The Toucan

This review was published in March 2002

There is one bar in London that is more Irish than a great many of the Irish bars in Ireland. It is run by English people and, as occasionally happens when an establishment is set up 'in homage' to an original memory, it has somehow managed to preserve all the best bits. The Toucan is small, scruffy and awesomely busy. The Guinness is peerless and the atmosphere raffish.

There is pretty good food to be had, but only when the bar is not packed. When the place is very full it's impossible to get food to the customers so the staff don't even try. It's easier for the customers just to take another drink. The oysters here are cheap and good - large, fat Rossmore oysters with brown bread and butter slip down gently on a river of Guinness.

Then there is Irish stew - rich broth with chunks of carrot, potato and lamb on the bone, seasoned well - which comes with bread to dip in the broth. You can also have seriously good toasted sandwiches. It is the mark of a good bar to see a couple of new customers order toasties and Guinness, and then, as soon as they have finished them, order the same again. When it comes to the simple things, quality is obvious.

There are one or two moody items on the menu. You can have a truly 'Irish' combination like chilli and champ (an A-class mashed potato containing a bit of onion). There is also Thai chicken curry and rice, and such whimsy just adds to the charm of the place. The top-seller is the Guinness pie that comes with champ. This is a rich pie made with steak, and it is very good indeed. Also worth noting is the smoked salmon, served by the plate, or as an open sandwich. In the bar of your dreams the food would be like this - cheap, hearty, tasty, wholesome and filling.

Needless to say the Guinness would be much the same. The Toucan has been so successful that it now has a sibling just off Wigmore Street. Furthermore, there are persistent rumours that there is to be a third establishment (would that be the Threecan?) in the City. When you've finished your meal, take a tour round what may well be London's largest array of Irish whiskies, from the very obscure to the very expensive - you could end up paying £50 a shot here.

If you want the kind of hospitality for which Ireland is famous, the Brits at the Toucan will be happy to oblige. Happy St Pat's!