Elephant & Castle Beacon

The food is decent, and the atmosphere is pleasant. The place feels warm and cozy, which is especially nice on a cold day. I really appreciate the decoration and the overall style of the space. However, it's not worth the price, and the service is disappointing. I gave it two chances, but I won’t be returning.

Nice interior. Been here a few times. Wings are consistent but as a burger man, I am always tempted. Unfortunately, they don't cook the burgers to ones choosing which means they are always overcooked and very dry. However, this time I'd thought I'd try the horseradish burger as I love the combination of beef and a good hot horseradish. I asked the server if I could have the burger cooked medium. She said it's not possible but that she would see what the chef could do. Anyways, true to form, it came out as dry as a bone. In addition, the horseradish was tasteless (more like sour cream). Very, very disappointed. It's my own fault in a way, akin to repeating the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. Maybe I am insane. How and why can other places ask you how you want your burger cooked but not Elephant and Castle? If the burgers are created from scratch in-house, there shouldn't be an issue. My feeling is that, here, they are brought in (possibly frozen) and hence their provenance can't be tracked. This would explain them cooking them to almost a cinder.

While appealing to look at, service and food quality is lacking. Service is slow, staff are forgetful and not once did anyone check in with us to see if we needed a refill on water etc. We were moved to a different table part way through with no explanation. Food was only so-so. Considering the price, I would have expected much better quality food but really, you can find better food for half the price somewhere else.