The Artisan of Clerkenwell

I love this place.
The perfect mix of traditional and modern. Leather sofas, brick walk, aluminium finishing.
Downstairs is busier and great for those who like to mingle, upstairs is more chilled and better for groups.
Good selection of wines, great nibbles perfect to share (duck wraps are to die for).
Friendly staff and really nice lady’s room (it makes a difference!).

After a busy morning it’s always nice to chill out and unwind over your lunch and this is exactly what The Artisan offered. Located at the heart of a busy business district I expected The Artisan to be full to the brim at lunchtime but I was pleasantly surprised when we had a choice of seating when we entered. We decided on a booth at the back of the restaurant although we could have opted for the light airy front. The décor was great; very rustic with exposed brickwork and a mix of modern typography on their menu’s to create a perfect balance between old and new.
The menu itself was clear and concise with only around 15 dishes on offer. I opted for the glazed ham, parmesan chips (basically cheesy chips) and fried egg. This is really a British pub classic with a modern twist but it tasted like top notch cuisine. I was impressed at the speed in which it was delivered — I think from ordering the meal to delivery it was under 10 minutes which is a pretty impressive considering the chef created such a masterpiece.
All in all it was a great eating experience topped off with excellent service from the chatty staff. One tiny negative was that they have an open kitchen (a hatch in to the kitchen) and the dining area began to get smokey when the chef was in full flow. This didn’t bother me but I could imagine that if you were sensitive to strong smells it might slightly dampen your experience. If you’re this way inclined I advise sitting at the front of the restaurant.

Tasty, tasty veggie burger and nice chips. Also took a bite of my daughter’s grilled tomato, pesto, and mozzarella panino and had to struggle not to steal the dish away from her, entirely. Atmosphere is warm and inviting, the wait staff are really nice and helpful, and despite the crowds, the bulk in attendance are there to drink, so getting a table is still fairly easy. The space does gets to be a bit annoying during after work hours when it becomes crowded with the happy hour crew who tend to crowd around the tables and shout over each other. Other than that, I’m looking forward to heading back for a third visit.

I would give the Artisan 4 stars, except for the fact they were out of the majority of their «british tapas» dishes at 6PM on a Friday night. That being said, I would definitely recommend the artichokes and mushrooms on toast. Yum.

This is my wife’s company’s «place to go» for after-​work drinks.
Always a verty nice, friendly atmosphere, and we get served rather quickly, and always with a smile and good humour, despite the bar being quite packed.
The drinks are normally priced, and they have a nice selection of beers, ciders, and wine.
The food platters are quite interesting (the cold meat platter for instance), and reasonably priced.
Finally, for my «Ladies’ and Gents’ «part of the review, I’d say the bathroom (aka «Bulls» and «Chicks») is quite clean. However, the taps are designed in a way that there is a lot of water spillage. Thery should add some mixing valves to make the flow less water-​intensive.