Aqua

Bar/​resto en bord de Tamise, au rez-​de-​chaussée d’une des tours du récent «development» de St George Wharf, juste en face du MI-​6 (si vous avez vu le dernier James Bond, dans la scèné de l’explosion du bureau de M, c’est le bâtiment à droite de l’autre côté de la rue…).
Le cadre moderne est assez banal tout en restant agréable, mais je n’ai pas été convaincu par mon burger qui a eu besoin de beaucoup de moutarde (anglaise…) et de ketchup pour commencer à avoir un quelconque goût.
Ça vaut donc tout juste 3 étoiles, mais le service est aussi aimable que rapide.

While this newly developed area is a great place to have a drink along the river, the service in this restaurant comes very close to taking that peace away.
While the servers were very attentive (we had 4 servers come to take our drink orders, one after another, within 15 minutes), the drinks took forever to arrive.
Like most restaurants with poor service as well, once you place your first order, the servers disappear for ages. My advice? Order drinks and food at the same time, or you may never get the chance again!

My hopes weren’t terribly high for Aqua — it’s on the river, which seems like it could probably be more of a draw than the food, but it’s my first day living in London and it’s super close to my apartment and I am fighting jetlag… so off we went.
I was pretty pleasantly surprised. This being the night before a holiday weekend, it was unsurprisingly filled with happy hour revelers (you do say happy hour here, don’t you? I’ve only been here about 12 hours so far — forgive my Americanisms, please!). It was a bit loud, but nothing unbearable.
I ordered the fillet steak which came with some pan sauteed veggies — some potatoes, broccoli, parsnip (best of all of them) and zucchini. Or do you call them courgettes? I forget. Either way, I’m not generally a fan of zucchinourgettes, but these were quite tasty,
My friend had the chicken burger, and she was quite pleased with it. We split a lovely and reasonably priced Shiraz and then I decided it was time to go home, before I passed out at the table.
I’m rather glad to have Aqua so very close buy (they had some stellar looking and smelling pizzas) and I’ve no doubt that when the weather gets nicer I’ll be taking advantage ot their lovely patio.

Popped in for a quick Louise (aka Bev as in beverage — I’m wasted on you), en route home, and cider was on the menu! I didn’t recognise the Swedish brand they sold, but the stunningly blue eyed and very helpful barman was quick to recommend a strawberry and lime number that set my taste buds atantalising for about 4 pounds.
With the sun setting over the Thames, just to the right of Battersea Power station, the view was spectacular and complimented it’s smart but comfortable interior.
I noted that the food looked good but not having tried it I couldn’t possible comment — much. This is the kind of place to come to on a warm Sunday evening for a few drink. It slightly out of the way but a good passing through location either in our out of Victoria.
With it’s generous spread of topiaried green and free wifi this is the kinda place that on a warm day I would work from home from. Saying that I haven’t tried their coffee yet!

Agree with the below comments and this would not be somewhere I’d choose to go in the evening.
However, they do do a great fried breakfast. Yes it is overpriced, yes on a Sunday morning you can expect to be one of the very few there but the English brekkie is top notch with a freshly squeezed orange juice, especially if it’s a nice morning and you can sit outside along the Thames.

Had a drink here as mate had not seen the Riverside pub next door — and had already ordered his.
Very few people and overpriced — no pump beer (Guinness only non larger). Could be in any bar next to a multiplex if it was not for the lovely view. Might have stayed for another beer if barmaid had not been intent on cleaning up. Moved to the Riverside

It was going to be 4 stars, but they let me down at the end.
I went to Aqua last night on the way to Brixton for a gig. We didn’t fancy Ivan’s Retreat close to the venue so we met in nearby Vauxhall. Aqua is situated next to the aqua of the Thames and it’s a pleasant spot. The whole of the area looks recently redeveloped and while there aren’t a whole host of eating places, the couple that are there look quite smart.
On entry you realise that Aqua has tried to get a mix between laid-​back dining and quick-​stop café. More a brasserie than a bistro, the small tables, flat screen TV and sofas make it feel like a bright airy bar rather than a posh nosh stop.
We had orange juices and then olives and bread to start. The olives were delicious — some of the best I’ve had in a restaurant recently, and they were very reasonable at £2.95. Up next was a pizza for me and chicken for the girl. My pizza was very good. «Easy to do, maybe, but easy to do wrong. That wasn’t,» I think were the words that accompanied my last bite. VERY tasty. Good crust, nice sauce, warmer than Luke but not too hot, the perfect amount of toppings… just the job at £9. The chicken was a little boring, it appeared, from the noises across the table, but not too bad.
All’s well, you think. And it was. I was all ready with my 4 star review…
And then the bill arrived. After 20 minutes of waiting for it. And each OJ was very nearly £3! And one other thing I really hate that some places do nowadays is they add the service charge on at the end with the smallprint «optional» but when you hand them your card they type in the full amount avec tip. Here’s a tip: let me decide whether you’re worth it rather than deciding yourself. It turned a 20 quid food bill plus a couple of soft drinks into a 30 quid sour taste. For shame.

I’ve said it before (
), and I’ll definitely say it again: WHY ARE RESTAURANTS ON THE RIVER TERRIBLE?
This is the THAMES, not the Rio Grande, or some equally unsightly waterway that looks like a sewer rather than a beautiful place to wander along of an afternoon.
Aqua is a lot like those hotel lobby restaurants you’d find in any generic chain hotel. Just boring. And overpriced. The food is… okay. Nearby Riverside pub would have probably been a better choice, but I wasn’t in the mood to deal with an after-​work pub crowd. Esp in the Vauxhall area.
But seriously London, sort out your Thames-​side establishments. It’s a waste of a perfectly nice piece of property if you ask me.

Lovely riverside location looking down river to the Eye and up river to Battersea Power Station. Decked outside seating with parasols. Free wifi. Bottled & gas tap beer only. The boring pizza, pasta, burger menu is only matched by the pedestrian results, taste wise. A waste of a prime site. Coffee is awful too. Avoid, and use the Riverside pub next door. Only gets one star ‘cos Qype won’t permit zero. UPDATE APRIL 10 Gave Aqua a second chance (anywhere can have an off night), but regrettably it failed the test! The menu seems a bit more interesting, with a brasserie section of classics, and specials of the day. From the former my other half had boeuf bourgignon (tough meat in a thin gruel-​like sauce, with soggy chips); from the latter I had red snapper. The fish had a great chargrill flavour, but was almost raw. Until they upgrade from a cook to a chef, this place is to be avoided. Shame. UPDATE Feb 12: I go back from time to time ‘cos it’s on my doorstep, and sometimes I’m lazy. Latest visit was a pleasant surprise, as the cod my partner had, and my haddock wrapped in bacon, actually showed signs of being cooked by someone who knew what they were doing. Hallelulelah! So it’s now got an extra star, and if they keep this up, it will rival the gastropub next door. Puds still rubbish, though.