Elegant but understated, the new Church Road in Barnes aims to be a cut above the rest
Months after Sonny’s Kitchen sadly closed, Church Road has opened. Same owners, same (wonderfully attentive) general manager and a new(ish) chef.
Much-loved by locals, Church Road’s predecessor had a friendly vibe that has been kept, but the food has gone up more than a notch.
My colleague, Caroline, and went on a Thursday evening and the restaurant quickly filled up before 8pm. The décor is much more elegant and serene than before, but rather than chucking out all the old furnishings they have, happily, upcycled where they can. For instance, the old wood panelling on the walls has been made into a large, beautiful table.
The menu varied, with an interesting mix of seasonal choices. For starters, I opted for the tartare of aged Cumbrian beef, with beetroot, celeriac, tiny capers and truffle (£13). The finely chopped beef combined with the crunchy celeriac and creamy truffle and sat on a meaty slice of beetroot. Although I’m not the biggest fan of beetroot, it was absolutely delicious. Caroline chose the warm salad of wood pigeon with root vegetables and blackberries (£16). She said it was divine – tender and succulent with a beautiful blend of flavours – the perfect autumn dish, with plump blackberries and plum sauce giving a double hit of tart and sweet.
Michelin-starred co-owner, chef Phil Howard and his head chef, Sam Astley-Dean, who has come from the kitchen at Elystan Street, have created a menu that is seasonal yet inventive in its ingredients. They are keen to offer dishes that are as fine as any top-rated restaurant but without the central London prices. And, committed to caring for the environment, clingfilm is banned from the kitchen and there’s a special menu – Little Sprouts – that uses only produce that might have gone to waste – an ‘ugly’ vegetable, or undersized egg, for example. For every meal sold from this menu, £2 goes to the Friends of Barnes Common.
For our mains, I went for the charcoal roasted prawns with masala sauce and aubergine with cucumber and yoghurt (£26). The presentation was a little odd, with the main emphasis on the plate being the masala sauce in the middle, but the prawns on the side were tender and full of flavour. Caroline had the chargrilled monkfish tail with roasted late summer tomatoes and pesto (£29). The fish had a good, smokey flavour and soft texture, complemented by the fresh pesto.
I was persuaded to have a dessert and was so glad I did – the brown butter biscuit with salted caramel, roasted nuts, malt ice cream and lime was a fantastic combination and Caroline’s port roasted figs with baklava and fig leaf ice cream (both £9) sweet and satisfying.
92-94 Church Road, Barnes / Bookings: 020 8748 0393 / churchroadsw13.co.uk
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