are very cold, not very welcoming and almost intimidating. Asking them for anything felt as if I was inconveniencing them which shouldn't be the case.

If the chef ever reads this - which I doubt - double your portion sizes for the set menu and you'll double your clientele. People like to feel as if they've gotten good value for money and in this case? I most definitely didn't.

In short: don't go to Gilgamesh if you're hungry!

The Vitals

Gilgamesh Restaurant Bar & Lounge
The Stables Market, Chalk Farm Road, NW1 8AH
Tel: 0207 428 4922
Website: http://www.gilgameshbar.com/index.htm
Toptable listing: http://www.toptable.com/en-gb/venue/?id=2947

Nearest tube:
Camden Town, Chalk Farm