Sea Containers Brunch Lacks A Little Sparkle

Bottomless brunch, Sea Containers ★★★☆☆

Will Noble
By Will Noble Last edited 61 months ago

Looks like this article is a bit old. Be aware that information may have changed since it was published.

Sea Containers Brunch Lacks A Little Sparkle Bottomless brunch, Sea Containers 3
The salmon bagel: not untasty, but unsure what it wants to be

The nautically-turned out staff; the tinkling of live piano; that Riviera-like sun-blushed terrace: Sea Containers surely has that glint of ship-shape razzle-dazzle about it.

Shame then, that the South Bank restaurant's new bottomless brunch menu doesn't quite measure up. Now, maybe there's something intrinsically twisted about the concept of hurling flutes of bubbly down your gullet inside an allotted time frame. That said, if you offer a bottomless brunch, then it must be nothing less — especially when allowing only 1.5 hours' of booze, rather than the customary two hours.

While at times, the staff plonk down fresh bellinis in front of us before we've barely dispatched with the previous, there are also drinkless pockets of time, where we're left haplessly scouring the room like thirsty meerkats, for someone who'll be kind enough to indulge us. It's no fun having to ask.

Down with this sort of thing

The food also arrives nervy and unsure of itself, on such a salubrious stage. The strange beast we're served up is half-salmon-and-cream-cheese-bagel, half eggs royale — and certainly not more than the sum of its parts. Most bizarrely, heaps of chilled lettuce flop where wilted spinach should be. Our companions' Egg Sammy is good cheesy fun, but struggles to keep hunger locked up till supper. A side thrown in for free would be welcome.

We've had far worse bottomless brunches, but seeing as this one's served at one of the South Bank's most coveted eateries, tweaks must surely be made. We would say that the roasts being shuttled past us looked ship-shape and Bristol fashion.

Bottomless brunch at Sea Containers, every weekend

Last Updated 21 February 2019