Tried and tested: Dinner at The Larder

Food and Drink: Tried and Tested. This week, Natalie Wain tries a relatively new kid on Clerkenwell's fashionable eaterie block

	Elegant and unfussy - The Larder is perfect for catching up with a group of friends

PRICE: 3 course dinner for two including wine - around £75.

WHERE: 91-93 St John Street, Clerkenwell, London, EC1M 4NU. Call 0871 971 6210 for reservations.

THE BLURB: Fairly recent addition to trendy Clerkenwell's eaterie scene, focussing on simple, elegant dining with good food and service to boot.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: To say The Larder is spacious would be an understatment. The vast space is unpretentious yet modishly decorated in muted mushroom tones. High ceilings complete with exposed pipework are de-rigour in this part of town, but the exeptionally large wooden tables are a nice twist.

THE TASTE TEST:

Our menu:

Starters - Scotch eggs with mayonnaise; Tiger prawn salad with spelt, butternet squash and green beans

Mains - Roasted saddle of Welsh lamb; Beef sirloin with roast portabello mushroom, tomato and watercress butter

Puddings - Eton mess; Apple and rhubarb crumble with custard

Good healthy portions of elegant, yet unfussy food - the menu nods towards traditional English fare. Starters couldn't be faulted. The scotch eggs in particular were sensational - succulent mouthfulls of moreishness.

The lamb and sirloin could have been a little pinker but the side dishes were the real treat here. It's hard to get excited about mash potato but it was creamy to a tee and the vegetables - just so.

Desserts were the highlight of the meal. Apple and rhubarb crumble was deliciously piquant but balanced and there was no skimping on the crumble.

PROS: Enormous tables are a rare treat in space-challenged London restaurants these days. Staff are attentive but unhurried making this the perfect venue for a gathering of friends. Ingredients are also locally sourced where possible with meat curtesy of nearby Smithfield market.

CONS: Because it is so large, there's a danger of feeling a little lost on a quiet night. Plans to create a seperate bar area should utilise the spce more effectively though.

VALUE FOR MONEY: It's not cheap, but food is honestly priced and there's no skimping on portions.

VERDICT: 4/5