Restaurants

An antidote to Notting Hill flummery, this no-nonsense chippie has been deep-frying since 1981. It is cunningly disguised as a common-or-garden takeaway, but if you march past the gleaming fryer, you’ll enter a gratifyingly simple dining room furnished with caff-style wooden tables and chairs and red leatherette banquettes. There’s a Hellenic accent to the menu – the restaurant is sibling to the neighbouring Greek Cypriot Costas Grill – as evidenced by houmous in the starters, calamares among the mains, and retsina and palatable Keo lager on the drinks list. To start, a mound of pink, oniony taramasalata with toasted pitta (that could easily be shared by two) was surpassed by cod’s roe clothed in the most fragile of batters. Still more pleasing were main courses of meaty rock salmon and delicate lemon sole, as were the golden brown chips (fried in vegetable oil), bowlful of mushy peas and pickled onion (presented Damien Hirst-style in six slices by the cheerful waitress). Desserts include baklava. Local families, ravenous toddlers in tow, were tucking in with abandon: and not a media darling in sight.

Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2009