Lindi Bilgorri takes a trip down memory lane with a visit to the Broadway Continental Restaurant.

THERE is nothing continental about The Broadway Continental restaurant in Beaconsfield. It is as English as porcelain tea cups.

The restaurant, which is also part of a small hotel, is tucked in front of the church in the old town.

As I entered the beamed dining room it reminded me of an old English cottage tea room in a 1950s black and white movie where everyone talks in hushed voices. And that is exactly what happened. We hardly spoke above a whisper throughout our meal for fear of the other customers eavesdropping.

The decor was everything England used to be. A mahogany coloured wooden panel, which came to dado level on the wall, and adorning the walls, a mahogany shelf crammed with china plates, old fashioned Victorian prints and a mock gilded mirror. On the floor there was a Wilton-type carpet. And the white tablecloths were so heavily starched they could have stood up by themselves.

Piped music played throughout our meal, which I always associate with plastic food, and unfortunately I was not wrong.

The fixed price lunch menu came on a slip of photocopied paper - with three starters and three main meals to choose from.

For the starters we could choose from egg mayonnaise, melon or minestrone soup. Not terribly inspiring.

My friend chose melon for her starter, which she said was sweet and rather delicious.

I had minestrone soup. This was served piping hot and packed with vegetables and noodles. The waiter came over with all the trimmings including croutons and parmesan cheese. It was tasty but not the best I have had.

For our main course we had the choice of chicken chasseur, vegetable pancake and plaice.

The vegetable pancake was rather soggy and bland according to my dining partner. It was just filled with peas and rice, and nothing much else. What happened to mushrooms, courgettes and other interesting vegetables?

I chose plaice. The waiter said I could have it cooked any way I wanted. I decided to have it grilled, eating out every week for the restaurant review really does pile on the pounds.

When the plaice arrived it looked rather uninspiring and sad. It wasn't so much home cooking but something you would cook at home - in a hurry with the children nagging you, telephone ringing and your mind not really on the job in hand.

The fish tasted bland.

The vegetables, which were served by the waiters, were new potatoes, carrots and peas and were overcooked and rather tasteless.

Unfortunately the whole meal reminded me of canteen food - overcooked and under-flavoured.

This is English food how it used to be years ago. Food that was simply quite boring and tasteless. I thought English chefs had moved on to greater 'taste buds', but obviously there are still some chefs of the old school.

For dessert the list was never ending, so here it goes - apple pie, cream caramel, passion cake, strawberry gateau, lemon meringue pie, chocolate gateau, sherry trifle, ice cream, there could have been more but I'm afraid I glazed over after the first three puddings were rattled off by the waiter.

There is surely no way that the chef could have made all these desserts fresh that morning. Just three home-made desserts would have been better than every pudding under the sun being on offer.

I chose apple pie. The pastry was a little stodgy and the apples were soggy. My chocoholic friend, who would die for chocolate, left half of her chocolate cake on the plate. Need I say more.

If you like old fashioned English food then this is the place for you. Personally, I prefer a smaller menu and tastier meals.

Two menu prix fixe at 9.95 each: £19.90

House white wine and sparkling water: £3.35

Coffee: £3.00

Total excluding service charge: £26.25

Restaurant Rating

Quality of food: English uninspired cooking

Quantity of food: Good

Value for money: Good

If the restaurant were a woman it would be: Jane Austen

The Broadway Continental Restaurant, 2 Wycombe End, Old Beaconsfield. Telephone (01494) 678571

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