Simply a pleasure from start to finish. I heard that this restaurant had opened at the beginning if the month, so when a friends asked me to dinner, I was keen to offer this as an option as a place to try. As soon as we arrived we were greeted by the very friendly staff whom politely informed us that dinner would not be served for 30 minutes, so we purchased drinks, found ourselves a table in this unusual but quaint bar/restaurant. After settling my friend at the table I took the opportunity to have a peruse of the space. Not being a large area, they had made good use of the narrow Victorian build. Sharing the exposed brickwork and fireplace, tables lined the left wall while the bar took up most of the other. I particularly enjoyed the rustic shelving units that hosted the wines and spirits. The stylistic brown butchers apron adorned by the bar staff, coupled with one bartender's beads and long hair, one could almost imagine that he had made the shelves somewhere in the back - likening him to a famous carpenter of old. My friend and I laughed and enjoyed the very thought of it. The menu was simply but sophisticated. Serving seasonal produce which Mark the manager explained, meant it changed every few day. To start I had grilled Ox tongue, my friend, squash, ginger & chili soup. Followed by Coley with season veg and my friend the duck. The food was exceptionally and more than reasonably priced. Three hours went without knowledge. I think this may soon become one of my favourite haunts. read more

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Fabulous food and really wonderful service by the waitress. However, it was soooooo slow. Our waitress had to check and check and check on our main courses. We waited almost an hour between starters and mains. It was ridiculous. The duck salad was dreamy. Loads of pomagranate arils and orange segments with crispy, succulent duck. Maybe they were short-staffed in the kitchen, but the timing was truly awful. I'd give it another shot on the quality of the food, though. read more

I went here yesterday (Sunday) for a Sunday Roast. When most places offer a Sunday menu, you are expecting good things. Unfortunately for these guys it was either a bad day, or they need to rethink the restaurant business. When I arrived, there was a little buzz about the place, people were drinking and eating. I waited for a bar person, or wait staff to notice I was there, so I could ask where our reserved table was. This didn't happen. Eventually we were able to ask about the reserved table and there seemed to be some confusion, and no table had been set. So they quickly set one. We got our menus and some water. The Sunday menu consists of 3-4 starters, 5-7 mains, and some sides. The wine menu was quite large however the prices seemed a little ridiculous. 175ml was £4.95 and the bottle was £16, I probably would have at least two 175ml's with my lunch, so it was more cost effective to share a bottle with another diner, than pay for 2 glasses. Being a group of 6, the ordering took a little longer till we were all ready. Once we ordered things went downhill FAST. We waited 30mins for drinks, and when they came, only half of the drinks arrived. When we tried to add a side of fries to our order, they came back and told us the food had already been started and they had only cooked so many fries for the burgers that were ordered. We then said it didn't matter when the fries came, we would just like some. They went back to the kitchen, and came back to us saying that the chefs said no we couldn't have any, and the waitress then tried to convince us we'd be full with our meals anyways. The manager then came over, and stated the kitchen didn't have enough fries. So they only had enough to cover the burger orders for the afternoon. Seemed a bit ridiculous, but oh well we couldn't have the fries. We then waited a further hour to get our meal. So much for order being started already being started. In the mean time we could see the staff run off their, feet, but no tables seemed to be getting their meals, the manager called no more meals to be ordered as the kitchen was too busy. The bar was full of empty glassware, which really isn't a good sight for guests to see. The manager kept running past saying our meals would be out soon. Eventually soon came, and our meals arrived. The roast was a decent size, and cooked well. No real complaints, and had I not waited 1.5hours for the roast, I'd have been impressed. The manager then offered us free puddings as we waited so long. We ordered and waited another 30mins for those to arrive. When the bill came we were charged for the fries -_- All in all £27 Sunday Roast and 3 hours doesn't really check my boxes, and I probably wouldn't rush back considering the commute was over an hour. read more

The Rookery has a great space with a warm neighborhood feel. Our table was right by a fireplace, across from the bar. I would guess there's always a lively crowd there and mainly a local hangout aside from travelers who are at a nearby B&B. The gentleman who took care of our food service and wine was quite knowledgeable about wines and guided us to the right one in their selection. We picked The Rookery to try something new and we were pleasantly surprised by our experience. Service is good; the space is eclectic and interesting. There is an upstairs dining area that I did not get to see however next time perhaps. The restrooms are downstairs and a bit un-kept that night. The Gin bottle as a soap pump was quite amusing. The food arrived in a timely fashion and I started with the soup du jour, a curry soup. It was tasty with the right amount of flavor. My main was their Macaroni and Cheese with artichoke which gave it a real 'meaty' texture. The cheese was a nice mature cheddar that is required for a robust taste. Their menu states they offer simple foods and this is very accurate and I'd go a step further to say they are simply delicious. The Rookery's website only shows a sample menu because they have seasonal selections. I enjoy this concept because it keeps things new and fresh. I'd say keep up the good work y'all because this American Southerner in London like many others, appreciates a fresh dining experience. read more

Positives: warm fire, good service, lovely surroundings. It's a nice pub! The drawback was the food. I ordered the mac and cheese which was fairly average. I would have liked more creaminess. It came with a bit of undressed salad greens plopped on top too. Some dressing would have improved it. My partner got the Harissa roasted chicken. It was pretty bland and he wasn't all that impressed. It's not a bad pub but the food could be improved a bit given the price. read more

i had a birthday dinner here with friends and it was a pleasure from start to finish. firstly, it is dog friendly, and i had several communications with the manager/owner (maybe) of the bar who super helpful in making reservations for me and was a very nice chap when we met face to face. we were extremely well looked after, even though we were in the upstairs area of the bar (which aside from one other couple we had to ourselves all evening) - they even brought a big water bowl for my wee pooch. the wine list is extensive and really well thought out - it made it really difficult for me to choose! they also offer cocktails and lots of beer options too, so something for everyone. the menu is a really good one, so definitely difficult to choose what you are going to eat. i went for the mac and cheese of the moment, which was so good. i understand they change it up all the time, but there does always seem to be a mac and cheese on offer...the chef must have so much fun thinking up new combinations! orders around the table also included burgers, fish cakes, steaks and ribs and everyone was extremely pleased with their meals. we had no room for starters or desserts but i am sure they would be just as delicious. this place is semi-local to us, so we will definitely be back. read more

Took nearly 1 hour between course, despite being a quiet night, burger was as tuff as an old boot. Didn't wish to return it for fear it would be another hour. The waiter seem to be more interested in doing shots at the bar with his mate than serving. read more

Great place to hang out with friends. Relaxed atmosphere with friendly staff. Good menu and drink selection. read more

Really disappointed - underprepared, patronising and rude staff... I visited The Rookery this Sunday gone (22 Oct 2017) as during the winter months my fiancé and me go out for a roast as often as we can. This Sunday we invited some friends out with us to visit Clapham and based off a quick google search and the fact that we could get a table, we chose The Rookery. Our guests arrived first and 20 minutes early to be met by a less than welcoming member of staff who apparently couldnt quite get his head around the fact that they were early. When we joined all seemed to be going well, we ordered drinks and a selection of the tapas style starters from the decent menu. However when the starters arrived and we asked if it would be possible to have side plates, we were told by the same member of staff (mentioned earlier) that there weren't any clean side plates and to make do before he scurried off. Realising this wasn't right, I got up and had to ask another member of staff if we could have four side plates to which he agreed. When our roasts came they were off decent quality, the roast potatoes were particularly good but if i were nitpicking the portion side of the roast beef was very small. We ordered deserts, a third member of staff to wait our table took the order (not using a pen & paper) and surprise suprise got the order slightly wrong. One of our guest ordered the 'sticky toffee pudding with warm toffee sauce' as described on the menu. When it arrived the pudding itself was cold and dry as if it had been sat out for some time, but far more frustrating was the sheer lack of 'warm toffee sauce', it was as if the chef had dipped a small paintbrush into the sauce and tried to cover as much surface area of the bowl (again cold). Upon asking if it would be possible to have a small jug of extra toffee sauce were informed that it had run out hence why my guest's pudding looked as if it had just fallen out of a Victorian orphanage. To top it all off, when we asked for spoons to eat our respective deserts, there weren't enough clean spoons so I was provided with a large dirty soup spoon that looked as if it had just been dug up from the back garden. All the above was annoying but the roast had made up for the lack of service quality - where and why I now vow to never go back to The Rookery is because of the rude and patronising way in which we were treated when paying the bill (£180 for 4 people, so not the cheapest). When asked the question "was everything okay with your meal?", I calmly explained that the food was good but it was sadly let down by the lack of plates and cutlery and that the toffee pudding was well below par. A young chap stepped in at this stage from behind the bar, we assumed the manager, who didn't offer any form of apology but instead thought it best to suggest I was being precious for not being happy with having to use a soup spoon to eat my dessert. In addition he then put their failings on us by saying "You don't appreciate that we are in the middle of a busy service" (the irony of him saying this as he tore off our receipt from the credit card machine). As we left we overheard two other tables raising complaints, I just hope they didn't get spoken to the way we were. All in all we left angry, disappointed and insulted. Therefore for anyone who is looking for Sunday lunch options in the Clapham area I would happily suggest The Windmill (opposite the Rookery), The Abbeville (5 mins walk from the Rookery), The Bobbin (in Clapham Old Town), PowderKeg or The Roundhouse (St John's Hill) and The Avalon (Clapham South) - as far better options; I have been to all of them recently and all have been significantly better experiences than I and my friends had at The Rookery - we don't intend to go back, ever! read more