The Garrison

Had the duck appetizer, fish & chips, 2.5 desserts (crumble, peanut butter ice cream & some sticky toffee pudding) … All was great… waitress Angela was fantastic

Really great place tucked into a quaint neighborhood just across the Tower Bridge. We managed to be there on a Sunday and tried their Sunday Roast (chicken). It was beyond delicious, as was the butternut squash salad. They premix their Negroni as well, showing they have their priorities in order.

Very cosy and friendly atmosphere. I really liked the simpleness, rustic wooden tables and nothing to fancy on the tables. The menu followed the theme of keeping it simple, only 7 – 8 main options and all sounding great. I went with the pan fried trout. It was perfectly executed with beautiful crispy skin. On the drinks menu they didn’t have tomato juice, but they made it happen which was great.
At the end of the meal I tested out their new payment option (PandaPay) where you can pay for your meal from your mobile. I just had to ask the waiter for the table number, download the PandaPay App and then all was very simple and quick from there.
What sums up the Garrison for me is «simpleness» from ordering to food to payment. Simpleness is great when it is done right! :)

Amazing customer service, I really recommend the pork and the fatiman ginger beer would be a perfect match for it. The speed for bringing the order is top notch, I could even pay with my phone so I didn’t have to wait for the bill.

I love Bermondsey street and love the garrison. It’s a great place for drinks but it’s the Sunday roasts I like the best

This place has literally the best fish & chips. Love the atmosphere. Very trendy & great customer service from an American waiter.

Went to The Garrison for lunch before Christmas and was really happy with the quality of the food and the service. Despite our continual questions (specifically how much cheese was in one starter, would it really be enough to share or should we just get one each?!) our waiter was very helpful and our group of eight left very happy and full.

Cute little restaurant on Bermondsey St… This area is developping into a very trendy neighbourhood with lots of little places like this opening around… Whats happened? I remember a time when Tesco wouldnt deliver in Bermondsey because they’d get mugged all the time!
Anyhow, this is a good change! Décor and vibe is cute, lovely little wooden tables, cute china for the tea…
Brekkie was good — eggs florentine were tasty, porridge outrageously generous. Variety of interested freshly made juices and smoothies… All that as a reasonable price.

I realise this place is classed as a gastropub, but it seems more of a restaurant than pub with the bar in the middle as a centrepiece. I ended up having a light lunch and just got one their smaller dishes, which was a chicken sandwich. It came out and I was shocked how big it was. The chicken in it was large thick chicken breast pieces which still had the skin left on from the roast. The bread was lovely and had a light chilli cheese dressing which brought a different edge to the sandwich. The chips were fresh and piping hot, thin, crispy with their skins still on. Food was spot on and staff were lovely. One small comment and this may sound unusual but the fragrance of the pub was very off putting. They had obviously sprayed something or had some sort of diffuser which was quite overpowering and unpleasant. After 15 minutes being sat in there, I started to get a bit of a headache. (Visit — 08/​06/​2015 Lunch)

Terrible service. Ignored for a menu, wrong order delivered, massive wait for the bill.

Get the fish and chips, it is excellent! Nice wine list and decent beers available. Waitstaff is great!

Great gastro pub located in the heart of Bermondsey street. Décor and atmosphere is a little different and service has always been very good.
Prices are what you would expect for a central london gastro pub but most mains will be in the £14-£20 range, especially once you have included sides.
Perfect for a breakfast or brunch location on a Sunday. You can also have a drink at the bar, although there is not a huge amount of space.

Nice shabby chic décor. Cosy atmosphere, Friendly service. Come here from time to time for breakfast — but make sure you’re here early enough before breakfast ends, and maybe call in advance to get a table too. Good coffee, fairly simple but tasty food. Vegetarian breakfast is great. Pancakes too! Free wifi, and they do film nights for free on some Sundays…

Top notch local bar and restaurant. Friendly and a great atmosphere that adds to its charm.

Visited with a friend on a sunny afternoon– what a great place! Cozy décor, great natural light and fantastic staff and service.
I tried the red onion tart, served with a aft boiled egg and mushroom ragu– it was delightful, light and flavourful. My friend and I shared some rose, a great addition for a lazy afternoon lunch.
Saw a sign advertising movies on Sunday evenings– can’t wait to come back for that!
Overall, great food and drink spot on a lively street!

Waren vorher schon da, um was zu trinken. Heute auch mal zum essen! Das Ambiente ist echt cool: Shabby Chic wohin man sieht. Der Service: Super Locker, aber immer aufmerksam. Ich hatte einen Ochsen (der Hammer!!!) und meine Frau Lachs Wellington (im Blätterteigmantel). Nicht unbedingt günstig, hatten aber auch noch nen Apple Crumble als Dessert. Insgesamt: TOP!

There are some really spot on things about the Garrison. The down to earth tables and décor give the place a really comfy, homey feel. The waitstaff are friendly and attentive and I really enjoyed the atmosphere — very buzzy and fun. The downfall was the food.
We went as a large group. I ordered mackerel with lentils and orange because it sounded like a potentially interested started. It was bland and boring. The mackerel was overcooked and the lentils on the mushy side. The flavours blended into one another and the two measly slices of orange really did nothing to liven it up. As a main, I had the rabbit on pearl barley. The rabbit fell off the bone but it wasn’t memorable otherwise. My partner had a lovely goats cheese salad and he liked his risotto but it came with old rocket which didn’t look very nice on the plate. I felt like I could have made everything at home.
The presentation also needed quite a bit of work. I don’t need over the top, stacked food or anything but quite a few of dishes were monotone in colour. Brown lentils, brown fried fish with orange slices. Orange rabbit leg on orange pearl barley.
I had a nice time with friends but definitely won’t be going back for the food.

The Garrison may well be a victim of its own success. It was absolutely full to capacity on a Monday night because it does have great food. I had the kedgeree which was very very slightly too liquidy with just a smidgin too much curry, but overall quite delicious. I also had the gingerbread with ginger ice cream that was perfectly nice.
So why the gripe? Well it has tried to pack rather a lot of tables and chairs in, and it has gone from eclectic to claustrophobic. It was quite difficult to get the attention of anyone in order to get more tap water, but they were surprisingly persistent with the dessert menus.
I also dislike the time limit on their tables — especially as we were dining with our friend who has supported them for years and years. It feels like it’s become a place that simply tries to turn over as many customers as physically possible in a night. I do realise that’s how money is made in the restaurant biz, but most places tend to be a little more subtle about it.
So, I’m not sure I’m going back, and my friend who was been patronising them for years is also a little iffy on the whole idea.