London, dinner question

We are thinking about staying at the St. James Court, which is located on the Southside of the river just over the Westminster Bridge. Was wondering if there will be enough choices for dinner in the area or will we have to cross over the bridge and go looking? Lunch is not a problem

Your description of the location does not match with the name of the hotel, which is on Broadway in, well, St. James's.

You could be describing several hotels. There are also several restaurants in that area and further along the Southbank, so you should be fine, but no hardship to travel a short distance to one of the other several thousand restaurants in London :)

Sent from my iPad using Forums

The location you describe sounds like the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge or one of the nearby hotels in the County Hall complex. There are several restaurants there, including at least a couple of Italian places - Google 'restaurants County Hall'. Walk a bit further to the Royal Festival Hall/National Theatre complex and you'll have several other choices, including Skylon in the Hall itself. A bit further along the river you'll come to the quirky eateries in Gabriel's Wharf, including Gourmet Pizza. And finally, it's not that far to the Oxo Tower with its famous restaurant and brasserie.

Of course, what is a good or reasonable restaurant is subjective and also dependent on expectation of style and cost. You should have a choice of both near your hotel...if you are staying south of Westminster Bridge and not at St James' Court!

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Thank you Cotswold Eagle

The Westminster Bridge area is where we are looking at, I may have gotten the wrong side of the river in my question

St James Court Hotel is in Buckingham Gate quite near Buckingham Palace, so you will be North of the river in Victoria/Westminster area. There are restaurants all around you.

Have you tried to locate your hotel on a map? That will help you start your research into what is available.

St James Court Hotel is in Buckingham Gate quite near Buckingham Palace, so you will be North of the river in Victoria/Westminster area.

Yes, thank you for correcting me, I was thinking of Conrad London St James on Broadway!

Of course, the St James' Court is even further from what would be described as Westminster Bridge area, so I remain somewhat baffled where the OP is staying!

We are thinking about staying at the St. James Court, which is located on the Southside of the river just over the Westminster Bridge. Was wondering if there will be enough choices for dinner in the area or will we have to cross over the bridge and go looking? Lunch is not a problem

Assuming we are talking about the St James Court, which is in Buckingham Gate and is a place I have quite often stayed at, then you might try a nearby Restaurant called Bumbles -- inexpensive but British.

At rather more cost, but not over the top and again very close to you, is one of the Bank Restaurants where I have regularly eaten at lunchtime.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Thank you all for your replies.

Been looking at maps

Have several locations we are looking at. Must have a few of them mixed up.

One area was the Westminster Bridge and another area was where the St. James Court is located.

To add to my confusion, we are also looking in the Hyde Park area.

It appears there are ample choices for dinner in any of the above areas

Thanks again for your suggestions

Another area you might look at is one called Bloomsbury close to London's Theatreland and just to the North of Covent Garden.

An area I would avoid is Paddington which attracts some because it's the terminus for the Heathrow express train.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Assuming we are talking about the St James Court, which is in Buckingham Gate and is a place I have quite often stayed at, then you might try a nearby Restaurant called Bumbles -- inexpensive but British.

 

At rather more cost, but not over the top and again very close to you, is one of the Bank Restaurants where I have regularly eaten at lunchtime.

Used to be a regular haunt, but Bumbles is no more, I'm afraid.

The Zander Bar at Bank Westminster (which is attached to the St James' Court) is said to be the longest bar in London. Fun fact :)

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Used to be a regular haunt, but Bumbles is no more, I'm afraid.

 

The Zander Bar at Bank Westminster (which is attached to the St James' Court) is said to be the longest bar in London. Fun fact :)

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Pity about Bumbles closing -- I first went there about 35 years ago and have been several times since

Sent from my iPad using Forums

I vote for the Hyde Park area. Every time I'm in London, I try to stay in a different area so I can get to know it a little. Last time, I stayed in Hyde Park and it was a really good location for the tube lines that we needed. Some of the other areas involve changing tube trains every time you want to go somewhere which can be a bit of a pain, especially when they're packed to the gills. There are plenty of restaurants and shopping the Hyde Park area and it's just so easy to get to anywhere you want to go.

Has anyone found the Dining Guide Card to be beneficial?

St James Court is a beautiful hotel and has several restaurant options available within the hotel and its grounds. I can recommend Kona which serves excellent food. It is also within walking distance of several other restaurants in the area.

If you book I would suggest you look at the Executive rooms as they tend to be slightly more modern. Lovely hotel!

Has anyone found the Dining Guide Card to be beneficial?

There are many discount cards around and I have found them of limited value. When you read the small print you often find that the discounts are not available at weekends and sometimes not in the evening. This is not surprising since the better restaurants are always full then anyway, so have no need to offer bargains.

When we are in London (not very often) we usually have a good lunch, which is usually a much better deal than the same place in the evening. Later on we might opt for a snack in a fast-food place, or take bread, cheese and wine back to our hotel room.