Holborn Dining Room

How a great British dining room should be

Grilled prawns with garlic oil

Located inside the luxury Rosewood hotel, Holborn Dining room is a modern British restaurant which is known for its pie-making, with chef Calum Frankin overseeing the operation, the restaurant even has a pie room which works both as a pie-making kitchen, as well as acting as a private dining room in the evening. You can sample the infamous pie either as a takeaway in the daytime, or have it on site. I have eaten its pork pie in my first visit, and I ask keen to try the good old-fashioned chicken pie on my visit. Besides pies, the menu of the restaurant is your typical modern British hotel offering, with salad, steak, fish and burger, etc. 

Beetroot salad

Chicken pie

For my starter, I opted for some grill tiger prawns. To my surprise, it was better than I expected. The prawns were cooked just to the right level, nice firm texture with just a small hint of smoky aroma. The parsley dressing really uplifted the taste of the prawn and offered freshness, very enjoyable. The good old classic chicken and mushroom pie was chicken pie at its best, the pastry was thin, not oily or tough. It was soft on the inside but still packed a tiny crunch on the surface. The chicken was very tender, loaded with tarragon and mushroom. It was good enough that the chicken gravy was not really needed at all. I also got the chance to try the 50-day dry-aged Cornish steak, the meat speaks for itself with some bold savoury taste, but it was cooked to medium-well by mistake and I had to send it back for a fresh one.

50 days aged sirloin

Banana bread pudding

The whole experience was let down by the steak, but the replacement was exceptional when it was cooked medium-rare, super moist, and tender. Overall the dining experience was great and you can really taste how good British cuisine could be when done properly. The concept is simple with no gimmicks or unusual creative elements, it was just modern British cooking done using top ingredients. The service was really friendly and well mannered, but a little bit inexperienced as dropping cutleries a few times and slow to attend to our needs. Not the end of the world as they seem young and I felt they are trying and that is good enough at the current status as it is hard to find good hospitality staff these days.

Food 3/5


Average cost without drinks and services:
£50

252 High Holborn, Holborn, London WC1V 7EN

https://holborndiningroom.com/