Review - The Forge

The Forge Restaurant & Bar
14 Garrick Street, London, WC2E 9BJ
Tel: 020 7379 1432
info@theforgerestaurant.co.uk

Hiding discreetly in the basement in Covent Garden's popular, The Forge, is a recently opened small "but perfectly formed space" offering a selection of modern European quality food for competitive prices and a wine list boasting over 500 wines.

There aren't many places in Covent Garden where you can get a starter for the price of a sandwich, and a main course for the price of a round of coffees. That's why the Forge Bar is a little oasis nestling below the frenetic and bustling life that is Covent Garden and Leicester Square, where you can enjoy quality food that if you don't let it, won't break the bank.

Because of the bar's bijou dimensions neither does owner Robert Seigler want to make a "song and dance," about it.

"It's a nice little hidey hole," he says. " For people who either want to come in for a whistle wetter before they dine upstairs. Or to meet up after work for a drink and a quick bite to eat."

"Down here it's less formal than the upstairs restaurant. It's convivial and much busier with suit wearing clientele on a weekday, than at the weekends."

The menu is simple and concise with reasonably priced starters such as anchovy, piquillo peppers and aioli on toast (£4.50) up to crab with toasted flatbread (£7.50).

Mains consist of a choice of 12 dishes including salmon fishcake with parsley sauce (£8.50), a little more expensive comes whole baked bream, tomatoes, olives and garlic (£14.50). Ten of the 12 dishes come in below £10. But if you want to order a selection of side dishes such as truffle and parmesan chips (£4.50) then that will certainly bump the price of your order up.

The full list of wines consists of 500 and is dominated by Old World at around 75 per cent. Downstairs the list is simplified to around 100, but still has a healthy 40 wines by the glass. You can start with a reasonably priced Sauvignon 'Elegance' 2008, VDP Des Cotes Du Tarn (£4.00) up to Taittinger NV (£11.50), or Rully, Maizieres 2007, Domaine Dureuil-Janthial (£11.00).

On the bar list most bottles come in between £15-£30, but you can go up to £75.00 for the Meursault Les Narvaux 2006, Vincent Giradin.

But my guess is that if you're going to start ordering at that price, you're going to want to eat upstairs!

• Sommeliers