The Crimean

From the outside, The Crimean looks like a place I should just keep walking past. But if you're adventurous or have someone take you inside, you will be surprised to find a lovely restaurant with great booze and exceptional food.

They have dumplings here... But not of the Asian Influence. Think piroshki, pergoi and other things I can't quite pronounce. The pickled beetroot salad with smoked feta and walnuts is amazing and the plates of cured meats are great with drinks. Everything beautifully plated, alluding to some good skill and large amounts of care in the kitchen.

Staff are good natured and willing to make suggestions on both the food and beverage front. Cocktails are especially worth a look in - they're creative and delicious, though if you're a wine nut then you'll equally be well looked after.

From a quick glass of wine and a plate of dumplings to a full course meal finished with one of their interesting desserts, The Crimean should definitely be considered.

The Chicken Kiev croquettes are really, REALLY good! Super crunchy with gorgeous oozing garlic butter hidden inside! Sooooooo good!! Mains all sound amazing, the menu is amazing! And everyone at the table orders something different! Testament to how good a choice and how good it all sounds!

Yummy noises have already started from across the table with the 'House smoked salmon fillet with shaved heirloom radish, potato, egg and kefir dressing'. I get to trade a taste and it is gorgeous, great depth of smokiness and gorgeously fresh fish that has obviously been prepared with love!.. read more at my blog

The boy and I celebrated our anniversary here over the weekend and it was brilliant.

Friendly welcoming staff greeted us at the door and we had a quick drink (bubbles for the occasion of course) at the main bar before heading to our table for dinner.

Seemed wrong not to try the chilled Chopin vodka which was nice to sip on. Some unusual, lesser known wines are on offer to mix things up a bit.

The food was amazing. I could have just eaten the pork and beef dumplings with sour cream and paprika butter all night long. So moreish.

We then shared the pork belly, lamb shoulder and pumpkin salad. All dishes were melt in your mouth amazing with my biggest complaint being the lack of lamb included in that dish - only 1 slice for me...maybe two for the boy.

It's not cheap but the quality of food is totally worth it. I'm looking forward to going back to feast on the dumplings and sample some more of the wines.

Great date night spot or for a group of friends so you have a good excuse to order EVERYTHING on the menu.

When you walk by the outside of The Crimean, it looks like it'd be a musty, old man pub inside. BUT, it's spacious, a bit European and very nicely furnished. My first visit here was with the girls. We shared 4 or 5 small plates and had lots of delicious cocktails! Everything was tasty and the owner/servers were all great. The tupalev cocktail was my favourite, it comes with a sprig of rosemary and has a very unique taste. I'll be going back :)

Ah, the Crimean. An understated, classy place that I'm proud to call one of my locals. I popped in for a few drinks and a snack on Sunday night, and it was the perfect place to drink while enjoying a proper conversation.

We had a couple of glasses of very nice wine and some cocktails - the sour cherry martini was delicious but kind of deadly, drink responsibly or risk scary hangover. The Vilmos Fizz was also lovely; kind of like a Bellini, but using pear juice.

To balance out the booze I ordered the Wagyu beef pastrami; it arrived with delicate shavings of pickles and drizzles of sour cream, and some delicious rye bread. Not a huge meal but a really delicious thing to munch on.

Service at this place is always so nice, with bar staff coming over to check on us regularly without being painful. Also, I have to mention that the Crimean is an excellent date venue, what with all the dark corners and private-ish spots to drink. Random old-style telephones and "family photos" up on the walls make for interesting conversation if ever you and your suitor hit an awkward moment.

Visited the Crimean with a group of friends and at the end of the meal we had a debate about how many Yelp stars we would give it (yes, this actually happened - we're really are that exciting of a bunch).

In the end we settled on 3.5 stars - as the one writing actually writing the review, I'm going to us my executive powers and round it down to 3 stars.

What was good:
- Potato and quark Vareniki (think buttery pierogis)
- House made Wagyu pastrami (though it's a small, small portion)
- Toffee and ginger Piernik (unique dessert)
- The decor (warm and woody)

What was ho-hum:
- Baked duck and prune pierogi (these were like stuffed buns, and in the end the Vareniki above was much more like the pierogis I know and love)
- Bigos - Polish hunter casserole (very disappointing - even the Polish people in our crew were disappointed)
- Service (a bit awkward, but maybe it was an off night)

In general, we all underwhelmed and, while the food varied from 'decent' to 'very good', we found it to be overpriced.

Great place for work drinks on a friday....its busy but also quiet enough so that you can hear the person you are talking to unlike some of the other cbd establishments.

The dumpling selection is great...we feasted on them all night. Everyone I went with loved the rang of beers, cocktails and vodkas. Will definitely be back