Bird of Smithfield

Friday night, scouring for a place to eat in Smithfields’ area without a reservation… what a pain. We ran across this place, they managed to squeeze in a table for two, and we were very pleased.
We were shown to the upstairs dining room, to a nice table adjacent to a window. The waiter efficiently rolled off the daily specials and took our drink orders. Despite this being called ‘Bird of Smithfield’, and neither myself nor my boyfriend being consumers of fowl, there was plenty more on the menu to eat. I chose a more glamourous version of fish and chips… essentially, hake and chips. Indeed this was a bit pricier than the usual chippie, but it was a proper tarted up version to enjoy in comfortable surroundings. Fish delicate, chips crispy, and a creamy, gherkin flavoured tartar sauce which complimented – and not overtook – the fish. We ate and drank and lingered for about an hour an a half and really enjoyed ourselves. The staff were very friendly and overall the service was very good. I’d be happy to return.

Visited last night with a friend, first time ever. The ground floor is a bar, the restaurant is upstairs. Décor was lovely, had a very quaint classic feel to it. It was mostly empty when we arrived, but quickly filled up with several rowdy groups and gave it real atmosphere.
I had fish and chips as my main, which was recommended to me by the waiter. The fish was perfectly cooked, and the batter was crisp if a little greasy– but par for the course with this dish! Chips were disappointing, would have loved real chunky ones and was presented with sad, very clearly freezer style! Mushy peas were really nice. Staff was pleasant enough, but the space was too cramped. I think every person walking by our table tripped over or banged into my chair which was a little irritating!
Great wine selection, really fresh food. I’d come back!

Had a nice business lunch here. The food was all very tasty (my Shepard’s pie was highly recommendable, and so was the fried cod) and carefully prepared. The service was attentive and the overall experience highly pleasant. I thought the lunch meals were reasonable, despite the place being very clearly ‘high end’.

Cool little bar near Smithfield market. Good cocktails (though they tend on the fruity side). They have a limited menu but I tried the Shepherd’s pie (which was recommended as the specialty of the house) and it was excellent. Really perfectly cooked. Great vibe overall, and good choice for happy hour or late night.

I only went in the evening for a few cocktails and a late night bar food bite, so I can’t comment the actual proper restaurant experience.
That being said, this is a good place to go for a few drinks in the City if you are looking for a nice lively ambiance, but still want to be able to hear each other talk and want to avoid the big crowds.
The cocktails are pricy, but on point. My Old Fashioned was lovely, and then I had a long I don’t remember, but I know it left a good impression.
I had a steak sandwich on the side, and the meat was nicely done; no complaints there. The size was appropriate — I didn’t feel the need to order any sides. I also appreciate that they whipped this up right before 10pm, right before the kitchen was closing.
All in all, nice service, good experience. With so many other places in this price range in the City, I didn’t find this one particularly exceptional and won’t probably be rushing back, but it is a good option to be aware of for a drink.

Voici encore l’un de ces endroits assez unique à Londres qui propose un concept assez original. Plusieurs niveaux avec un bar à cocktails au sous-​sol, un bar lounge au rez-​de chaussée, une petite salle à manger au premier, un salon privé et finalement un «rooftop «. Ni vraiment un club et ni vraiment un simple restaurant, quelque chose peut-​être un peu entre les deux sachant q ue l’on né peut que venir prendre un verre ou manger. Cinq niveaux plutôt bien décorés dans une maison de style Georgienne, finalement assez étroite qui se trouve en face du marché de Smithfield, une ancienne halle victorienne qui abrite le plus grand marché de viande de Londres et qui a été récemment été rénové.
Le nom de l’établissement étant lié au nom du chef et propriétaire Alan Bird qui a un moment fut chef de cuisine du «The Ivy «et autres établissements par la suite, plutôt spécialisé dans ce que je qualifierais de cuisine moderne britannique. Des produits de première qualité souvent bios, des inspirations culinaires britanniques avec souvent beaucoup d’idées et des associations parfois audacieuses avec des ingrédients d’autres régions d’Europe.
Une fois à l’intérieur vous serez plutôt surpris de vous retrouver dans un décor assez style des années 60. On se croirait presque être dans un appartement avec un plancher en bois, un coin avec des sofas, quelques tables le long des fenêtres et tout cela avec un très agréable fond de musique et une ambiance entre feutrée et festive. L’impression que l’on se doit de prendre un verre avant de passer à table…
Quelques lumières douces de luminaires de l’époque, un bar dans le fond où l’on peut également prendre un verre mais pas genre pub mais plutôt de type club.
On vient prendre un verre dans l’un des sofas après le travail ou tut bonnement comme précédemment dit, passer un excellent moment avant de monter au premier dans la salle de restaurant. Il y a quelque chose d’assez envoutant dans cet endroit, probablement l’impression de se retrouver non pas dans un lieu public mais chez des privés.
La salle au premier plutôt contiguë et basse de plafond reste décorée dans ce style années 60 avec un ensemble de tableaux qui parfois pourrait rappeler la période du cubisme du début des années 1900. Ici aussi des banquettes le long des murs, certaines recouvertes de tissus devant lesquelles des tables en bois simplement dressées sont alignées. Une petite salle qui deviendra bruyante par la suite au vu de la promiscuité des tables mais finalement rien de gênant car on aura toujours l’impression de participer à un repas presque en famille ou alors de se retrouver dans un club d’habitués.
La carte propose une belle sélection d’assiettes influencées par ce que l’on appelle la «comfort food «ici en Grande-​Bretagne mais visiblement avec des ajustements pour alléger ces plats à la base roboratifs ou des mets que l’on pourrait qualifier de modernes en lisant la liste des ingrédients utilisés. Une carte qui né laisse pas indifférent et qui s’avère être vraiment très intéressante.
Première surprise avec le pâté de de crabe et de maquereau fumé, betteraves chioggia, avocat, œuf de Bantam à la coque, raifort. Visuellement l’assiette est très soignée, l’arrangement est précis, esthétique et séduisant. Il y aurait presqu’une touché un peu féminine dans ce dressage. Une terrine montée avec les éléments marins fumés, avec sur le dessus un jeu de texture particulièrement plaisant. La betterave Chioggia est originale car elle présente de multiples anneaux de couleurs blanche et rose vif, amèné ici un côté croquant à l’ensemble avec à l’intérieur du raifort, l’œuf moelleux issues de poules naines dont l’origine serait indonésienne complète avec finesse l’assiette ainsi que les petites touches de crèmes d’avocat disposées sur le côté finalise parfaitement cette entrée.
Je serai également assez impressionné par mon plat principal, un Colin fumé, couscous de de chou-​fleur, persil et purée de pommes de terre. A nouveau le visuel est très soigné et esthétique. Quant aux saveurs elles né seront pas en reste comme le jeu de textures. Le poisson est reconstitué en un cercle avec un magnifique goût fumé, deux types de chou-​fleur ont été râpés avec de créer une impression de couscous végétal coloré mais ici encore cru, quelques autres légumes de la famille du chou ou brocoli, quelques touches de purée et une fine sauce au persil sur le côté. C’est un plat délicat et gourmand.
Comme autre accompagnement j’ai choisi une excellente poêlée de légumes de saison composée de diverses feuilles de chou dont du «Kale «simplement passées au beurre avec quelques morceaux de courge.

This is a review of the rooftop patio.
As a connoisseur of rooftop patios, I feel fully qualified to comment on the following dimensions: 1) View: OK. Mostly see smithfield market and facing northwards, when most of London’s interesting skyline is Southwards. However. You can sidle up a bar stool right to the railing, which is quite nice. 2) Layout etc: Vines, shrubbery, foliage, etc. More than I’d expect, glimpsing from below! 3) Coziness: very.
Yes, I will come back and enjoy the roof on another sunny day.

Cool place to go on a sunny friday afternoon that’s close to work. Wouldn’t travel too far for it, but if you’re around the City or Farringdon, it’s a good place to go to.

Love this quirky little restaurant! Been a couple of times now and the food is amazing. Last night I had crab with pearl barley and brandy cream to start followed by Alan’s Shepherds Pie which is an absolute must if you ever visit. I love the bar downstairs and they are great with cocktails. I’m a very fussy mojito drinker but can’t fault theirs. The staff here are very friendly and are incredibly knowledgeable about the food and wine. The place has a lovely ambiance about it. Can’t recommend it highly enough. Book it up!

Love this place. The food, from Alan Bird and his team, is delicious. As are the cocktails etc! And I, someone who is careful with my money, think the prices are reasonable, and completely justifiable. Alan is visible and chatty, and I’ve not had one experience there where the staff have not been smiley, friendly, happy etc. It’s like visiting friends. I often wander round this area (where I live) alone, and know I can drop in here for anything from porridge at 7am, to a cuppa in the afternoon. And then with friends for cocktails (especially earlier in the week when they are 241), to supper, dinner and even dancing till late. It’s like a club without the ‘restrictive, we know how to make you feel excluded’ membership and other rules. There is lovely art and a fabulous collection of large format, coffee table, books, the kind I lust after on shops but simply cannot justify paying the prices of for my own coffee table. I love the Barbican library round the corner, but now that I’ve found Bird’s book collection I have somewhere else to go to browse. I used Bird for a private lunch for 16, in the private dining room, and again — it was great — couldn’t fault it. Nadia the Events Manager couldn’t have been more helpful, and Shauna who looked after us likewise. I took friends to a wine tasting/​pairing dinner on 15÷5÷15 — they loved it. I know Shauna has found her career job and has moved on but it was great to see her back on a casual basis helping out at this fully booked event. Anyway, have rattled on enough — go see for yourselves!

The furniture throughout the building is very comfortable and coupled with the décor it feels like you’re a guest in someone’s home. We order our starters. Alex and Antonia go for Ruby salad leaves with Heritage beets, soft goat’s curd, cobnuts and pomegranate (£7.00), which I would have preferred with goats cheese rather than the lighter curd. My brother opts for the Crispy Suffolk pork cheeks, which had a light, crisp batter and came with a bitter leaf salad with green sauce and I have the Spring Cornish lamb & vegetable broth with mint relish (£6.50). There’s all cracking dishes. Plenty of lamb in my broth and lovely, crunchy vegetables help to balance out the strength of the lamb, while the mint relish cuts through the stock and freshens it up.
For the main course Antonia and I had the Blythburgh pork belly and surf clams, damsons & samphire (£14.50), which was beautifully balanced. Salty pork belly, creamy mash and a light sauce with delicate, tender clams. Darren had the 3 way Temple Farm Chicken (£16.00), which had some crispy skin and liver and Alex had Deep fried cod with triple cooked chips, mushy peas and tartare sauce (£14.50). Again these were all very, very good dishes. The desserts also delivered. The Lemon and Earl Grey posset, curd and candied zest was particularly good with a lovely zingy lemony kick.

I am blessed with some truly awesome friends. Particularly those whose jobs involve client entertainment, and MOST especially those who reach year end under budget and decide to treat me to a ‘business’ lunch. Enter Bird of Smithfield.
I can see why she likes it for client lunches: it’s in a Georgian townhouse that has character without being in-​your-​face, the menu is compact but varied, and the décor is sophisticated but not so exclusive that you feel you have to talk in whispers (we certainly didn’t).
I was welcomed by a lovely hostess downstairs who asked if I wanted to wait at the bar, but I said I was happy to go up to the restaurant. I probably should’ve listened to her as it turned out I was the first and only customer in the upstairs dining room for the next 15 minutes or so, until my friend and another party arrived before it started getting awkward. It’s not a very big restaurant so filled up quickly after that.
They do some wines by the glass which we decided was more sensible than a bottle on a Tuesday lunchtime, and we did actually have some work chat (honest) over a nice white burgundy. The food impressed me too, and not just because I could ignore the prices on this visit. We both went for the starter of caramelised figs, goat’s cheese, salad and honey, which was a lot of yummy things that all worked well together. For main I opted for the fish and chips, which didn’t quite measure up to that I’ve had elsewhere in the City but nevertheless good chips and pleasingly mushy peas. My mate also made good noises over her pork belly, though the portion wasn’t that big. Dessert ended on a high note; as my friend and her poached pear came to agree, there is no acceptable choice other than the sea salt caramel and chocolate crackling pot. It’s far too big after a full meal (even for a dessert fiend like me), but you won’t want to stop until it’s all gone.
The service was fine, though a little slower than you’d expect for the number of waiters they seemed to have flying about. There was a slightly confusing moment when a man in a grey suit stopped by the table to ask if everything was okay and I thought he was a stranger trying to strike up a conversation, but it turned out he was staff and just not in the same uniform as all the other waiters. Woops.
Overall I had a great meal, though it is at the expensive end for a casual meal. A special occasion and the 30% off voucher they left with the bill might just be enough to tempt me back…

Place with great potential — food was nice, location is great but service needs to up its game for a 4 star rating.

I booked a table in the much posher downstairs dining room on Saturday but given the warm weather, we wanted to be outside (and lighter food). In short order we were transferred upstairs to the terrace.
Our table wasn’t wiped down and after we were seated we had to ask for it to be relieved of its remnant crumbs and stickiness. That was a little lame.
The brunch menu has a lot of what you might expect: pancakes, omelettes, burgers and chips. I considered getting the roasted half grapefruit (£4.5) and regret that I passed it up. For some strange reason, the ham, egg and chips (£8) called out to me. It sounded so British and I figured, when in London…
My dining companions shared the fish finger sandwich (£7.5) and the tempura tiger prawns (£8.5). I was envious of both and would definitely order that fish finger sandwich in future. I mean, who can pass up a sandwich with peas on it?
A couple of us ordered glasses of bubbly and instantly we were on a tropical holiday, despite our location in EC1.
From a food and service standpoint, Bird of Smithfield is more like three stars. But if you snag a seat on the roof on a wonderfully sunny Saturday, it’ll feel more like four.

I had a lovely meal at Bird of Smithfield. I’ve heard from other Unilocalers that the service wasn’t so great, but I think they’ve gotten that kink out because I had absolutely no complaints. This restaurant has multiple levels along with a rooftop terrace.
The Hand Dived Scallops were delicious. The carrot and coriander really made a nice complement. The problem with scallops is that they never give you enough though :(. The server told us the Ribeye Special which was something to the tune of a kilo of meat for 2. For some reason my dining partner thought that was a good idea so we went with it. Boy, was it a whole lotta meat! We both couldn’t finish our plates, but I have to say the meat was pretty tasty. They gave you all their sauces on the side so it was a nice variation of bearnaise, green pepper sauce, and bone marrow butter.
Overall, very lovely setting for a restaurant and I enjoyed the food. I snuck a peek at the rooftop terrace and wasn’t really impressed with the view. But I guess you can’t really complain about hanging out on a rooftop on a nice London’s summer night, right?

We were lucky enough to have our own private dining room as we had approx 15 people in our party.
The room was spacious, modern, beautifully furnished with a separate seating area with sofas, fireplace & magazines (reminiscent of someone’s living room) which we could lounge on whilst waiting for our food.
We had the option of a 3 course meal where we had the option of picking the top 3 dishes we wanted for each course prior to the dinner which added to the personalised service that alot of other restaurants don’t provide.
Entrée — I chose the Treacle Cured Organic Salmon which was fresh, clean and a great starter to pre-​empt the heavier courses.
Main — Alan’s shepherds pie was quite intense in texture & flavour, the portion size was perfect for the strength of flavour, Pork Belly had a crispy crackling and the pork was well-​cooked albeit with a slight bite, Torbay slip soles was well seasoned however it was served as a whole unfilleted fish which required some delicate eating to avoid any stray bones.
Dessert — Rhubarb & Bird’s custard trifle was light and fruity, Maldon sea salt caramel and cru virunga chocolate crackling pot was AMAZING — served in a small cappucino cup it contained layers of flavour including sweetness, saltiness & the surprise crackle of pop rocks at the bottom!
The waiters were patient, attentive and organised — I would highly recommend this restaurant & look forward to trying the Sunday Roast!

Went to this place with some work colleagues, I first arrived, and by the looks of it, I thought it was just a pub meal, which I didn’t mind as I love pub meals! I walked in, and to my amazement, this was not a pub, in fact, it wasn’t a pub! WHAT IS THIS! Looked very nicely done up, shiny wooden floorboards, smartly dressed waiters/​waitresses, and 3 levels of seating (Beer lounge kind of, Restaurant and roof terrace.) Sadly I couldn’t go all the way to the third, but I proceed to the second floor, where I was then showed to my table. So far so good, in fact very good. The view wasn’t great, as it was by what looked like an old kind of delivery shed. But, if it’s sunny, looking into the sky is majestic.
We ordered some wine, which I had no idea what was what, as I am not a huge fan of wine, but oh the well. We then continued to munch through the complimentary bread that was put in front of us, this was nice, warm and fresh. Once done with that, we ordered our mains, I had the fish and chips, WOW! it was quite possibly the nicest battered cod and chips I have ever had, the batter was crisp, the cod was amazing, the chips were thin, crispy and amazing, and the tartar sauce MMMMMMMMMM, the pot was gone in seconds, that’s how good it was. The waitresses seemed a little, off their feet, they were very unorganized, but they were bad enough it was a little bit of a pain, and the fact they weren’t busy at this point made it a tad worse, one of the reasons I give this place 4 stars. If they improve the staff, I improve my mark. But hey, food wise, amazing!
I would gladly go again, if I had the money for it. Great great place.

We weren’t sure if the wine was self serve or not, because it took them AGES to bring it by, and we were sitting RIGHT BY THE BAR, RIGHT OPPOSITE THE WINE FRIDGE. And we didn’t order any other drinks, as there was already table water. So I don’t understand. It put a bit of a damper on the meal. Probably not the best impression on 6 very opinionated people on food.
The food was lovely, but I’m not sure I agree with the prices, but then again, it’s in an area where prices are pretty high (The Chateaubriand steak next door at Grill on the Market is like £52) I had the duck with beetroot and it was nice, but it didn’t blow me away. It was done 3 ways, and I think I got a bit bored eating JUST duck. I mean, you could order side dishes with it but I felt that the dish needed a lift, aside from the beet taste. It needed another flavour to cut it and make it amazing. But it was solid, but not wow worthy. The dessert, was wow worthy, I ordered the chocolate crackling pot, and it came as a chocolate mousse with crackling choco candy which was SO cool and it just worked. Probably should’ve shared the pot but It was SO good. Sorry, all the people I was dining with!
Service was haphazard, they nearly topped off someone’s wine with the wrong wine and the bread issue (see alex’s review) was a bit weird. Overall, I felt that the price didn’t reflect well enough on the food and the service, and something needs to be stepped up, either, the staff wasn’t working well together or that they need to choose what they want to be, a bar, a restaurant, a rooftop bar, a weird coffee shop thing, I don’t understand the half netting in the windows downstairs that makes it look like dot cotton’s launderette. Especially for a posh place like Bird of Smithfield.

When you’re a new restaurant in London, especially a higher-​class, semi-​expensive restaurant, fighting all the other higher-​class, semi-​expensive restaurants in London, you’ve got to be at the top of your game. You’ve got some nice buzz going with your opening and you want to shine to keep it going, to get people talking about you, to bring people back.
Last night, we tried the new Bird of Smithfield. And the chefs at this Farringdon location were absolutely at the top of their game.
The staff, however, were not.
It’s a real shame too because the food was delicious. Fresh bread placed in the middle of the table with butter as you sat. The menu is small but strong with a few selection of starters, mains, puddings and tea (all fit onto two pages of one menu.) And really, everything we tried was delicious. I got the crispy baked trout (which looked and tasted more like salmon but maybe I don’t know trout well enough) with shrimp and a small side of bisque to pour over it. It was flavourful and sweet over a bed of grains. Really delicious.
Other items around the table were equally as good. «Alan’s shepherd’s pie» came with warm mashed and saucy meats and each bite was trully fantastic. The deep fried cod seemed like your basic fish and chips but the trippled cooked chips were crunchy and on top of their game and the tartar sauce that came with? Yes. So yes.
We even tried a round of puddings. Standout was the Maldon sea salt caramel and Cru Virunga chocolate crackling pot, which was like warm mousse with caramel and little bits that popped in your mouth. It even came with two biscuits. Woah. The goat cheese cheesecake and ice cream were good to but nothing like that one.
So food, while pricey, was delicious. If it was for that alone, I would come back.
However.
The staff last night was some of the worst I’d ever seen in London. If I could blame it on one waitress and say she wasn’t good or having a bad day, that would be one thing. But we had three waitresses serving us and each of them awful in their own way.
When we sat, they didn’t bring us menus. When they brought us menus, they forgot one person and didn’t come back with more until we asked again. They filled the early-​arrivers water and then we had to ask for everyone else. They didn’t bring a wine list until we asked. They wouldn’t take out order until we asked. We could literally see two of our waitresses standing there and made eye contact, and still, nothing. They put down the bread in the middle of the table without bread plates, and when we asked for some, we got this snippy response:
«We don’t do bread plates here. Don’t worry, we clean the table before your main course so we’ll brush away the crumbs.»
Thanks, wasn’t really worried about crumbs, more putting my bread on your table that you clean with disinfectants and that other people have ate and spilled across.
They spilled wine every single time they poured, on the table and on me. We had two bottles of wine and a waitress came to refill out glasses, but thought we only had one and didn’t ask, so she started to pour into a glass that was filled with wine from the other bottle (luckily we caught her in time.)
I will say they got their act together a little better towards the end of the night, refilling water glasses and bring a dessert menu as soon as the main plates were cleared. But seriously Bird, you’ve got to be better than this. Especially for being so new.
So four stars for the amazing food, two stars for the service, three stars overall. I may give them another chance down the road, but with so many other similar restaurants who have their act together, it may not be any time soon.