Friends

I love this restaurant. The menu is extensive and service excellent. The choice of wine is very good, they even have English wine which I love but is not normally available in most restaurants. The restaurant is normally very busy at weekends so best to book. They have Al la carte as well as a fixed price menu. We did have a slight problem on one of our visits and the way they dealt with this issue was very good and ensured we returned. It us not cheap but worth the money.

Friends does make a decent meal. It’s technically the nicest food in Pinner, but it’s just not all that exciting. There’s a set menu for lunchtime that’s excellent value, but I often find it hard to see anything that I really want to have. I do like the prix fix menu, but as it’s double the price of the lunch menu, it’s a bit of a bitter pill.
I’ve had dinner here a few times and again, the food is nice — not huge portions, but in line with similar-​style restaurants.
The biggest problem is that the clientele averages around 60 years old. So it’s a bit self-​perpetuating — the food is aimed at that age, and so more of that age group comes, so it all stays the same — and with the exception of when the weekly menu has something that sounds particularly tasty, it just isn’t a place that works for me.
It’s worth trying out on the 3 courses for £15, as it might actually be just what you’re looking for! You won’t be disappointed, but you might be underwhelmed.

Overall, a poor value. We booked on TopTable based on reviews and we were terribly disappointed. The most memorable aspect (beside the wine), was how incredibly undersized each portion was presented to us. I ordered a scallop with bacon starter and wife had a crab and leek tarte to begin our journey in their prix fixed menu. The scallops were of the Bay scallop size, 3 to be exact, each like tiny bit of chewing gum. The crab tarte was tasteless in a hard shelled pastry, something like you’d expect from the freezer section of your local grocer. We both ordered the sirloin steak which was nicely presented, 3 medallions in a medium gravy over a potato pancake (kind of like the toaster variety of hashbrowns). The vegetables were of the right consistency (not too crispy, not too soggy) but again, not the prime directive. As we began to assess our future prospects, wife urged me to pass on the puddings and coffee and get our bill. The financial setback for 2 courses and a bottle of moderate priced wine was somewhere between deeply gauged and ripped off. So although the food was prepared ok, the value is easily better at most other restaurants.

Terry Farr, the Chef Patron of this restaurant, has made this restaurant renowned far and wide, having won many awards including AA rosettes and Michelin listings. They buy locally produced foods and their approach is to take the best, freshest ingredients, prepare them well, and cook them simply.
Pinner High Street itself is well worth a visit and this restaurant can be found in an olde worlde setting at the bottom of the hill.