Awana, 85 Sloane Avenue, London, SW3 3DX

I'd stumbled across this restaurant at The Taste of London, 2010, and again in 2011. Both times, they served the same sample selection, and it was out of this world. Unfortunately, when I got to the restaurant last night at the Continental time of 10pm I could not remember which dishes had blown my mind. Also, the restaurant was so noisy with everyone's chatter bouncing off the walls that I could barely focus.

When it comes to veggie options, these guys gave us a whole page! Which, is not that uncommon with Thai/Malay/Indian places. I had satay tofu and tomato which was delicious but that's where the mind blowing tastes ended. My main was mixed vegetable curry with Roti. The vegetable curry was so-so. Not great, not horrendous but definitely not worth the hefty price tag. The plain roti on the other hand was delicious...but kind of tasted like the paratha that you can buy in packs in Indian Shops in North London which, is tasty...but...come on, 10 in a pack for something like £1.00 or Chelsea prices for one cut into nifty little triangles. Though, perhaps the price was for the tiny pot of tasty, lentil curry that came with the roti. Then there was pudding: a chocolate mousse trio with a soggy wafer. Despite the aforementioned wafer the white, milk and dark chocolate mousse was good. Not great, but good. 

The two guys I was with are t-rexes and they were equally uninspired by their courses: the Awana starter platter to share, duck for one, chicken curry for the other, no pudding followed the duck and, coconut ice cream rounded up the chicken. Everything was aptly described as 'well cooked' and 'I think I might come back, but I'm not in a rush to'. 

The thing about Awana is that it is a fancy restaurant so you feel kind of fancy eating there, but the problem is the food and ambience doesn't quite hit the level that it should. However, Awana frequently has deals on - last night we were dining on 40% off - which makes it slightly better if you just want the experience and good cocktails. If you want a rich, variety of authentic Malaysian flavours then find another restaurant. 

Price: £138.00 for three people; two drinks each, starters, mains, two desserts and service charge (see, the offer really is something)

Veggie Friendly: 5/5 

Food: 3/5

Service: 3/5 (a little slow, one incorrect drink order, huge delay on the guys' starter but polite staff)

Atmosphere: 3/5

The Garrison, 99 Bermondsey Street, London, SE1 3XB

I had the joy of eating here during the week, for a tasty little work night dinner. Having never been before and not really knowing the area past Joe's Kitchen (despite having studied nearby) I didn't know what to expect. Whatever my expectations were, or lack thereof, I was happy when I walked in. 

The restaurant was busy and the conversation was buzzing at a pleasant hum. Good acoustics meant that my ear drums weren't trying to make a bid for freedom and save themselves...and I was able to continue a conversation with the friend I was meeting. 

Dim lighting set a nice contrast to the chill outside...but not so dim that I was unable to see my food; a nasty little trick to save face on poor presentation. 

The crowd was mainly the after work, city crew - young...but then, maybe I'm getting old. Anyway, I digress. What mattered was that the people and the decor married together nicely - simple, cosy, no pretensions of any kind. 

Our Aussie waiter was a compact, pleasant looking man - though he did seem slightly over keen to take our order. We had to send him away for more time twice, but as he was so relaxed and friendly about it I'll put that down, in part, to my friend and I yakking away and not looking at the menu. 

I did spot the dreaded risotto, lurking on the specials board, which my friend chose. She said it was delicious and I believe her but thankfully due to a couple of other options I had a little choice. 

I opted out of having a starter - watching the waistline (grow) and all - and chose a curried pumpkin and root vegetable casserole with pilau rice for my main and gingerbread with honeycomb ice cream and butterscotch for dessert. I let the waiter choose the wine as I had no idea what I was in the mood for. All I knew was that I wanted red. 

The casserole was presented well, a small pumpkin used as the casserole dish - nice touch. The rice was cooked just right and everything tasted hearty and though the flavours were rich, nothing was overpowering. It all complimented each other quite nicely. None of that bizarre 'we don't know how to cater for vegetarians and, we don't even know how to cook a risotto so we'll give them curried mushroom tart on a bed of green shenanigans with a delicate sauce of ridiculous'. 

My only gripe was with the dessert. They had run out of honeycomb ice cream. 'No', I hear you scream! But, alas, it's true, and the options I was left with did not really go. Ferrero Rocher, Strawberry and something that my memory has refused to remember. By this point we had lost our Aussie waiter who was probably sick of waiting for us to be indecisive then getting asked whether he wanted to talk about the Rugby World Cup. Instead, a lovely waitress told me that Ferrero Rocher was the best option out of what was left and she was probably right but it still didn't go. The separate components of my dessert were scrumptious: gingerbread - moist, yummy, goodness; butterscotch - so good I'd drink it in a mug and not think about my arteries; Ferrero Rocher Ice cream flavour - yummy in my tummy. However, together it did not quite work and I blame the ice cream. I think had they not run out of the honeycomb ice cream it would have been perfect. 

All in all, I had a lovely overall experience at the Garrison and I would definitely go again. Carnivore and Veggie friendly - how can you go wrong with that! 

Price: £25.00 for a main, dessert, glass of wine and service charge

Veggie Friendly: 4/5

Food: 4/5

Service: 4/5

Atmosphere: 4/5