Tag Archives: Breakfast

Ben’s Canteen – The Weekend

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This week we’ve been loving the sunshine and reflecting that if you want breakfast, lunch, brunch, dinner or just drinks around Clapham Junction, Wandsworth, Battersea or Clapham then St John’s Hill is a belter of a street for it.

Anyways, here’s what’s going down at the Canteen…

  • We’re now keeping our kitchen open all day on Saturday, normally we close it between 4 and 6pm but no longer.
  • We’re getting massively into Sipsmith’s Summer Cup, this genuine rival to Pimms is going to make your weekend an awesome one.
  • We run a super popular brunch but we wanted to spice it up some more. So, we’ve created a Bloody Mary menu - come and try it out this weekend.
  • On the subject of booze, we’ve never been so excited about a shelf, behold our Gin Shelf.
  • Ditch those Sunday blues with our  Sunday Roast. We serve it from 2pm every Sunday. Enjoy Roast Orkney Beef, Pork Belly or Roasted Chicken with roasties, cauliflower cheese and broccoli, greens, root veg mash and yorkies.
  • With an eye on next week, you should come and try out our new lunch menu – we’ve added a bunch of news salads, fish cakes and more.
  • Time and Leisure just nominated us as one of London’s best local restaurants, if you like us then would you be so terribly kind as to vote for us here?!
  • Also, Ben recently got interviewed by our friends at Le Cool, click here to read the interview.
  • To add to our British food, done well ethos and British beers we’ve added a selection of English wines (British wines means something else), including a cracking sparkling by Chapel Down. Come and run the rule over them this weekend and let us know what you think.

Sipsmith Summer Cup

Retro Express Lunch

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The susnshine really does seem to be here to stay (hopefully that hasn’t jinxed it) so we’ve decided to breathe new light onto our midweek daytime food so that you can have even more good times at the Canteen.

Ben's Canteen sunshine

The new menu is intended to be served quickly. So you can ditch that desk, lap up some sunshine, eat incredibly well and then get back to the emails and to-do lists. On that note, we were always sarnies at the desk types but honestly your quality of life will improve if you actually walk away from the desk a bit and you’ll make better decisions.

With the new lunch menu we wanted to introduce some retro dishes (but made so they’re actually super tasty) so we’ve got chicken in a basket, omelette Arnold Bennett, Coronation Chicken Salad and a Beef and Onion Pie.

Also, we’ve got free wifi, so you can actually keep working whilst you enjoy some sunshine and top notch lunchtime grub.

Weekday Breakfast – Served until 12pm

Big Breakfast

The Big Ben – 9.5

Sausage, back bacon, mushroom, homemade boston beans, black pudding, sourdough toast and 2 eggs ‘your way’

The Veggie Ben – 8.5

Tomato, spinach, mushrooms, beans, sourdough toast and 2 eggs ‘your way’

Add extras for £1

Smaller Bits

Ben’s Baps (choose 2 fillings) – 5.5

Sausage/Bacon/Egg/Black Pudding/Beans/Mushrooms/Tomato/Spinach

Fish Finger Bap – 4

Brunch – Served All Day

Eggs Benedict – 8

Eggs Royale – 8.5

Eggs Florentine – 7

Scrambled Eggs – 6.5

Add Salmon – 1.5

All Day Breakfast Scotch Egg – 6.5

Homemade Pastries – made fresh every morning.

Lunch – served from 12pm-4pm

Small Plates

Soup of the Day with Crusty Bread – 5

All Day Breakfast Scotch Egg – 6.5

Smoked Eel Pate with Toasted Sourdough – 5.5

Potted Ham, Homemade Piccalilli & Toast – 6.5

Nut Roast Fritters with Two Dipping Sauces – 6

Hot Sandwiches

Ham & Cheese Toastie, Topped with Rarebit – 5

Orkney Beef Steak Sandwich with Caerphilly Cheese – 7

Spicy Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Paprika Mayo – 6.5

Add Handful of Chips – 1

Mains

Stew of the Day – 10

Chicken in a Basket – 12.5

Omelette Arnold Bennett – 12

Mince Beef & Onion Pie – 10

Coronation Chicken Salad – 12

BC Burger and Chips – 12.5

(Homemade Black Angus Mince Patty. Topped with homemade Corned Beef & Smoked Cheddar with Ben’s Burger Sauce. Served with Handcut Chips)

Desserts

Poached Pear with Hazelnut Crust – 5.5

Rhubarb & Ginger – 6.5

White Chocolate Tart, Raspberry Salt & Chocolate Ganache – 7

British Cheeseboard – 14

Sides

Rosemary & Chilli Butternut Squash – 3.5

Root Vegetable Mash – 3.5

Market Greens – 3.5

Hand Cut Chips – 3.5

Canteens are for friends

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Ben's Canteen

When we set up the Canteen we always had a few core principles in mind,

  • It should be super tasty
  • We’ll use produce that you may otherwise have to journey into ‘town’ to have
  • It should be relaxed
  • It will be open all day
  • We’ll serve seasonal British food

And then there was one thing that we really wanted to capture – making it a great place to catch up with friends, whether it be just a couple of you or a big group to share good times with. Staying in contact via Facebook, text messages and Twitter is great but nowhere near as good as meeting up in person – our job is simply to try and make that more fun.

We love the Canteen’s big windows at the front, so we’ve put in large tables which can be shared with other ‘Canteeners’ or taken over by groups of friends whilst (hopefully) basking in the sunshine. In the ‘dining room’ (in essence we’re never that formal, you’re more than welcome just to have a drink there) at the back we’ve created a more intimate area which at night is softly lit.

Ben's Canteen, Dining Room

When it comes to the breakfast, lunch, brunch and dinner menus we hope we’ve put together a list of choices that helps to get you guys talking, whether it be our infamous All Day Breakfast Scotch Egg, our #doublebeef burger, our new desserts (e.g. a Rolo tart – who would you give your last one to?!) or our top notch Full English that comes with homemade beans – we’re always evolving and we like to do things a little differently, please do feel free to give us feedback on our creations.

Anyways, take this as a call to arms, stop reading this post and get in touch with that friend or group of mates you haven’t seen for a while and head on down to the Canteen to hangout and catch up. If you want to book a table then click here.

Captains of Industry

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When we cast our eye around the Canteen we often see business taking place.

Business Lunches at Ben's Canteen

From fledgling new businesses coming to life via laptops (and our excellent Square Mile coffee) to successful property developers to local businesses entertaining clients and establishing future revenues. We love it and like the government we want to stimulate more growth in the economy.

Here’s how the Canteen can help…

Business Lunches

We offer 2 courses for £10 and it’s ‘top British nosh’ as many of our customers like to say. So grab some clients or reward the team and enjoy dishes such as Smoked Eel Pate, Soup, Toad in the Hole, Mushy Pea Fish Cake, Super Food Salad, Bread and Butter Pudding or go off the set menu and take down the famous BC Burger and All Day Breakfast Scotch Egg.

BC Burger, pic courtesy of @burgeranarchy

Breakfast Meetings

As we run SW London’s biggest and busiest brunch you can rely on us to knock up a cracking breakfast – in our experience a good breakfast meeting has always laid the foundations for exciting future projects. We offer our Big Ben (Full English) alongside Eggs Benedict, Royale and so on… we also do epic breakfast baps. Of course a good breakfast meeting needs killer coffee and tea, we have Square Mile and Teapigs, and lots of juice and if you’re feeling a bit more daring then maybe even a Bloody Mary or a glass of Prosecco.

The Big Ben, pic courtesy of @mulia

Bespoke Events

We love to tailor events to your needs at the Canteen. So if you wanted to say host a drinks reception with canapes then we can do that without any problems (click here to see our canape options) or you might want us to open earlier for a large breakfast meeting –  just let us know what you think will make your business event go well and we’ll try to make it happen.

Dinner

British food, done well is what we serve and we know it will leave you and your clients happy. What business dinner wouldn’t go well when you start with our All Day Breakfast Scotch Egg, a British Meat Plate and Potted Hams before moving on to our British Beef Board, Pollock with Cockles, Oxtail and Horseradish Risotto or Venison before finishing with desserts such as a Powerhouse Porter Cheesecake or a British Cheeseboard?!

Extras

We’ve got free WiFi and you can always borrow our printer or photocopier for those emergency moments! Also, whilst you’re waiting for your clients and colleagues you can grab one of the magazines in our rack for a read and to be inspired.

Lunch – 2 Courses for £10

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With the arrival of the new year we thought it a rather good time to unveil our 2 courses for £10 lunches. You can choose from…

Lunch from 12pm – 2 Courses for £10

Starters

Smoked Eel Pate with Toasted Sourdough – £5.5

Soup of the Day with Crusty Bread – £4.5

Mains

Sausage and Mash Pie – £8.5

Rabbit and Pearl Barley Stew – £8

Mushy Pea Fish Cake with Poached Egg and Mustard Sauce – £8.5

Super Food Salad – £8.5 (add Chicken – £1.5)

Orkney Beef Steak Sandwich – £6.95

Spicy Grilled Chicken Sandwich – £6.50

Desserts

Apple Tart with Custard or Cream – £4.5

Bread and Butter Pudding with Custard or Cream – £5

Lunch is served every day from 12pm – 3pm. As well as the 2 courses for £10 we’ll also be offering some other seriously tasty lunch options,

All Day Breakfast Scotch Egg – £5

BC Burger and Chips – £12.5

(Homemade Black Angus Mince Patty. Topped with homemade Corned Beef & Smoked Cheddar with Ben’s Burger Sauce. Served with Handcut Chips)

Ham and Cheese Toastie topped with Rarebit – £4

Kids Fish Finger Bap – £3.5

Bowl of Chips – £3

And of course, don’t forget that we’re open from 10am every day – we do an amazing breakfast, just ask the hordes who join us every weekend for SW London’s busiest and best brunch.

Served Until 12pm

The Big Ben – £8.95

Sausage, back bacon, mushroom, homemade boston beans, black pudding, sourdough toast and 2 eggs ‘your way’

The Veggie Ben – £7.95

Tomato, spinach, mushrooms, beans, sourdough toast and 2 eggs ‘your way’

Add extras for £1

Ben’s Baps (choose 2 fillings) – £5

Sausage/Bacon/Egg/Black Pudding/Beans/Mushrooms/Tomato/Spinach

Add extras for £1

Served All Day

All Day Breakfast Scotch Egg – £5

Eggs Benedict – £7.5

Eggs Royale – £8

Eggs Florentine – £6.5

Scrambled Eggs – £6

Add Salmon – £1.50

Homemade Pastries – made fresh every morning.

Lunch 2 for £10

Weekend To Do List

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Yay, it’s the weekend!

Here’s our Canteen to do list.

  1. Watch the making of our Naugh-tea ice cream video.
  2. Read our 5 star review from View.
  3. Come and try our new wine list.
  4. Visit our Northcote Road pop up at Dove on Saturday and have a super tasty pulled pork bap.
  5. Before you go big this Saturday night, go small – £5 for a drink and a small plate.
  6. Join the busiest and best brunch in SW London – it’s all about our homemade boston beans.
  7. Try booking a table with us via Top Table.
  8. Come and see Mr Owl’s cubicle.
  9. Choose a day during the week to try our new breakfast and lunch menu.
  10. Have a good time!

Meet Rimmy

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Rimmy are Rob (@brewedboy) and Jimmy (@jimmyrhodes83) and they run the cafe element of the Canteen.

Ben's Canteen - the Cafe

Every day, Monday to Friday, from 8am, they serve up a daily changing menu. All of it is cooked and served by them with a whole lot of love.

To get you started in the morning they normally offer porridge, granola, the best scrambled eggs in South West (if not all of) London, cracking bacon/sausage and eggs baps and New York style waffles with maple syrup. These are served with Square Mile Coffee and Teapigs Tea, breakfast in these parts really doesn’t come better than this.

As we get to lunch Rimmy do fresh sandwiches, made to order, one meaty and one veggie and they often do specials (Pulled Pork and Sloppy Joes spring to mind). They also make a fresh salad and soup, plus there are pies from the brilliant @mypie1. It’s all rather superior to the supermarket and can be eaten in or taken away.

Once tea time comes around they keep you going with treats such as carrot cake and brownies from The Dessert Deli and as well as lovely tea and coffee they have cracking lemonades and other soft drinks from Luscombe, oh and their hot chocolate is immense.

Rob used to run his own, highly acclaimed, coffee cart in Soho whilst Jimmy is part of the super tasty Churros Bros – Rimmy know what quality is.

We’re often a modest bunch at the Canteen but when it comes to our daytime cafe, we have to say we are brilliant. Come and check us out and say hi to Rimmy.

By the way, the boys at the moment are taking part in Movember – they don’t always look this scary!

@brewedboy

@jimmyrhodes83

Book for good times

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As we are now taking bookings via Top Table we thought it would be a good time to reflect on our offering.

Ben's CanteenDuring the day, Monday to Friday, we’re a cafe which opens up from 8am and frankly we believe we’re the best in Battersea, and beyond. We serve amazing Square Mile coffee and Teapigs tea alongside breakfast, lunch and tea with loads of fresh salads, sandwiches and bites to eat in or takeaway. At the weekends, we serve brunch and we do all manner of tasty things, including homemade Boston Baked Beans with a mighty Full English, Eggs Benedict/Royale/Florentine, Corned Beef Hash and a cracking Bacon and Sausage Bap.

Sexy Buns

In the evening things really crank up another level as our bar and restaurant swings into action. We serve a small but well appointed selection of wines, our Malbec, Pinot Noir and Pinot Grigio are hugely popular, we’ve got a really cool range of beers which include Meantime’s London Lager on tap and others winners such as locally brewed Junction Ale and beers with attitude (as Jamie Oliver would say) such as 5am Saint and Punk IPA from Brewdog. We’ve also got fizz and cocktails to get your evening off to a great start.

Cocktails

As well as bar snacks that include Mrs King’s Pork Pies, we serve Small Plates (basically modern tapas), our Raclette from Hamish Johnston is a plate of indulgence and then we have a seasonal menu. At the moment you can tuck into Mussels with Bacon and Luscombe Cider, Pork Belly with Autumn Squash, Beef and Junction Ale Stew with Horseradish Dumplings, Sea Bass, Chilli Crab Linguine and Beetroot and Squash Risotto. We also have our Canteen Classics, the BC Burger with smoked Montgomery Cheddar, Wild Boar and Apple Bangers and Mash, a Super Food Salad and an ever popular Sirloin Steak.

Beef and Junction Ale Stew

At the Canteen we chiefly try to do two things, one is to make sure the prices are reasonable, the other is to make sure the food is tasty – we try and achieve this by using Hero Suppliers. It’s an evolving list but at the moment we’re getting treats from The Dessert Deli, awesome pies from @MyPie1, bread from The Flour Station, meat from Dove on Northcote Road, cheese from Hamish Johnston, who are also on Northcote Road, the best ice cream we’ve ever tasted from Gelupo and lots of other amazing suppliers and producers.

Hero Suppliers

We also want to be a little bit different and add a bit to the local community, so we offer things like a Free Book Exchange, we have free Wifi and free nappies and wet wipes and we give out dog bowls of water. We also do lots of offers, for example you can get a cheap babysitter via our friends Like Minders or you can get a 10% discount if you cycle to the Canteen. Also, before you go big on Saturday, go small with us: £5 for a pint/glass of vino and a slider/flatbread with dips.

We’re still new and we’re still learning and improving, don’t be afraid to give us feedback, @benscanteen

We hope to see you soon and don’t forget, we now take bookings.

New Daytime Menu

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We’ve decided to revamp our daytime menu here at the Canteen and it definitely sounds good to us.

Ben's Canteen Daytime

We’re actually still going to tinker around with it, it isn’t set in stone, so please let us know what else you would like to see, what’s going to stop you from picking up that very average sarnie or salad from Sainsbury? But in the meantime, who fancies griddled courgette and green bean salad with tahini dressing? Or Israeli cous cous with roasted butternut squash, spinach and feta? Or perhaps a grilled portobello mushroom and spiced butternut squash with creamy goats cheese? We’ve also definitely got our eye on a good old fish finger bap too! And don’t worry, we’re still doing Carrot Cake (via The Dessert Deli) and lots of other tasty treats.

Obviously we’re still doing breakfast, especially as we now open from 8am, and you can tuck into a cumberland sausage sarnie, granola, scrambled or poached eggs on toast and a ham and cheese croissant as well toast with marmite, jam or chef Kirrin’s delicious homemade lemon curd.

Add all of this to our amazing Square Mile coffee or Teapigs tea and hopefully you can see why we’re the best cafe in Battersea, and beyond.

Before we list the full menu today we’d just like to quickly highlight what else is going on at the Canteen,

  • We’ve got a new manager, the lovely Robbie, and he is working hard to improve our evening and brunch service which we know hasn’t always hit the mark in the past but we’re already making huge improvements and will continue to do so. Pop in and say hi, you’ll quickly work out who he is.
  • We’re running a Sunday Pie Night, this Sunday from 6pm. We’re going to have handheld Aussie and Kiwi classic beef pies and then some delicious British pies served with gravy and mash all from @MyPie1. There will also be a Sunday Roast pie that is totally exclusive to Ben’s Canteen. Rarely have we been so excited about a Sunday night.
  • We’re doing cocktails tomorrow night, Wednesdays are always a lot better with a mojito or an espresso martini.
  • On Thursday night, our friend Armel, who is a personal trainer, will be taking Running Club. Meet at the Canteen at 7pm for a little training sesh. Free drink to everybody who takes part.
  • We’ve got some interesting titles in our Free Book Exchange (situated at the back of the restaurant), come and check them out.
There are probably a bunch of other exciting things to list but we want you to have a good look at our super tasty new daytime menu…

All Day Brekkie

Cumberland sausage sarnie with date chutney. £3.75 (add scrambled egg £1)

Our granola with yoghurt, honey and berries. £4

Scrambled eggs on granary toast. £3.50

Sourdough toast with Kirrin’s lemon curd, marmite and jam. £2.50

Honey cured ham and emmental croissant. £3.75

Lunch

Sandwiches

Grilled Portabello mushroom and spiced butternut squash with creamy goat cheese (v). £3.75

Prosciutto crudo, slow roasted vine tomatoes and mozzarella . £3.75

Fish fingers on crusty white. £3.25

Salads

Griddled courgette and green bean  salad with tahini dressing (v). £4.50

Israeli cous cous with roasted butternut squash, spinach and feta (v). £4.50

Add roast corn fed chicken £1

Soup of the day. £2.95

Pastries & Treats

Croissant, £1, Pain au chocolat, £1.25, Pain au raisin, £1.50

Brownies. £1.80, Flapjacks. £2, Millionaire caramel shortbread. £2

Carrot cake. £2.75

Chelsea buns. £2.75

Muffins. £2.45  Make it HOT and add Jude’s Icecream £1

Jude’s ice cream: choose from raspberry ripple, double chocolate, vanilla or salted caramel. £1.50

Mojitos and Dirty Martinis

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Tonight our friend Captain Intensity is leaving his desk and jumping behind our bar to shake up some Mojitos and Martinis.

Also tonight we’ve added a whole bunch of new small plates,

  • Truffled Egg Toast
  • Aubergine and Parmesan Stack
  • Bread and Dips (Aubergine Caviar and Beetroot and Walnut Hummus)
  • Cup of Butternut Squash Soup
We were selling the truffled egg toast for lunch today and those who went for it were mightily impressed and rightly so, it’s delish. Today was our second day of doing breakfast from 8am and we’re already seeing a bigger smile on the face of those commuters who are trying our awesome coffees and pastries.
With all the sampling we’ve been doing we’re actually looking forward to the free Running Club we’re doing tomorrow night. Just turn up at the Canteen at 7pm if you would like to take part.
In other news, we’re going to do a Sunday Pie Night in conjunction with MyPie on the 25th September – that’s going to be great. We’re also looking at doing a Sambrooks Saturday towards the end of October, should be some free samples about and a look at their new Porter and in early October we’ll be doing some work with Maker’s Mark in the form of some style quizzes. Good times at the Canteen.
Oh and one final thing, we’ve changed our cheeseboard, we’re now doing Old Winchester, Stinking Bishop, Strathdon Blue and Ticklemore Goat’s Cheese (all our cheese comes from the excellent Hamish Johnston).

Small Plates

Enjoy small plates as bar snacks or starters or choose a selection of plates as your main – tapas style. Each plate is cooked to order and will be served as it’s ready, don’t wait to get stuck in!

Mac and Cheese with Bacon: £3.95

Butternut Squash Bites: £3.95

Roasted butternut squash bites with a blue cheese dip.

Chilli and Lime Prawns: £4.50

Chorizo and Manchego: £4.95

Cheese and Tomato Toasts: £2.95

Smoked Montgomery cheddar and vine tomatoes on toast.

Labne Balls: £3.95

Lebanese soft cheese with a herb and spice rub.

Truffled Egg Toast: £4

Aubergine and Parmesan Stack: £3.25

Bread and dips: £4.75

Sourdough with aubergine caviar and beetroot and walnut hummus.

Cup of Soup: £4

Butternut and crispy bacon.

Chicken Skewers: £4.95

Harissa chicken skewers with mint and cucumber yoghurt.

Pork Pie: £5

Traditional or pork and stilton with chutney and mustard – pies are from the award winning Mrs King.

Scotch Egg: £2.50

Cheeseboard: £7.25

A selection of cheeses from Northcote Road food hero, Hamish Johnston.

Charcuterie Board: £5.95 

Big Plates

World Cup Burger and Chips: £12.50 (add bacon £1)

Two Dove the Northcote Road butcher beef patties on a ketchup and mustard base, topped with smoked Montgomery cheddar from Hamish Johnston and gherkins. Served with chips.

Cod: £12.25

Oven roasted cod with chickpeas, chorizo and tomatoes.

Moules: £9.95

Belgian style moules (white wine, cream and shallots) with chips.

Beef and Ale Stew: £10.25

Sirloin casserole with Sambrooks brewery Junction Ale and mash.

Gammon, Egg & Chips: £10.25

Gammon steak (via Dove the butcher on Northcote Rd) with hand cut chips, egg and caramelised pineapple.

Sirloin Steak: £15.50

Sirloin steak with dauphinoise and roasted tomato.

Bangers and Mash: £9.95

Wild boar and apple sausages (via Dove the butcher on Northcote Rd) with mash and gravy.

Chef Kirrin’s Burger and Chips: £9.00 (add emmental cheese £1, add Montgomery cheddar/Dorset Blue Vinny, £1.50, add bacon £1)

Home made burger with English mustard, ketchup and toasted fennel. Served with chips.

Pork Belly: £14.25

Confit pork belly on colcannon with roasting juices.

Linguine: £7.95

Linguine with fire roasted peppers, vine tomatoes and basil.

Beetroot and Goats Cheese Salad: £7.95

Roast beetroot, goats cheese and rocket salad.

Sides £3

Chips, Mash, Spinach with lemon and garlic butter, Green Beans, Broccoli, Side Salad

Desserts

Jude’s Ice Cream. Choose from Salted Caramel, Raspberry Ripple, Vanilla, Double Chocolate or Rum and Raisin. £1.50

Roasted Plum Crumble with Crème Anglaise. £4.95

Retro Coke Float (Coke with a Scoop of Jude’s Ice Cream). £2

Classic Cheese Cake. £4.95

Warm Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream & Berry Couli. £4.95

Eton Mess. £4.95

Oh and as much as we personally hate to share, we really don’t mind if you want to share your desserts, we’ve got plenty of spoons.

Cheeseboard £7.25

Old Winchester, Stinking Bishop, Strathdon Blue and Ticklemore Goat’s Cheese

Our cheeses come from Hamish Johnston, a local food hero on Northcote Road.