The geezer and I don't normally cast our net so far afield for nights out, but we were in the Rotherhithe area already and decided to try out the Mayflower for something to eat. I thought I would share our experience with you, and perhaps save you the effort of making the trip.
I've cycled past the place many a time on the Thames cycle path and have always thought it looks like a fabulous pub with loads of character and great potential. It's right on the river in the historic cobbled streets of Rotherhithe and although it's penned in by modern flats, it has a great location.
It was a Friday night so the place was fairly busy with diners, but we managed to find a table close to the fire. There was a very pleasant ambience and although the drinks were a little pricey (£6.75 for a very acceptable pint of Greene King IPA and a pint of lager) I was hopeful that the food would be good.
Although the inside is rather 'olde-world' in style, it has been decorated by someone who feels the need to paint witty quotes about alcohol and being drunk all around the walls. The menu is on a chalk board, but don't be fooled - it's not today's specials, it's presumably so that they don't have to reprint the menus every time the prices rise (although oddly they do also have printed menus).
On the wall behind the bar was a notice reminding us, courtesy of the Drink Aware campaign, that alternating a glass of wine with a glass of water was a good way to moderate one's alcohol intake. Right next to that was a notice courtesy of the landlord announcing that only bottled water was available in this establishment, and patrons were not allowed to drink their own bottled water either. In fact the pub was somewhat awash with notices, signs, orders and instructions for every eventuality.
So we ordered our dinner. The menu is predominantly fish and seafood, with a range of steaks and a few other meaty and veggie options. When told that there was no cod for the cod,chips and mushy peas that I wanted (I could have haddock instead but it didn't come with mushy peas, the manager told me, in a voice that suggested he would find it impolite for me to enquire as to the reason) I decided to have the fresh dressed crab with salad and new potatoes.
The geezer went for fish pie which oddly came with a choice of either salad or chips (just in case you didn't already have enough potato on top of it, presumably). The "Mayflower signature dish" of shepherd's pie could also be served with chips, I noticed, whereas the "Scottish mussels" (their speech marks) did not. Even at £13 a portion.
Oh yes, the prices. The food is expensive. On a first visit you are not to know whether it is overpriced or not, at least not until you've eaten the meal. The Mayflower's food most certainly is.
We may be in London, but if I'm paying £13 for a crab salad I expect it to be exceptional. In terms of quality it was acceptable - the crab was ok, the salad was fresh and plentiful and the potatoes came in a pool of butter - but an upper price tag of £10 would have been a more reasonable level.
Likewise, the geezer's fish pie was fine, but nothing more. And it was £12.
The service was a weird mixture of uber-unctuous and unhelpful. I was particularly amused/exasperated that even when you are paying restaurant prices, you are expected to fetch your own cutlery and condiments from the sideboard next to the door.
Needless to say, we won't be going back to the Mayflower. However (annoyingly) as we left we did see a rather nice looking place just around the corner called Simplicity, which we intend to sample in the near future, so watch this space.
In the meantime, if you are up in that area I recommend instead the
Yellow House Bar & Restaurant at Surrey Quays (review coming soon) and/or
Banzi's vietnamese restaurant (ditto).
