THE JOURNAL
Lamb sweetbread vol-au-vent, peas, morels and almond velouté at The Duke of Richmond. Photograph by Mr Steve Ryan, courtesy of The Duke of Richmond
The best boozers for classic English cooking.
Pubs are a beloved British institution, but soaring costs and changing dining habits have seen them under threat in recent years: around 18 pubs closed every week in the latter half of 2017. However, a recent spate of new openings has seen acclaimed chefs helm traditional boozers and rescue them from a similar fate. What they offer is a cut above underwhelming gastropub food: the finest ingredients are used and the cooking is masterful. But while dusty pork scratchings and stale sandwiches may be long gone, these establishments haven’t forgotten their roots: you can still prop up the bar with a pint on a Saturday afternoon or hunker down for Sunday lunch. Here are five of the best new openings.
Mr Henry Harris at The Coach, London
Duck magret, chanterelles, pomme sauté and orange jus at The Coach. Photographs by Mr Milo Brown, courtesy of The Coach
Clerkenwell pub The Coach has been keeping Londoners sated since 1790, and this year saw new life breathed into the old building (formerly The Coach And Horses) thanks to chef Mr Henry Harris. His French-British menu is the sort in which you could happily stick a pin while blindfolded and be content with your choice, whether it was a vibrant bowl of chilled pea, ham and mint soup; buttery smoked salmon and horseradish on house-made soda bread; or grilled rabbit leg with fat bacon lardons and mustard sauce. Sunday roasts promise billowy, parachute-like Yorkshire puddings and seven-hour roast shoulder of lamb with mint sauce. There’s a French-forward wine list to be paired with dinner on the bright, glass-ceilinged new patio extension, and beers from Timothy Taylor and Portobello Brewing Co for post-work pints at the bar. Here’s to the next few hundred years.
Mr Luke Robinson at The Blue Posts, London
Mackerel Escabeche at Evelyn's Table at The Blue Posts. Photograph by Mr Chris Terry, courtesy of The Blue Posts. Exterior. Photograph by Mr Keith Collie, courtesy of The Blue Posts
Siblings Ms Zoë and Mr Layo Paskin attract nightly queues at their excellent Middle Eastern eateries The Palomar and The Barbary, and the pair’s Midas touch looks set to continue with their latest venture – an ambitious restoration of The Blue Posts pub in Soho. On the ground floor there’s craft beer and a concise lunch menu, while upstairs bar The Mulwray is all velvet banquettes and potent cocktails. But the magic happens in the basement: Evelyn’s Table is an 11-seater restaurant where four chefs work from an open kitchen, serving diners perched at a marble bar. Head chef Mr Luke Robinson cut his teeth at London seafood restaurant Bonnie Gull Seafood Shack, and his passion for fish is obvious as he talks through the day’s catch from Cornwall: hake might come with a buttery cauliflower puree, pollock with smoky sweetcorn and girolles, and Lindisfarne oysters with gooseberries and chive oil. The food has its roots in Italy, with hand-rolled pasta dishes, such as egg yolk-yellow carbonara enriched with pork fat, tossed in their sauces while guests look on. Be sure to book ahead.
Mr Tom Oldroyd at The Duke Of Richmond, London
Shetland scallop, grilled white asparagus, grelot onions and truffle beurre blanc at The Duke of Richmond. Photographs by Mr Steve Ryan, courtesy of The Duke of Richmond
At his eponymous – and tiny – Islington restaurant, Mr Tom Oldroyd has just a few feet of kitchen space. It’s a million miles from his second venture, Hackney pub The Duke Of Richmond. There’s a 30-seater dining room, an outdoor terrace, and a bar serving the snacks dreams were made of: crab chip butty, saucisson brioche with cornichons, and golden-crusted pies filled with beef shin. The French-inspired a la carte menu is a little more understated, but dishes such as Swaledale lamb en croute with truffle butter still promise bold, rustic flavours. Made-to-share feasts – in which a whole, crisp-skinned suckling pig or baked wild sea trout with Jersey royals are presented in the centre of the table – will elevate weekend get-togethers.
Mr Dan Doherty at The Royal Oak, London
Scotch egg at The Royal Oak. Photographs by Ms Jade Nina Sarkhel, courtesy of The Royal Oak
Mr Dan Doherty has an eclectic CV, from Michelin-starred 1 Lombard Street to sky-high, 24-seven fine-dining restaurant Duck & Waffle. As well as announcing plans to open a restaurant in New York, he recently made his first foray into TV presenting, as a judge on BBC One’s Britain’s Best Home Cook. Then in June, the energetic chef opened Marylebone pub The Royal Oak. Before the site closes in the autumn for a full restoration, head there this summer to try the evolving, pared-back food menu. Mr Doherty’s ability to blend classic British cooking with a magpie-like approach to global flavours is demonstrated in dishes such as nduja Scotch egg, fried merguez sausage with whipped feta and harissa, and fall-apart beef short rib braised in soy. Hefty toasties, meanwhile, with their golden cheese “crown” and oozy filling, will be cluttering up your Instagram feed.
Mr Daniel Smith The Fordwich Arms, Canterbury
Hand dived scallop, garden pea, Kentish gooseberry and charcoal cream at The Fordwich Arms. Photographs courtesy of The Fordwich Arms
The Fordwich Arms is a short train ride away from London in what’s officially Britain’s smallest town. And a young team are making a big impression. Mr Daniel Smith left Michelin-starred The Clove Club in Shoreditch to take over Kent pub The Fordwich Arms, along with pastry chef and co-owner Ms Natasha Norton and former Clove Club sommelier Mr Guy Palmer-Brown, earlier this year. The menu lurches from the simple – Maldon rock oysters; house-cured charcuterie – to the whimsical: hand-dived scallops with gooseberries and charcoal cream; white asparagus cooked in whey with hazelnuts and a sharp hit of sorrel; and hay-smoked confit trout. With its sprawling garden, fireplace and ivy-clad entranceway, the environment couldn’t be further from Mr Smith’s former east London home, yet the cooking is as exciting as anyone who’s eaten his food at The Clove Club will remember.
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