Double Standard — Restaurant in London

“Hot Chilli, Warm Service – A Pecking Lunch at The Standard”

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Stumbled across this limited-edition pop-up via Hot-Dinners.com, and I’m glad I did — even if my taste buds left with mixed opinions. From 31st July to 14th September, Pecking House (a cult NYC fried chicken spot) is collaborating with The Double Standard Bar at The Standard Hotel, London. I visited as a walk-in for lunch on 5th August, curious to see how this fried food fusion would hold up across the pond.

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🚇 Getting There:

📍 The Standard, London 10 Argyle Street, London WC1H 8EG • Nearest Tube Station: King’s Cross St. Pancras • Use the Euston Road exit (NOT Pancras Road) • Cross over and take a short 4–5 min stroll • Bus routes nearby include: 30, 73, 205, 214, 390 • Stop: King’s Cross Station / Euston Road

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🥢 The Dishes & Drinks:

🔹 Chilli Fried Cauliflower (£9.00) Went in expecting some punch, came out with a whisper. I opted for the Fish Sauce Caramel and Spring Onion dressing — the sauce was subtle (a little too subtle), and the spring onion was more of a cameo than a feature. Shared honest feedback with the manager, who received it graciously.

⭐ Chilli Fried Chicken (£16.00) Here we go. This was the star of the meal — crisp coating, well-balanced spices, and a noticeable (but not overbearing) kiss of Sichuan peppercorn (yes, that’s the correct spelling). You currently get two drumsticks and one breast. It would be nice to allow diners a choice of cuts — I’d personally swap a drumstick for a juicy thigh any day. Management took the feedback on board.

🧂 Chicken Salt Fries (£7.00) Nostalgic but not in a “wow” way — think Knorr’s Aromat with a chicken twist. Safe, salty, but not standout.

🥒 Smashed Cucumber (£11.00) Refreshing, but lacking that zesty hit you want from a palate cleanser. Also, it felt a bit steep price-wise considering the ingredients.

🍸 Lime Slushy Michelada (£13.50) Was hoping for zing, but got zip. Surprisingly flat citrus profile. BUT — shout-out to the awesome mixologist, who let me sample the Pineapple & Ginger and Tomato Micheladas on the house. Of the three, the Pineapple & Ginger is the one to order. Tangy, balanced, and just punchy enough.

🥣 Pecking House Sauce (£2.50) This is the real MVP condiment. A perfect partner for the chicken and fries — rich, savoury, and umami-packed.

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💫 The Vibe & Service:

Here’s where the experience soared. The staff were exceptional — genuinely warm, engaging, and eager to hear feedback. No ego, no defensiveness — just a team proud of their craft and ready to listen. Honestly, that sort of vibe makes you overlook a few flavour hiccups. The manager and the bar team deserve real praise. Hospitality done right. 🤌

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🚻 Facilities:

Toilets are located downstairs, right before you enter the Double Standard Bar space. Modern, sleek, and immaculately kept — with a cool, almost club-lounge chic.

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🎯 Verdict: A pleasant lunch with standout service and a fried chicken dish that truly hits the mark. There are some growing pains in the menu execution (especially around clarity, pricing, and seasoning), but I left with a smile 😊…not just because of the food, but because of the people behind it.

Hot tip: If you go, ask for the breast and thigh combo, and don’t leave without trying the Pecking House Sauce and the Pineapple &...

Avoid at all costs. I came here to celebrate a friend's birthday and we booked in for brunch. When you first walk in the space and furniture is gorgeous. It has a sort of retro/disco vibe which I loved and I have to give credit where it's due. However, the appeal of that quickly fades the moment you take a seat.

Bottomless Brunch Experience: We were a big group and whilst there was one single bottle of water on one side of table, it took them 20 minutes to bring the other half of the group some water. Our order wasn't taken until about 12:45ish and our booking began at 12. Some members of our group opted for bottomless brunch for £27.5 with a choice of mimosas or Prosecco (not including food). At first glance, the price is standard for London and includes a 2 hour window. However, the order wasn't taken until quarter to 1 and they took 30 minutes to bring the next round. I understand having a policy whereby they can only bring the next round upon finishing the prior one but to have to wait 30 minutes for them to bring the next round was ridiculous. These weren't cocktails, and it doesn't take long to pour a glass of Prosecco. Perhaps, they should've brought out a few bottles for those who were drinking so the waitress wouldn't have to keep going back and forth. Then they have the cheek to tell you you need to leave the table on the dot, even though they took ages to serve drinks and food.

Food: I have to be blunt and say the food was terrible. After waiting ages for our order to be taken and our food to be served, the presentation of my eggs Benedict is horrible with the hollandaise not even poured over the egg but just spilled to the side. (See picture attached). The eggs weren't runny and over cooked. Stale bread and a sad piece of parma ham..for £14. I don't mind paying this price for good food, but seriously? How can you serve the food looking like this? Worst eggs Benedict I've ever had. Also, tried my friends 'beef dripping fries'.. about 6-7 quid and they tasted like frozen fries and you could barely taste the beef dripping.

Summary: If things couldn't get any worse, upon getting the bill, they added 2 dishes that we didn't even order. Thankfully we spotted this and they fixed it. This is the first time since living in London I've had to request to take the service charge off. I'm appalled by this experience. We didn't even get any apologies for the obvious terrible service. The one star is for the ambiance and the fact they agreed to take off the service charge. You're better off walking to granary square and eating a nice brunch/dinner there. Or go to Half Cup around the corner. You won't be...

Went for the Bloody Mary brunch. Took almost a half hour for our Bloody Marys to show up. The restaurant was barely half full but the server hardly showed up at our table. It was surprising considering how many staff members were standing around the bar area. One of our party had to go up to the bar to check on the status of our drinks. It was so bad that we put in our order for the second round of drinks when the first round finally showed up. For a place that advertises a Bloody Mary brunch, you would expect the service of the so called drink to be a bit speedier.

When the server finally came to our table again, I made a comment how we should order food now as it might take another half hour for the food to arrive and the server got mad and proceeded to ask me if I ever waited tables and how hard it was, etc. He was quite combative! One of my party was so appalled at his attitude (because she had served tables before and told him so) that she was suggesting that we leave. At that point, he just left our table and walked out. CRAZY!

We stayed to finish our drinks since we waited so long for it. At this point, a manager came to our table, didn't really apologise for the incident but took our orders. From then we had a different but attentive server and it was fine after that. And they didn't charge us for one round of drinks.

Overall, food and drink was average. Atmosphere was ok but service was abysmal. Might explain why the restaurant was barely full. Other dining establishments at The Standard are much better. I know because I had a bday celebration at the rooftop two years ago and they were lovely to me both when I was making the arrangements and during the event. So I know the appalling server's attitude is not representative of the entire establishment. But I would still recommend to avoid the Double Standard (does not live up to its name) and go elsewhere either in the hotel or outside of it for a decent meal...