Miltons is pretty good. But there are some things they can work on. After eating breakfast here for…read morea week, and a couple dinners, I can say the breakfast service is good. Their full English tastes good to me, exotic as it is to this American, and other items like smoked haddock and salmon are good - the haddock is warm, and very moist and flaky. Try getting that at most American breakfast places.
Dinner is more complex, but also has a couple complaints. On the first visit, I had the plaice, which turned out to be a crab mousse, wrapped in plaice fillets, and then wrapped again in pancetta, served atop some pickled fennel and spinach. The place/crab/pancetta was good, but a little dry. However, none of the flavors overwhelmed each other. It would have been easy for the ham to be too much or the crab to be too strong. It just didn't live up to the plaice I've had in Iceland (although, I probably shouldn't expect it to). The spinach was...not rinsed. Very sandy/gritty, as confirmed by a dining companion that ordered the same dish. As a high point in that meal, the roasted red pepper tomato soup reminded my of my grandmother's (a very good thing) with no milk or cream to temper the delicious tart flavor. Cream of Tomato is for sissies.
I also had their ribeye. No, I didn't expect it to live up to a Chicago steakhouse ribeye but it was still just OK. Lots of connective tissue, not a ton of flavor. It was cooked properly, which is a plus, and I ordered with a (necessary) side of peppercorn cream sauce, which was quite tasty. Again, a high point for this meal: the chunky chips and hot tomatoes. The tomatoes were very good, and the chips were maybe the best I've had in 2+ recent weeks of being in Ireland and the UK. Crisp outsides. Not cut too large, so the inside was hot and moist without being undercooked. Good potato flavor, and no shortage of salt (cuz salt is delicious). They were even better dipped in the peppercorn sauce.
The service here is quite good - all the wait staff (and I probably saw them all) were very friendly and courteous. They apologized one morning that my coffee came in a tea pot, as they were out of coffee pots when I came in. I've decided to overlook this unpardonable sin. Breakfast can be a little slow if you order the full English, but there's a lot of pieces there, so I'm fine with it. Just something to know if you're running late.
I should also comment on the...eclectic dinner music. "Oops I Did It Again" followed by the Gary Jules cover of "Mad World"...and then some Wham. Uh. Kay.
