Tartine Balham

I want Tartine Balham to be really good but in my view its average at best. And this visit was another example of me wanting something and Tartine not really delivering.

My history with Tartine dates back to before they had a Balham branch. Mrs Spiller and I would pop in to Tartine in Tooting when we were having our Tooting jaunts. We felt Tartine Tooting was a great find and always enjoyed our visits.


When Tartine opened in Balham they took over the space previously occupied by Gazzette which had a great atmosphere and delicious food in the cosy space. When Tartine moved in we were looking forward to good atmosphere and food continuing with a slightly different feel.


Unfortunately our experiences there have been mediocre, their coffee has been consistently average at best. Food has been ok and service has been hit and miss.


So this visit I was on my own, Mrs and Baby Spiller had headed back to NZ. It was a nice afternoon in Balham with clear skies and it was warm for March. I was able to get a seat outside, although the outside seats weren't getting any sun - I guess they will in summer.


It was ominous that the couple next to me left two half eaten meals at their table when they left.

I ordered a cappuccino and a merguez wrap.

The wrap wasn't too bad. Good in fact.


However imagine lifting up your cup of cappuccino to your mouth, as you take your first mouthful, the froth hits your top lip and you feel cold, cold froth. What a shock. I hadn't had the coffee sitting there for long and it was a warm day so either the coffee had been waiting to be brought out to me for ages or they had just used milk that had been frothed some time earlier on my coffee. Unacceptable. The coffee tasted average, like most cappuccinos you would get at cafes where they don't take pride in their coffee around London.


Service was ok but not good enough to make up for the bad coffee, the location is not bad, but really I'm not sure why I go back here so often when it's just not that good. I guess it's the memories of good experiences at Tartine Tooting.


So that's that, sorry it's not a more positive review. This place is relatively busy so it clearly has a market that it serves well but really I should stop going here. I suppose it is one of those places where you can usually get a seat when all the other places are full.


Scores:

Coffee
Hot: 4/13 (while the froth was cold the coffee was warm)
Aroma: 5/13
Flavour: 5/13
Texture: 6/13
Presentation: 6/13

General
Service: 7/13
Food: 8/13
Atmosphere: 9/13

Overall 6/13.

As seems to happen when I've had a bad experience I packed myself off to Dee-Light for a delicious coffee, chocolate brownie and sat in the sun for about an hour.