With a massive menu and cocktail list and friendly staff, TGI Fridays is good for a casual meal with a large group.

The Venue
Tucked just off the Strand, this TGI Fridays is busy all the time so booking is essential. It’s a typical American food joint with loud music, a big bar, bright lighting, and the tables are either large, for groups of 6 – 8, or small, one-to-one more intimate booths. The music can be a bit too loud if you want to have decent conversation but the selling point of TGI’s is the fun aspect.

The Atmosphere
The staff at TGI Fridays are excellent. They do go the extra mile but even though they always seem to be run off their feet, the service is swift and professional. They’re recently toned down the American-style service and no longer have about 400 badges on their braces, although there still are a few. It’s a place that’s great to take the family if you want to ignore the government’s advice on obesity because this is a roller coaster calorie ride from the moment you enter.

The Food
The menu is massive and they have a widely advertised east vs west fusion menu which has a mixture of American and far east favourites. As you would expect the portions are large and you won’t be leaving hungry. However, everything seems to come with a Jack Daniels sauce!

The chicken wings are probably one of the most popular dishes, but unfortunately they taste like any old chicken wings from the freezer, although they do come with celery if you’d like to try to be healthy. If you do want to avoid meat then have one of the salads but to be honest it’s really not a place for vegetarians. The hot and cool lettuce wraps filled with chicken and peppers could probably save you a few calories. The nachos are famous at TGI’s and they’re worth a try if there’s more than two of you because the plate is massive and the cheese and guacamole is some of the best you’ll taste.

For the main courses there’s almost anything you could possibly want- but please book the personal trainer for the next day! The steaks, though, are disappointing. They’re not huge like in the States and the tiny cut of filet mignon is served with limp and unimpressive vegetables. It seems if you don’t want chips with everything then freshly cooked veg is an afterthought. The fajitas, a house specialty, are a bit more of a good meal though and are worthy of the price. They come served on a sizzling plate with tortillas, guacamole, sour cream and salsa, so you can easily create quite a large meal.

After you’ve eaten all that you will really need to push the boat out for dessert. There is a sharing plate which has cinnamon cheesecake and chocolate brownie, but seemed that this had been microwaved and then left under the grill for too long. The cheesecake was very dry and tasteless and the brownie obsession was plastic-y. Even the ice cream and fudge sauce couldn’t give it any sort of boost.

The Drink
The cocktail list is very impressive and the drinks come served in huge pint-sized goblets. There’s a good range of cosmopolitans, margaritas, and Long Island iced teas, although once you get over the sharp taste of the alcohol you’re left with a powdery aftertaste. Particularly recommended is the Uncle Vanya, which has vodka, blackberry liqueur and citrus juice. If you do want a cocktail with friends then this is an ideal starting venue on a night out. There’s also the usual American beers if you want to stay off the cocktails.

The Last Word
Not the kind of place to take a date or if you want to avoid lots of kids, but it still does what it says on the tin and it has made an effort with its east vs west menu and is ideal if you want a good night out with really first class staff.

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