Restaurants

Despite the bucolic name, you could hardly imagine a more unlikely site for some of the most innovative cooking in London: a distinctly unlovely street with a car rental opposite. Inside, however, all is bliss. The wood-panelled room was an oasis of tranquillity on a quiet spring evening, with quietly competent service adding to the scene. Most of our food was outstanding. Chef Cristina Anghelescu loves to fool around with ideas in a manner that combines elements of France and California. The menu changes seasonally but always with an emphasis on highest-quality main ingredients adorned with complex assemblies of vegetable garnishes. Two exceptional dishes should convey the idea: a startlingly delicious mushroom pâté (roast shiitake and black trumpet) with a salad of leaves and herbs, enoki mushrooms and black truffle shavings; and seven juicy Maine scallops with a ragout of yellow cherry tomatoes, spinach and shallots, and a tian of sweet potatoes and fresh herbs. Belly of pork was perfectly cooked to melting softness and garnished beautifully. The wine and beer lists are exemplary: concise, international, uniformly well chosen and (like the food) very well priced.

Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2009