Randomness Guide to London Menu

The Canary Wharf branch of reputable French wine merchants Nicolas.

There's also a wine bar at this location, and wine purchased in the shop can be consumed in the wine bar with a small corkage charge.

The main part of the wine bar is quite cosy without being poky or dim, with mostly-matched wooden tables and (padded-seat) chairs, seating 2-4 people, though the tables further to the back near the serving area can be pushed together for larger groups. There's also some seating outside, though this is "outside in the shopping mall" rather than "outside in the fresh air". It's table service; choose your own table and they'll bring you a menu.

Kake visited on a Friday evening in June 2008, arriving pretty much exactly at 5pm. There were only a couple of other people when I got there, though the place filled up slowly over the hour I spent there. There were still seats available at 6pm, suggesting that this is a very good bet for a relatively peaceful drink on the Wharf.

They offer about twenty wines by the glass; I was drinking Petit Chablis at £3.15 per 125ml glass, and it was absolutely fine. I also tried a couple of cheeses from their food menu; chevres and camembert (£2.15 each for a 30g portion), which were served at a sensible temperature and came with bread and butter.

Kake's verdict: Would definitely come back if I needed somewhere to meet a friend or have a bite to eat in the area; the nearest other decent place to here I know is the George, which is about 15 minutes away. Nicolas is very close to the Tube station and hence very convenient.

See also:

• Qype comments
• Kake's photoset including photos of food menu as of June 2008