the modern pantry

we went there forbrunchon a nice sunny day. they let us sit in for because we didn’t have any reservations, which was nice. i guess.
however, the food was a disappointment. our waiter was not approachable, and every time he came he banged everything on the table. the food was mediocre - served cold.

it doesn’t look it at first instance but the modern pantry lives up its “modern” moniker. it offers an inventive menu with worldly flavours and contrasting influences. however, i didn’t quite enjoy my experience at the modern pantry as much as i was expecting. that’s not to say it was an unpleasant one. the very interesting menu didn’t deliver the wow in the food, and the service was rather slow. i booked in for a weekday dinner catchup, and the modern panty is in a nice spot in a quieter part of clerkenwell. the space is light and airy, perfect forbrunch(and that’s where they may shine). the evening menu is seasonal and ever-evolving. i had a sort of vegetarian quinoa risotto with silverbeet, vegetables and a fried shell. it sounded fine on paper, but seems a little wacky in retrospect. it’s a fusion that ended up feeling like it had muddied flavours, without any single element being memorable. service was warm and friendly over our time but there was a delay between starter and main that mildly irked. it’s a nice, relaxed setting at the modern pantry but i wouldn’t mind the fusion flavours calming down a bit.

went forbrunchand had the pumpkin waffle. it was surprisingly good! but the egg benedicts with smoked salmon my friend had tasted quite fishy. good ambience and service. it's definitely worth a visit

classicbrunchwith a few lovely twists! i had the tea smoked salmon benedict (with yuzu hollandaise!) and the pannacotta for pudding. all were done extraordinarily well. service was friendly too. i'd certainly come back to try some of the other dishes!

eight of us went here on a busy saturday morning to celebrate our friends 30th with a birthday brunch. the modern pantry is beautiful, set in a scenic square in clerkenwell, all white washed walls and stylish staff. the service here is impeccable, they couldn't do enough and we even arranged for a cake to me made for our friends birthday, which was amazing (though more of a dessert then a cake!). everyone enjoyed their brunch, i opted for the eggs royale with tea smoked salmon and yuzu hollandaise, it was very nice, in particular i loved the macadamia and pistachio crumbs which added a nice crunch but the muffin was a bit too dense and chewy for my likely. it was a lovely, pretty plate of food which i would happily eat again but i was not wowed. the food isn't badly priced but the drinks are pricey, a bottle of procecco was £32 which even by londons standards is pricey. a great place for a special occasion and a lovelybrunchspot but not the best i've had!

great place in clerkenwell forbrunch(now with a few tables outside to hopefully bask in the sun...). i had the sourdough toast with 3 handmade jams which were delicious and a side of bacon and my friend ordered the scrambled eggs with chorizo, which was very tasty. the two meals with a drink each came to around £30. recommend.

what:brunchat a british restaurant and bar

where: clerkenwell, farringdon

value: £25pp

food review: to eat: poached eggs, smoked salmon on a muffin, shakshuka, cassava waffles with pineapple and cream. to drink: jasmine and apple iced tea, orange juice. the drinks came first, freshly squeezed orange juice and cold apple tea (jasmine was perhaps too delicate a flavour and was missed out). next the poached eggs, smoked salmon on a muffin, which was simple and tasty although could be done with more sauce?! the shakshuka, however, was a let down as the eggs had been overcooked and ruined the whole dish (although the flavours were great). the star of the show were the cassava waffles, never would have thought of this combo with a sweet yet cream topping - delicious!

settings: set of busy old street, in a pretty square, modern pantry almost has a countryside feel to it with its old school charm set in a little quaint english town. the inside is simple and represents the style of the name of the restaurant, modern pantry.

halal: no

drinks: apple iced tea/flat white

positives: great service, nice surroundings

negatives: slightly overcooked eggs, not wow!

word review: simplistic, modern twist

a highlight in farringdon, tucked between bistrot bruno loubet and granger & co is the modern pantry; a well-knownbrunchdestination. however, the modern pantry isn’t just for the daytime. it offers good quality cooking throughout the day. behind the “fourneau”.....

my friends and i visited the modern pantry on saturday for a relaxed brunch. the vibe of clerkenwell is modern, the interior as well as the name of the restaurant both reflect this - a very chic feeling with a lot of natural light. the restaurant is set over two floors.

as much as i was impressed by the looks of the restaurant, unfortunately i wasn't by the service and the food. i had the signature sugar-cured new caledonian prawn omelette, green chilli, spring onion, coriander, smoked chilli sambal with toast. the dish was tasty however nothing too exciting. i had asked for some cheese on top of my omelette but was told this wasn't possible and was offered a dessert cheese platter as an alternative.

what brings my rating down so low unfortunately was the unprofessionalism displayed by the receptionist taking care of our table on the day. having been reminded twice that our table needed to be returned by 1pm before the booking, we were well aware of the timeline. the constant remark during thebrunchmade us feel rather unwelcomed and took away the relaxed ambience we were hoping for, which is unfortunate for a place with such good potential.

best breakfast ever!
came on a tuesday morning for a quick breakfast with a friend, and was amazed. it is not easy to make something delicious of a simple meal like breakfast but this blew my mind. 
the restaurant is very elegant, and you can spot the little elegant logo between two lightened trees. the morning was nice and sunny so we decided to sit outside. 

the menu already points out what is gluten free and what isn't making it very easy to order. i ordered the tea smoked salmon with two poached eggs and yuzu hollandaise on gluten free muffins, while me friend got the modern pantry bircher muesli, as well as the two fried eggs with smoked streaky bacon. we both absolutely loved everything about our meals, and the amazing big portions. the breakfast along with their smoothies filled us up for the whole day, and made us crave the modern pantry the next day too. 
the only negative thing was the service, as the waitress seemed very moody and even annoyed with the questions about the food. if not for that this place would definitely be a 5.0.  

tip- if you want to go forbrunchbook two weeks ahead, they get very full, very fast.

i often will pop in here for a quick breakfast before heading into the city, the atmosphere is serene and the decor is clean. the food is of an exceedingly high standard, the roast i am yet to try but have heard it is one of the finest in london. 

the modern pantry cater towards healthy eaters with a number of gluten free options. not shy of using cereals, nuts and grains the dishes here are often light and refreshing using only the freshest of ingredients. recommend highly to anyone looking for a lightbrunchor a dinner on the not so heavy side of the line. lovely calm and elegant atmosphere, however the service can often be slowly during busy periods.

i have been to modern pantry once before for dinner, a few years ago, but i was googling best places in london forbrunchand it came up so i suggested we go there with my friends lasma and luke for brunch.   modern pantry is located in clerkenwell, in st john’s square, which is a great little square and it was so nice to sit outside in this little square in the sun, on the very warm day which we had. modern pantry tries to “please and excite the palete by fusing everyday cooking with modern ingredients” which they did achieve during this brunch. i found the menu very exciting. it had cool alcoholic cocktails (like the passion fruit bellini lasma was drinking), exciting looking mixed juices and smoothies, pastries, yoghurt and granola type of breakfast, cooked breakfast and also lunch dishes. we all chose to have something from their cooked breakfa

love thebrunchmenu. both the food and service are consistently good, so i keep coming back. their eggs royale with tea smoked salmon are a must-try!

the modern pantry was supposed to be a number onebrunchdestination on a relaxed sunday afternoon, but apparently my expectations were set too high.
i went for traditional eggs benedict (with hollandaise on a side as i am not much into dairy): they ran out of salmon unfortunately, so had to go with a classic spinach option. the eggs were slightly overcooked, so no cheerful yellow mess on the plate that i was looking forward to – the yolk remained strictly within its protein surroundings, oh that's boring! the fresh orange juice contained more fresh ice, than orange, and the meal took ages to arrive – they were probably cooking my eggs this whole time.
on a bright superfoodie side, the restaurant seem to be very attentive to the healthy demands of superfoodies like me: gf options are scattered throughout the menu, and gluten-free toasts are available on demand. even my english muffins were presumably gluten-free, though frankly i am not so sure whether that was the case.
the atmosphere is utterly enjoyable, the modern interior is elegant, yet cozy, and the staff were attentive: this makes up a couple of points lost on what, regrettably, proved to be a rather mediocre meal. will rather have eggs benedict-expert @misohungry cook the dish for me next time, but might come back to modern pantry for dinner, upon which a revision of this review might be needed: i've had dinner here once before, and have some vaguely good memories of it.

this was one of those lazy sundays when the first thing you do of the day is to head for latebrunchin the afternoon. there is no better way to start a sunday than with a hearty meal of good food and catching up with friends. we came to modern pantry, a comfortably relaxed restaurant located in the area of furniture shops, clerkenwell. it has two floors and outdoor seating when weather allows. the first floor where we sat is the more informal space with bare white wooden tables.

modern pantry is known for thebrunchbut i ended up ordering the three course set lunch instead since i was quite hungry.

my friend had h. forman & sons’ salmon sashimi, truffled yuzu soy dressing with amchur roasted seeds and it was really good. first the fish felt fresh. second the dressing of truffles and yuzu worked well with the salmon.

i started off with a very generous portion of beetroot and lentil salad with haloumi. i quite liked the earthy flavours and the zing from the mint leaves. a good dish, although the lentils were a bit overwhelming. one third of it felt like a filler rather than part of the dish.

from a heavy starter to a heavy main. i guess this is a version of sunday roast minus the yorkshire pudding. i wasn’t very impressed by the lamb but the rest was good. a homely and robust plate of food. good but nothing more.

i think the dessert brought up the meal again after a slump on the main. the wobbly pannacotta was fairly smooth with a faint scent of earl grey.

modern pantry is a pleasant place to wind down a weekend, especially if the weather allow you to sit outdoor. the staff is cheerful and welcoming. the food is homely with some interesting components, although not exciting. i believe that a dinner might offer a more interesting experience food wise so i will definitely be back to try it out.

for full review and photos visit http://driftingepicure.com/2013/11/04/modern-pantry/