Petersham Nurseries Café

It's spring-time, and townies are chirping and straining their necks up towards the sunshine like hungry nesting chicks. We all need to fly out from the city at some point, to explore leafy green spaces. But where's the best place to head for?

Petersham Nurseries gives you a day out in the countryside without an expedition. The walk from Richmond station along the banks of the Thames to village-like Petersham is a rewarding one, at times Arcadian. The river views and green pastures get you in the mood, but the garden centre is a bucolic riot of colour and form: the tulips are at their best right now.

Petersham Nurseries garden centre was rescued from developers by Gael and Francesco Boglione, who bought it as adjunct to their neighbouring home, Petersham House, in 2004. They started a café in one of the old greenhouses, hired chef Skye Gyngell, and it became a culinary phenomenon, attracting critical praise even from the starchiest of restaurant guides. But Skye Gyngell left a few months ago, and her muddy boots were hard to fill.

Greg Malouf, like Gyngell, is an Aussie who likes to play with expectations and culinary styles. Not only was his cooking at MoMo restaurant in Melbourne highly acclaimed, but he's also co-authored a series of inspiring cookery books about Levantine, Turkish and Middle Eastern food. He's been a guest cook at Petersham before, but this time he's here for a longer stay.

Malouf has not replaced Gyngell's menu, he has supplemented it. So the bright, Mediterranean colours and flavours, with lots of Italian ingredients, remain.

One of many heirloom dishes from the Gyngell days is the burrata starter. This is a fresh cheese of mozzarella on the outside, with a runny, mozzarella and cream interior, served on toast with Sicilian tomatoes that tasted of summer sun. Dishes like this are down to good sourcing though, not cooking; Petersham has kept the same Italian suppliers.

A starter which better reflected the cook's abilities was a rabbit served on a parsnip skordalia. Skordalia is a garlic-flavoured Greek purée that can be made from potatoes or bread, but making it with parsnips as the starch is a touch of genius. The rabbit pieces had a barbecue coating,while the salad leaves were grumolo verde (an Italian chicory) and a red chicory.

A 'bisateeya' (pastilla) of duck is one of the few Arabesque touches, and a Malouf signature. The warka pastry wraps the meat parcel tightly, while the dusting of icing sugar gives the Moroccan combination of sweet and savoury. The tender duck meat inside - moist from an egg custard with almond, coriander and parsley - adds to the flavour explosion. The accompanying white cabbage salad with a hint of dried mint, a Malouf family recipe, was a good foil to the richness of the dish.

Seasonal pavlova was a delight, the limp but iridescent pink rhubarb draped over a firm meringue. A layer of lemon posset replaces the usual whipped cream, the two flavours playing off against each other.

Most of all, Petersham Nurseries is an idyllic spot. It is the fantasy of the Garden of England, mixed up with Tuscan farmhouse furniture and Indian artefacts, but with Cal-Ital influence on the plate. The Elysian Fields come at a price though. If you just want to drop by for the no-reservations 'Tea House' instead, this cheaper option gives you the benefit of a good kitchen without the high pricing.