Reviews The Oyster Shed

We went to a wedding venue yesterday evenin 21/10/2017 The food was lovely and the service was excellent.Cant thank the staff for taking care of us all.I must say the view was breath taking too.

Great food and fantastic staff. Beautiful location and view from the table we ate at. As well as a fantastic atmosphere.

We did not book a table on Friday night (which I would advise people to do on a popular night) and when we arrived it was very busy. We were greeted by Adam (supervisor) who got us a table sorted (by the window overlooking the Shard) he arranged our drinks and then took our food order. He was great and so friendly. Our waitress Marion took over and she was great too. Thank you for making our visit special. Our meals were very tasty and nicely presented.

After a long walk from Oxford Circus I was in need of something comforting and filling, to obviously go against all those calories I’d just burnt! Luckily for my groaning stomach I had a booking at The Oyster Shed, overlooking the Shard, and River Thames.

I’d often wandered past this bustling pub and wondered ‘why an earth are you busy ever night of the week?!’ Now I have answer. It’s pretty damn amazing.

We, myself and TW, managed to get through the crowds to the restaurant where we were escorted upstairs to a quaint seating area, and given menus. I ogled with delight, yes there was plenty on there to cure the hunger I was tying to ignore! We were then pointed in the direction of the specials board, and there in front of my very eyes, was toad in the hole. I bet you’re wondering why such excitement! Earlier on the week I’d said to TW ‘Cor I do well fancy some toad in the hole’ and here my prayers were answered.

To begin with we shared chicken and chorizo kebabs that were amazing. Kind of wished I’d got a portion to myself, but now I know for next time. The garlic mayo was perfection.

For mains, I obviously had my toad in the hole, and it was too good for words. The presentation was so homely, and I wished my portion was double it size. TW devoured a cheese and bacon burger, as normal, but came to the conclusion that it was the best burger he had ever eaten, and I’ve taken him to some awesome burger joints. So I salute you Mr.Chef, you’ve out done yourself this time!

We decided against deserts, which I think is a first for us, and headed off for the rest of our walk to Tower Hill.

A perfect afternoon drink ... Or weekend spot. Overlooking the river it's the perfect place to be as summer sets in. Great finger foods and a coastal feel to the place. Very good spacing with seating inside, outside and upstairs !!

If you are looking for a great place to eat and drink by the river this is one of your best options. The steak and chicken schnitzel are amazing and the atmosphere of the venue is really great. It can be quite busy downstairs on a Friday night so sure to ask for a table upstairs if at least one of your group want to order some food and have your drinks there until there's a bit more space downstairs. When it's warm you can also sit outside and enjoy the view of the Thames and the fresh air.

Saff has never eaten an oyster from its shell before so I very surprised when she ordered a couple… Anyway, I’m getting ahead of myself, we’d heard some good things about the new addition to the Geronimo Inns portfolio – The Oyster Shed and decided to try it out for ourselves. The bar and restaurant are on the north bank of the Thames, next to London Bridge and slap bang opposite The Shard. The views of the capital’s newest tallest building are amazing, just imagine how incredible it’ll look when it’s completed and lit up in all it’s pointy glory against the London skyline…

Back to the actual venue, The Oyster Shed appears to be the new bar of choice of the City office workers… Lots of Paul Smith suits and PAs in tailored jackets and pencil skirts, hardly any T-shirt and jean clad customers that we’re more used to seeing in Soho.

The Oyster Shed is big (not as big as The Folly) and has a similar vibe, both in decor and atmosphere, to the Drake & Morgan bar/restaurants (especially The Drift bar) although not quite as ‘polished’. It’s set over three floors – The Main Deck (bar area), The Upper Deck (restaurant) and, yes you’ve guessed it, The Lower Deck (more on this later!)

The first thing that we noticed as we sat down at our table on The Upper Deck balcony was the noise… A very loud mumble, a kind of mixture of chatting and laughing accompanied by the popping of numerous champagne corks. Saff and I call it ‘The Cityboy cacophony’. Not somewhere to go for a quiet meal and a chat, but fantastic for groups out for the evening… By the way The Oyster Shed stock an amazing range of wines – we opted for a very reasonable bottle of Merlot. Saff didn’t feel very relaxed up there as the floor moved slightly every time someone walked past and she was irrationally concerned that the whole thing would come crashing down.

Music ranged from Motown to Massive Attack, nothing too recent, kind of like an early noughties wedding disco – and that’s not a bad thing! But from where we were sitting the music sounded a tad muffled.

Returning to the food and Saff’s oysters… The table was simply set, we loved the Wee Willie Winkie candlestick holder and bottle of water was brought to us without it being asked for – more restaurants should do that. As I said earlier, I was really surprised when Saff suggested that we both try a Jersey rock oyster £1.75 each… I’ve eaten them before (most recently at Love Music, Love Food book launch) and quite like them. They were served, on ice, in a cute little dish with an onion and vinegar dressing – which tasted and looked just like teeny tiny pickled onions. We slurped them down (Saff’s face was a picture) whilst I hoped that their fabled aphrodisiac effects would take hold (they didn’t!).

To start we decided to share a couple of the ‘small plates’. Saff chose the Salt Cod Fritters £6.95, five little quenelle-shaped, shallow fried fish cakes with a fluffy potato and chunky cod centre, served with a light garlic and lemon mayo. The standout dish of the whole meal for me was the Pulled pork shoulder with spiced apple sauce £6.95. It was served in a cool little Kilner jar with a couple of charred slices of crusty bread. The actual pork was a perfect mix of moist tender meat with strands of the more well done ‘ends’ that added texture and a burnt flavour that I love. On top of this was a delicious, not too sweet, apple sauce. Spreading these on the bread was a novel way to eat it, the presentation was simple too. We’re definitely going to steal this idea the next time we have family and friends over for dinner.

The main course, or bigger plates as it says on the menu, is a choice of nine regular dishes, a fixed special for each day of the week and a ‘catch of the day’ (in this case pan-fried Sea Bass, £16.50). They also have a selection of salads, sandwiches and ‘Bar Boards’ – sharing platters that come in meat, fish and veggie varieties from £10.50. The Butchers board £13.50 with mini Yorkshire’s and roast beef, chipolatas, sausage rolls, spiced chicken and minted lamb sticks look good from where we sat.

I saw the fish and chips served to the table next to us, it looked good but I have the biased opinion that the chippy near our house (originally called ‘The Chippy‘) serves the best fish and chips in the world! Although Saff prefers the more crunchy variety from Kerbisher & Malt. I also caught a glimpse of the Rare breed burger, £10.95, it was massive and was held together by a steak knife thrust through its middle. So eventually I went for the Steak and Oyster Shed pie, £15.50, a puff pastry lid on a deep dish filled chock-a-block with chunky steak and, at a very quick count, about half a dozen oysters. The thick gravy was perfect to dip my side order of Skinny Fries £3 into. Saff went for the Wednesday daily special of Toad in the hole with onion gravy, £9.95. When it first turned up Saff looked a little disappointed with the size of the serving, but she needn’t have been. It was so rich and the sausages so plump and meaty that she couldn’t even finish it, her loss was my gain…

It was the second time in a week that I couldn’t have my first choice of dessert, the Treacle Tart with clotted cream here and the Peanut butter shortbread at The Hawksmoor Spitalfields Bar. So my second pick was the Apple pie and custard, £6.50. It was more of a strudel than a pie but it tasted great with lots of cinnamon and a sweet yet crunchy apple filling. The only let down was the custard, it was really think and had a bitter aftertaste, I left most of it but luckily the pie was moist enough by itself. Saff’s Sticky toffee pudding with treacle sauce, £5.50, was a thick wedge of dense cake which was a lot more moist than it looked. Although Saff did add that it could have done with some custard (but maybe not the like that was served with my pie)!

All in all The Oyster Shed is an excellent addition to the already numerous Thames-side bars. The food is good (the pulled pork being the star of the show), the staff are great and the river views amazing! In fact the views of the Shard and Tower Bridge were incredible as we walked back to catch our train home. I even stumbled across a little stairway that led directly down to the river – I love it when we accidentally discover a ‘secret’ part of old London Town.

Oh, nearly forgot – the lower deck, only accessible by a very impatient lift, is entirely given over to… wait for it… have you guessed?… Yep, the toilets. Very nice they are too, a huge freeze on one wall of life-size semi naked female sunbathers and the cubicles that look like a row of brightly coloured beach huts. Genius!

Me and couple of the work colleagues decided to go here for drinks after work on a Friday. The Oyster shed is located right by the river and you get the perfect view of the Shard. I have to say, on a sunny day this is the place to be!

The place was absolutely rammed and we did expect it to be like this. Drinks are a bit pricey but you are still enjoying the buzzing vibe and a great view. We all ordered a couple of rounds and got some chips to eat on the side with our drinks. I would definitely return here in the future but next time I would book a table in advance, the sofa's in there look really comfy!

I like it! Good place, good drinks, good service!

When we arrived I was waiting quiet long inside . I was feeling like no one really interested in customers, so I came to the bar and said that I had reservations at the specific time. The guy showed us our table we sat and been waiting till someone gonna come to take our order but no one came . After sometime my husband got up and ask at the bar can anyone take our order an serve us . After everything was ok. We had great food but service really poor!!!😞

Beautiful location, lovely decor and great food. I was impressed by the wines. Ended up organising a corporate gathering in a private room with a nice view and had the best evening. Would come back again for sure.

Wife had some oysters, I got to catch some rugby and have a couple pints. Overall good, was mid-shift so ordered at bar. Pours were good, but can't go higher than a 4 for what we did.

Great place to catch up with colleagues in a pleasant and informal atmosphere with lovely views of the river. Soft shell crab burger was delicious. I’m sure I’ll be coming back here at some point.

We had the best table in the house. Service food and day was excellent

Great place for after work drinks. Nice views and friendly staff.

Had leaving drinks recently at the venue and there was a spacious area cornered off for us, but was very accessible to the bar and toilets. We were served by Beatrice, who was very attentive and ensured the drinks and food remained plentiful. The food was extremely good and we had value for our money.

Lovely oysters, bread and olives, sat overlooking the Thames. Had to order at bar initially and took a while to get menu. When it got busier later in the afternoon service improved and orders taken at table.