Gareth's reviews
Review of NatWest Cash Machine
01 Aug 08, 09:30
My cash machines of choice 
Close to where i work, and often on the way to where I need to spend my moolah. But what's this, queues of tourists using MY cash machines?!?! Well, watch and learn, fools, as I sweep sedately through the doors and use the cash machine INSIDE the bank! Yeah, thought you'd be impressed!
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of The Box Bar
18 Jul 08, 10:03
Great gay salads!
Used to pop in here fairly often when I worked nearby. I'm sure in the evenings it's very lively, but it's generally pretty quiet at lunchtime - you can egenrally get a pretty big group in here without any problems - the salads are great.
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of The Neal Street Restaurant
02 Jul 08, 15:37
Restaurant closed 
interesting to read suzy g's review. What was the Neal Street restaurant is now a branch of American Apparel, so maybe she got confused and ate a very delicious pair of overpriced, brightly coloured pants?
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of Strada
27 Jun 08, 11:00
Good riverside stop-off
If you've been to a Strada before, you know the score, but it's fairly generic Italian food, but the food and decor are a level up from the the usual places. This branch gets extra points for being within garlic bread throwing distance of the Thames, and the staff were very efficient without being annoying. Also they sell Grand Riserva Peroni, which is nearly 6%, so gives Stella a run for it's money whilst actually tasting nice. If you're heading to the Festival Hall or idly twatting around by the Thames, worth it for a reasonably priced filling meal. (And some strong booze, did I mention that???)
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of The Royal Festival Hall
23 Jun 08, 09:28
Fantastic venue
I think they spent something like 90 million quid renovating this 50's concrete building. I can't say if that's great value for money or not, but they have done a great job. Loads of space, and you can even lets the kids off the leash inside if they fancy a go at annoying tourists and running around the place. Seeing a concert in the main hall is fantastic, and the acoustics are 'top notch!'
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of Tabio
19 Jun 08, 15:10
Sock-a-rama
Japanese made socks in all shapes and sizes. Think of Paul Smith socks on acid. they also do kind of sock/glove hybrid things which the wife likes. They're socks but they have individual 'fingers' for your toes. I think they're a bit weird/possibly a tad kinky if you're into toes! Also lots of brightly coloured tights should you be a lady in need of some brightly coloured legwear.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Review of North Face
17 Jun 08, 10:40
The Mercedes of outdoor gear
Ok, so it's pricey, but if you spend a lot of time in the great outdoors, either camping, yomping up a mountain, or even going to a festival and you have more money than sense, these guys will sort you out. Lovely kit in a lovely shop.
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of Mountain Warehouse
17 Jun 08, 10:38
Cheap camping gear 
Basically a discount shop selling the kind of clothes and gear you'll need if you're going camping. I wouldn't suggest you buy stuff here if you need 'technical performance' - but if you want stuff like lights, water bottles, and fleeces etc, then stock up from here
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of Urban Outfitters
16 Jun 08, 13:33
too old for this place!
As I begin the steady roll downhill into old-age, shops like this seemt o be standing on the sidelines, flicking the Vs at me and yelling obscenities at me, safe in the knowledge that I lack the necessary energy to do anything about. Fake vintage clothes at non-fake prices, 'cool' stuff that clearly isn't cool, piles of plastic tat which is meant to be ironic - wind up plastic grannies, god-awful overpriced kitschy plastic picture frames, strings of fairy lights with plastic flowers attached. Obligatory collection of cool music, includingt vinyl, so you can buy it, take it home, play it on one of your technics, once, then ignore it. Shops like this have been a portent of the incoming credit crunch for sometime, when we have enough money to piss away on the stuff shops like this sell, we clearly have too much easy credit. Right, back to Countdown....
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of Epoca Expresso Bar
11 Jun 08, 09:48
Great coffee, food ok
Haven't eaten here for a while, but they seem to do all from sandwiches, paninis, through to 'the full english'. Coffee is what keeps me coming back, if I can't walk up the road to Monmouth Coffee then epoca is a good second best. Apart from the grumpy girl who makes the stuff, it's very good coffee - made from illy beans which is generally a pretty good sign. give it a go!
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of Jessops
11 Jun 08, 09:39
Uselss, useless, useless
I've been in here about 6 times when either looking for a specific piece of kit I'd researched online, or else browsing and asking for info. On each occasion I dealt with grumpy, unhelpful and on two occasions downright rude members of staff. On one occasion, I'd popped in to have a look at tripod they had in stock, the member of staff basically refused to sell it to me, and kept trying to push an inferior piece of tat at me. I gave him an option - sell me the tripod, or i'll go somewhere else to buy one. While he tried to make his mind up, I went over the road and bought one at Jacobs. How bad can their hiring policy be if they have people like this working in what must be one of their busiest stores. Avoid like the plague, and head over the road to Jacobs, they actually know what they're doing.
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of Jacobs
11 Jun 08, 09:35
A league above Jessops
New Oxford Street and the streets in front of the British Museum are a hotbed of new and secondhand camera shops. If you're an SLR user and have got bored with the kit lens they sold you with your camera, then it's worth taking a few hours strutting about, necking the odd coffee and losing yourself in the world of cameras. (Having done your research online first of course, check out www'kenrockwell.com for opinionated but readable and very useful camera info - the guy is annoying but right - damn him!) Anyway, this branch of Jacobs is just over the road from Jessops, but a world away in terms of customer service and stock. Staff who actually acknowledge you and don't appear to be pissed off at having a job there is a good first step (is someone from Jessops HR reading this?). They know what they're talking abouit, and they have a store stacked with new and used cmaera gear. So whether you're a camera virgin or someone who knows their stuff, this has to be worth a visit if at least to get an idea of baseline prices and what's around at the moment.
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of Pages
10 Jun 08, 09:48
Great for proper cooking gear and gifts
Impressively huge range of knives, saucepans, chopping boards, skillets, whisks, oil pourers, sauce bottles, caondiment sets - basically - this is the main shop to come to if you're training to be a professional shop, but is also great to buy the chef in your life a present.
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of Forbidden Planet
02 Jun 08, 15:17
Geek out
Forbidden Planet - this is a bit of a love it or hate it kind of shop. If you like comics, sci-fi, cult tv and films etc, then this should be the perfect shop for you, and in fact, it must be the biggest geeky shop in the country. i've been coming here for 17 years off and on, and though I acquired a girlfriend at one point who refused to step inside the place as the sheer geeky overload terrified her, I guess i'll keep going until my comics vouchers expire. It has a huge choice, and they relocated a couple of years ago from a cramped, dank shop round the corner to this brighter, cleaner store. so why three stars? Staff - Tills are largely unmanned. Staff are generally of the surly, unhelpful variety, who all look like they're killing time between audtions to get on 'who's the biggest emo fan in the country'. I've nothing against how these guys look - but come on, it's a shop, help me buy your stuff! Music - Instore music is of the 'emo/alt' variety - that's great for probably about 40% of the customers. Come on, try playing something else once in a while! Prices - You can't argue with the prices of comics in here, as there's not a lot of give in new comics prices, so fair dos. But books/graphic novels, Cds, DVDs - if they can charge full whack they will. So a DVD boxed set that you might pay £20 for on amazon ends up being around £35 here, luncacy. Unless you have a deadline to buy 'crazy manga stuff vol 7' that day, get on the web. The smell - I'm not sure if it's in the building, the staff and/or the customers, but some people here should learn to wash on at least a semi-regular basis and invest in some deodorant. surely being into sci-fi, comics, whatever doesn't preclude you from some decent personal hygiene! Christ, maybe i should just give up comics? Might be easier....
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of Monmouth Coffee House
02 Jun 08, 14:14
best coffee in the world 
Absolutely the best coffee i've ever had. Originally i thought they might have been tipping some heroin in here, but it's just down to focussing on one thing - coffee. Yes, the pastries are nice, they come from patisserie Paul. These guys just do coffee, and what incredible coffee it is. They even fly off to visit their suppliers and see how the plantations are doing. An ever changing roast of the day, but the espresso based drinks are also fantastic. Buy some freshly roasted beans - ground how you want them, and you get to sample the delights of Monmouth at home, though clearly it doesn't match up to the in-store experience. Oh sweet baby jesus, I could do with a cup of this stuff right now....
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.