Restaurants

NB CHANGE OF OWNERSHIP
In February 2009 Oliver Peyton's involvement with The Lawn ended, and although Time Out were told the café would remain open, the phone line remained unanswered for our several attempts to call them at the end of February. The review below and the listings refer only the the café while Oliver Peyton was running it in 2008.

2008 REVIEW FOLLOWS
A highly civilised addition to London’s park café scene, whether you’re taking tea in the old bishop’s drawing room of Fulham Palace, or enjoying the sunshine outside on one of the luxuriously padded garden seats. Both locations provide quintessential views of clipped lawns and designer deckchairs. Indeed, like all Oliver Peyton venues, thought and money have been devoted to providing a stylish setting. The menu is more elegant than you’ll find at similar set-ups, with the likes of garlic-and-thyme marinated spatchcock spring chicken with jersey royals, and steak tartare of rare-breed Ballindalloch beef. Our barbecued black bream was pleasingly crisp and smoky, but let down by the accompanying fennel salad which contained acrid slices of onion that made it memorable for all the wrong reasons. Still, the lime and coriander-seed dressing showed promise. Best was the chocolate nut sundae, which contained three different choc ices plus whole hazelnuts and big chunks of walnut. Afternoon tea can be a simple scone or chelsea bun with Jersey clotted cream, Peyton & Byrne jams and a pot of tea or coffee (£5), or the more indulgent £12 affair including sandwiches and pastries.

Time Out London February 2009