Hidden away in Hammersmith, a newcomer seeking to evoke memories of the legendary early-’90s restaurant on the site; it was good-all-round on our early-days visit, but the standards which would once have been exceptional are now relatively commonplace. Hammersmith estate agents have a lot to thank this site for. Over twenty years ago, the founding […]
Handy for Oxford Street, the latest outpost of the Salt Yard empire; it’s a useful enough place, very much in the style of its predecessors, but we couldn’t see it rising to any sort of ‘destination’ status. When you’ve had a string of successful, and in their day somewhat innovative, restaurants – Salt Yard, Dehesa, […]
Brooklyn comes to Soho (again); this diner de luxe is hardly a gastronomic destination, but everything is done well, and the overall level of value is hard to criticise. We’ll not begin by bemoaning the fact that London’s bout of Americophilia shows no sign of abating. We’ll not lament the fact that ‘Brooklyn style’ has […]
Owned (but not too obviously) by the Hotel Chocolat people, a really welcoming Borough Market bar/bistro where everything comes with cocoa, not that you’d really know; we thought this one of the nicest all-rounders we’ve been to for some time. Don’t we all love a ‘backstory’? And the story behind this particular story – or […]
Recently refurbished, one of London’s most artistically impressive dining rooms, offering a dining experience well above the cultural-destination average, plus a wine list of some note. Society artist Rex Whister was in his early 20s when, in 1926, he was commissioned to decorate a new dining room at the National Gallery of British Art (which […]
On a prime site for Soho people-watching (the former Boheme Kitchen & Bar, RIP), a bar/diner in inevitable Brooklyn style, offering decent bites and drink, rather swiftly. As a money-making machine, you have to admire this Soho newcomer – the former Boheme Kitchen & Bar site, given the full Brooklyn-Distressed look, and turned into an […]
A Berni Inn for our times; in the heart of Theatreland, an inoffensive midmarket steakhouse – a useful enough place, but we couldn’t really see it as becoming any sort of ‘destination’. How many things can you forget when you open a new West End restaurant? OK, let’s rephrase the question, how many things would […]
On the elegant former site of the Notting Hill Brasserie, a French/Spanish/Portuguese establishment which looks set, like its predecessor was for a time, to become a ‘destination’, albeit of an informal type. This new Notting Hill restaurant is backed by venture capital money. And we all know what VCs want, don’t we? ‘Formula’, ‘roll-out” the […]
On the former Kensington site of Timo (RIP), a new mid-range Italian of some ambition; there were some real highlights on our early-days visit, but many aspects of the operation were still very much in need of ‘tightening up’. Celebrating a birthday, we headed to this new Kensington Italian whose charms – of cuisine, if […]
On the 33rd floor of the Shard, an ambitious Chinese restaurant that was still giving a slight impression of settling in on our visit; we had an enjoyable lunch, though, and prices are not unreasonable, considering. It used to be easy. High-rise restaurants in London were few, small and expensive, and everyone knew they were […]
