http://platformse1.co.uk/

Next we went to Platform on Tooley Street: a solid after-work and tourist bar and eaterie catering to the London Bridge crowd.

The place was humming on a Tuesday evening and there were appetising steaks and burgers a-plenty on the menu, which sadly we had to avoid as the Caesar was a main course rather than a starter and once more came with chicken.

However, this time it seems my distaste for anchovies was my undoing – the dressing is apparently made with the little fishies and there’s no alternative, so if you don’t like anchovies, instead of a Caesar salad you get what is basically a bland chicken salad with parmesan and croutons. Very poor.

The rest of the Caesar was okay rather than spectacular, although there was a slight suspicion that the chicken was a bit underdone (although its pink sheen may have been caused by the lighting at our table). The lettuce was crisp and fresh, the croutons were excellent (with an unusual smoky flavour) and the presentation was simple but effective.

This recipe also included coddled eggs, which would have been a lot better if I’d been able to taste Caesar dressing as well rather than them just making the salad taste like coddled eggs.

Overall, a decent effort let down sharply by the dressing/anchovy issue. 4.5/10.