A sports centre cafe offering food and drink displaying some refreshing experimentation for a mainstream chain.

The Venue
Long gone are the days when all you could get to munch on at the leisure centre was an Iron Bru bar and a chocolate milk. The Westway Sports Centre in Latimer Road is now offering their clientele the chance to choose from Crussh's extensive healthy menu of salads, wraps, health pots, juices and smoothies. Although it’s not likely anyone would ever choose to venture into a sports centre and consume a wrap in an atmosphere of chlorine fumes, if you're already in there it's certainly worth dropping in.

The Atmosphere
Beware of visiting any time after about 3pm unless you want take away - all seats are occupied by school children and all tables are covered in their text books. You and your food will be banished to a high chair overlooking the tennis courts around the corner.

The Food
The atmosphere might not be up to much but the food is delicious. Although Crussh is a chain, the menu does vary quite considerably between each location and soup choices change daily, so you're unlikely to tire of it too easily. Unique to Crussh, Health Pots are small, no-leaf salad pots full of goodness. The black lentil and feta pot is flavoured with fresh mint and has a subtle lemony dressing (granted, the feta may be creamier and milder than in Greece, but it works well in this dish). Another dish with a Middle Eastern twist is the organic spiced brown basmati rice, which includes the surprising addition of pomegranate seeds and cumin seeds; a variation of ingredients that makes for great texture.

The sandwiches are Crussh's downfall. All adhere to the statement of: All our sandwiches are made with a reduced fat, reduced salt and malted wheatgrain bread - that little bit better for you!'. Unfortunately this also means a compromise in flavour; the bread is tasteless and dry, but the fillings are still up to standard and equally as exciting as other things on the menu. The Spanish chorizo and crayfish with mild rocket sandwich has the welcome addition of some tangy sweet red pepper sauce (just don't bother with your crusts).

The Drink
The drinks menu consists of delicious, healthy and freshly pressed juices and natural smoothie shakes made with 98% fat free frozen yoghurt. There are juices to suit the masses; The Purifier, specifically intended for a hangover, is made from apple, carrot, celery, ginger and mixed red fruit and The Super Juice, not for the faint hearted, is a blend of spinach, beetroot, carrot and cucumber. Additional bits of magic ingredients are plentiful, choose from the likes of the Energy Explosion Booster or the Brainstorm Booster (clearly what your fellow homework-doers are being pumped with). Every combination is made before your eyes in the smoothie kitchen.

The Last Word
If you can ignore the children playing hide and seek beneath your chair, Crussh serves a great selection of juices, smoothies and salad pots and wraps that are so full of positive health nuggets that you really needn't visit the gym at all.

venue information venue map view london review user reviews (1)