Fulham Palace Café

The Bishops of London knew how to live. This secluded palace by the river was their official residence from 704 until 1975. These days, locals and clued-up visitors can enjoy the quiet lawns, walled garden, museum and plush café within the palace itself. The large terrace tables are popular on warm days when a barbecue gazebo operates on the lawn, serving burgers and sausages.

The café menu is sophisticated, offering a range of sandwiches, fish, meat and vegetarian platters, salads and hot mains. Garden herb burger with mozzarella and tomato chutney was juicy and full of flavour; butternut squash and leek risotto was creamy and lively, with flecks of thyme, and rice that had just the right amount of bite. Mackerel salad and a butternut gratin were also a success, and the children's meals are some of the most imaginative and tasty we've found.

Service was slow - perhaps inevitably on a busy bank holiday Monday - and our cakes came a full 15 minutes after our coffees, but they were good. A lovely place for a treat lunch, that's no more expensive than other park cafés serving distinctly inferior fare.