London: Post-National Matinee Next Sunday
 

Seeing "Jane Eyre" next Sunday at 2PM. Have a reservation for steak the following night so prefer something besides beef. NOT a curry fan and if it is still moving or staring back at me from the plate I'll pass on that one, too.

Near the theatre would be OK (we are staying in a hotel near Trafalgar Square and don't necessarily want to go all the way back to that neighborhood before eating.

So-called "fine dining" is not a requirement and we will not be all that dressed up I suspect.

Suggestions, if any, appreciated and thank you.

It's a musical? Now I'm picturing Mr. Rochester doing a soft-shoe dance while singing, "I've Got a Crazy Wife in the Attic." :-)

Sorry I don't have a restaurant recommendation, but I hope you enjoy the show.

Lee Ann

There are now a number of decent all day restaurants around the National Theatre.

London generally doesn't tolerate "fine dining": Skylon serves proper sit-down, waiter-served, modern British food, and is usually well, though not outstandingly, rated by critics.

If we've got time, we normally end up at Wahaca (Mexican), one of several recentish London chains that demonstrate multiple ownership doesn't mean bad cooking (the others include Comptoir Libanais, Brindisa Tapas, Carluccio's and the Real Greek. I'm partial to Koshari Street, though it's not yet started branching out)

More often, though, practicalities push us to eat at one of the National's many ready-food options inside its complex. Yet to be poisoned or served bad food.

For the next couple of weeks, chucking-out time on Sunday matinees is well before sunset. Worth looking at the streetfood stalls at the Southbank Real Food Market (http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/wha...series/markets) which stay trading till 1800.

London's streetfood scene is very dynamic, very unpredictable, quite pricey (partly because the hygiene's quite heavily regulated) and popping up all over the place. Who's actually trading at a streetfood complex on a given day you need to mooch to find out. But it's rare to browse a streetfood site these days without finding at least one truly outstanding operator - and a couple of cuisines you'd not really thought about before (Peruvian was this weekend's serendipity)

There's also a fair amount of seriously bad cooking. Caveat emptor.

Here is the link (w/o the trailing parens)

http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/wha...series/markets

Takes you right to the Market page

Thank you, Flanner and Janisj, for this helpful information.

As much as I enjoy sitting here in 80-degree weather watching the waves break on the beach, I wish I were typing this from London (already).

Warm good wishes.

I'd probably go with The Terrace at the NT, for the view. Glad to see the suggestions above.