Swan

The food and atmosphere were great! Toffee pudding was spectacular, not too sweet, and the toffee sauce was yummy and pooled around pudding.

It is located right on the river, so it has a wonderful view, too.

Beautiful location with the Thames river view right next to Shakespeare's Globe.

I am not into sweets so I was happy to see their savory Afternoon tea options (GENTLEMAN'S TEA )

Black pudding Scotch egg
Beer battered Scottish haddock and chips
Arbroath smokie, horseradish cream toast
Slow-cooked pulled Scottish beef, gherkin,
Scottish whiskey brioche bun
Haggis, beetroot and apple tartlet
Isle of Mult cheddar scone with Blue Murder cheese butter
Cranachan, raspberry curd and vanilla bean namelaka filled tartlet

We were 2 adults and 2 kids and asked our server if there were kids' option. He said no. So we did not want to be rude and ordered 3 regular and 1 Gentleman's afternoon tea. Unfortunately we could only finish 15 % of the food and left 2 towers untouched. I hate to waste food.

After touring the globe theater which I also highly recommend. I came here for lunch. The food is fantastic. This might be my favorite battered fish ever. The view is great. And prices reasonable.

What sucks is the service is atrocious. They were strange from the go. They seemed surprised about needing to seat me. And then after seating me, it took 30 minutes to get someone to actually take my order. I'm pretty sure the wait staff just didn't communicate a shift change or something. I wouldn't come here if you are in a pinch for time. Or want to get a pleasant service experience.

The Swan was Exceptional! Service was incredible, staff always there and the food was worth every pound!

Had a wonderful lunch here before seeing a show at the Globe. The fish and chips was delicious!! The fish was perfectly beer battered-just how I like it and the fish was fresh. The chips were nice and crispy. A+!!!

We booked a 1:30 tea time and waited after they walked us up stairs for our table to be ready. The host was as surprised as we were that our table wasn't ready.

The room overlooks the River, so it's a beautiful place to relax. The room was full, so make a reservation. The theme was Midsummer Nights Dream - which is appropriate since it is next to the Globe.

They offer 4 different menus - the regular, vegetarian, vegan and savoury. We chose the regular and vegetarian.

They were busy and service was spotty, but the food was decent and beautiful. You can also more savory sandwiches (included in the £40) and they gave us 2 scones each.

Though lovely, I'd try a new place bc of the lack of service. We had to call a waiter over every time we needed something - to get water, to get menus, to order, to get another pot of tea, to get a new tea cup ... you get the idea. They did refund me the 12.5% service charge.

Okay the rose tea soap and lotion in the bathroom - loved it.

Jamie W. was determined to have fish and chips at least once during our recent brief trip to London. You know...Pip-pip, cheerio and all that sort of rot. We thought we found a place in Borough Market called (amusingly) Applebee's, but the manager was rudely abrasive and kept us waiting outside the restaurant when he had plenty of open tables available. Buh-bye. Applebee's. Hello Swan. We were greeted a lot more thoughtfully here even though they were twice as busy.

Without a reservation, we were led to their small lounge where luckily a couple of chaise lounges and a coffee table were ready to be inhabited by us. At first, we didn't see 'fish and chips' on the menu but soon recognized that they spun the name for a more gourmand palate. It was the £18 Curious Brew Battered Haddock which came with 'chunky chips', crushed peas, and tartar sauce. We both ordered it, and they arrived on huge wooden boards that took up most of the coffee table (photo: https://bit.ly/3P580fK).

It was just what Jamie wanted, and I liked it, too, because the fish was fresh and flaky and the crust not too overwhelming. The chips were indeed thick steak fries in an aluminum cup, so we asked for a full bevy of condiments -ketchup, mustard, and mayo. The server was responsive and thoughtful with our idiosyncrasies and freely replenished our Diet Cokes without us having to ask. It was also a great location for tourists like us who enjoyed strolling along the Thames on Bankside next to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.

FOOD - 4 stars...authentic fish and chips done right
AMBIANCE - 4 stars...convivial spot, great location
SERVICE - 4.5 stars...the server was aces
TOTAL - 4 stars...in hindsight, we're glad Applebee's treated us like dirt

RELATED - Exploring London? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://bit.ly/3zFACrx

Reservations for afternoon tea are a must. Made ours weeks in advance, and there was only one 3:45m time slot left.

Arrived early and, when asked, they let us sit as our table was available. Afternoon tea options included a Queen's, vegetarian, vegan, or Gentleman's tea. Mom and I ordered the queen's, daughter ordered the vegetarian, and the men ordered the Gentleman's teas.

The sweets and scones were the same for the queen's and vegetarian teas. The scones with the clotted cream and strawberry preserves were the stand outs for me. So good! The tea sandwiches were ok and, unfortunately, the sweets were disappointing. The chocolate was grainy and the macaron was overly sweet. No real flavor to any of them.

As for the Gentleman's tea, they were definitely filling. The hubs' fave was the sausage roll - flavorful even with the pastry being kinda hard. Rarebit had an interesting flavor. I thought the mashed peas were flavorful.

The tiers were all presented beautifully and our table was overfilled with tea pots. Service was just ok. No one checked on us and we could've used more sugar cubes to go with our teas. Nice experience and I appreciated the options.

Our 3-course, prix fixe menu was terrific!
Portobello mushroom soup with chestnut garnish was a highlight - braised shank, cheese platter - the whole meal was terrific! The atmosphere managed to be both formal (white table linens, well-set, service) and casual (friendly, view of the river, light, friendly). Would do it again!!

Disappointing. First time here was 4 years ago. Came because they were known for their Scotch eggs and they were delicious. They have no more Scotch eggs and no one here could tell me why. Their new menu is uninspiring and their beer menu has also shrunk. Got a couple of apps and left for a better place to dine. Inside is nice looks the same as it did first time around and the view of the river is great. Unfortunately I have no desire to come back. Bring back the eggs!