We ate at Canteen on a Saturday afternoon in January, arriving just before 2, when it was very busy. At first we were a little unsure, as we were offered a "shared" table and this is not something we are used to. However at that time, and with queues outside other restaurants, we decided to go for it.

In fact, the four others on the table for 6 had just about finished and before our food arrived had left.

The food was very tasty, we both had the meat pie, me with chips, her with mash and it was very well cooked and extremely tasty. The 250ml carafes of wine were good value and the puddings were also good. Half way through our meal one person was shown to the table, but on a table for 6 that was not an issue.

The service was good and very friendly and we both love the ethos of Canteen.

Ate at The Canteen with a group of 4 on Saturday evening, and all I can say it was a massive disappointment and bad experience. The setting and layout of the room is quite functional, but don't let that fool you. As we waited (for a rather long time) for our food to arrive, it was apparent that there were grumblings of dissatisfaction from 2 tables around us. This was a sign of things to come. We ordered 2 starters, one of which was the pint of shrimps which came with very fishy, anemic shrimps in their casings and not properly cleaned off. Our mains were satisfactory to poor. The 'Steak and Kidney Pie' and the 'Sausage and Mash' were okay, but the 'Fish and Chips' was similar to something you would get from a children's menu (the fish tasted and looked like a flat giant fish finger, the chips mediocre at best), and the Lamb Roast dish was a joke: the cuts of lamb appeared to be leftovers from the carving board, the roast potatoes were starchy and dull, and the "mint sauce" was a bland, runny gravy-like substance. To top it all off the food was overpriced and the service was poor and rude. "Hip" restaurants like this give London a bad culinary reputation and I definitely won't be going there again.

Tonight (Monday night) was the second time I have eaten at Canteen on the South Bank, and unfortunately both times the service was terrible. Both times we removed the service charge from our bill, and tonight so did the table behind us. The starter reached our table before our drinks, we were left with empty plates on our table for half an hour then after asking for our mains they eventually turned up. Nothing special, the pies seemed a little dry, bog standard mash and some salted greens. Over priced, terrible service, avoid this place.

Whenever we visit London we come here for breakfast/lunch/dinner - or sometimes all three! Recommend the devilled kidneys on toast and the mojitos are pretty damn good too! Love it.

This is an impressive space in the heart of the South Bank - good food, service and you're never too far away from an art installation.