A Royal Riot in SW6 (and beyond)...

We've had the Kate and Wills fridge, the Kate and Wills sick bag, the false nails, the Kate Barbie and even a Royal ring of a different kind... The pubs and restaurants of London would be mad not to cash in on the occasion too, especially as the Met forecast for this Friday does not look to be kind on the hordes hanging out in Hyde Park, or desperately seeking a view of the Royal Carriage on Pall Mall.

You won't catch us camping outside Buckingham Palace, like this mad Wandsworth resident who started his cold and lonely vigil today. The local choices in Fulham and a bit beyond are plentiful... so read ahead to find a right Royal jamboree near you.

The Jam Tree on the Kings Road will have that amazing beer garden up and running for business from 10am, and will be serving a special Royal wedding brunch until 12pm.  They've also got big screens, £15 pitchers of Pimms (what else to toast the happy couple?) and you'll be able to sample a Wills burger and a Kate Salad. This place is bound to be packed, so if the weather does look nice and you'd like an outdoor table, we'd book ahead or stake your claim at 10am sharp.

We've mentioned the street party organised by The Sands End on the blog before. Having had more details we can safely say it's going to be quite the knees-up. The Sands End have had permission to shut off an entire block of road, and will set up a long table with union jack bunting, position 2 outdoor barbecues and will have several big screens broadcasting the happy couple. A steel drum band will also be adding to the festivities throughout the day.

The Durrell Arms will be hosting a special £10 Royal Wedding Breakfast to start you off, before finishing the evening with a classic cheesy Royal Wedding disco in their Great Hall. Just close your eyes and pretend you're in the palace...

The Hollywood Arms, purveyors of some of the best cocktails around the Fulham Road, are also getting in on the action. This fun little place will be full to the rafters with people watching the ceremony on one of the three big screens and toasting Kate and Wills with a martini.

Having seen the hordes in The Ship beer garden over the Easter weekend, we're sure the atmosphere will be electric at this riverside favourite. In the name of Great British Tradition, The Ship will have some special guests of a rather different kind. As recently as 2006, the old brewery used to make local beer deliveries using Dray Horses, and the gentle giants will be back during the Royal Wedding festivities. This makes The Ship the ideal family friendly options for the day. Just clear the kiddies before 8pm, as from experience this is when the local yuppies start making some pretty "groovy moves" on the table tops. It's sure to be raucous!

And as if the extra Bank Holiday wasn't enough, Dave & Co have given local businesses (and us!) another Royal Wedding present. The Home Office has told Landlords that they can extend their opening hours until 0100 BST without needing to apply for special licence. Cheers to that!

Sticking with the theme...

If you are an avid follower of SouthWestSix you may notice a trend emerging, this is something that has been more accidental than planned but nevertheless it has been an exciting culinary journey. Jess is a tapas expert having lived in Spain for a year and has educated me on a cuisine that I would never normally opt for. Thanks to some new openings and some old favourites I have been enlightened to Spanish cuisine and therefore last week I bravely decided to try tapas without Jess on Wandsworth Bridge Road.

La Cuenta markets itself as a fun and authentic Spanish tapas bar- the location is walking distance from home and bang in the middle of Wandsworth Bridge Road, therefore making it a convenient choice for a Sunday evening supper. Now I have to be honest with this post, I have been spoiled previously with the likes of Tendido Cuatro and its sister restaurants (see reviews here) and I was slightly disappointed when the spread of tapas arrived at our table. We ordered a big selection of meats, prawns, calamari etc and the food was fine, but I left with that familiar pang that happens when you visit Harrods and then realize you can’t afford anything and return across the road to Topshop. Tendio Cuarto really is the Harrods in this case and although I love Topshop I just couldn’t help reminiscing back to those glory days when Jess and I were eating the most mouth wateringly delicious and flavoursome tapas dishes I had ever encountered only a stone’s throw away on the New Kings Road.

Now the reason that this review may seem a little harsh is that La Cuenta is not cheap, not by any means. The tapas dishes are priced between £5-£10 which left us with quite a hefty bill considering I only had one glass of wine. I have pictured our tapas so you can see the presentation and portion size- there was nothing really wrong with the food (bar the garlic bread-straight out of the freezer), it just wasn’t exciting and served the purpose of filling a hole as opposed to gastronomically wowing us. We were also unlucky in that the restaurant was empty and so lacked any atmosphere and our waitress obviously would have rather been anywhere else (constantly texting) than there. Having said that I am a big believer in supporting the local businesses in favour of the chains and so I may give it another go.....either that or I will save my pennies and head back to Harrods.

http://www.lacuentatapas.co.uk/index.html

146 Wandsworth Bridge Road London SW6 2UH - 020 7736 0707

Un bon moment à Earls Court

I was meeting one of my old school friends who lives a little further West than SW6 and so we compromised on a half way meeting point-Earls Court. I have never really eaten anywhere impressive in Earls Court and am ashamed to say I usually play it safe with a voucher at Strada. However, having found a very cute little mews a couple of weeks ago by accident while trying to find a parking space I discovered 'The Little French Restaurant'.

Tucked away on Hogarth Place this restaurant is breath of fresh air from the chains and kebab houses on Earls Court Road. The restaurant prides itself on not ripping customers off with their menu prices, and this could not be more true with the £9.95 3 course deal I found-bargain! If you are organized enough to pay cash and order a glass of wine you can choose from an impressively varied set menu and have 3 courses for £9.95- yes I had to repeat this fact as it is such good value!

To start my friend went for the traditional french onion soup, which she said was good and I had sweet red peppers stuffed with cheese which I thoroughly enjoyed. I am not claiming that this is super luxe fine dining and AA Gill should rush down to Earls Court immediately, but you really can't fault fresh ingredients and home cooked food at such great value. 

For the main courses I had coq au vin (above) and Amanda (my friend) went for a very healthy main course version of my starter. This is not Haute cuisine (note the soggy vegetables) but the chicken was very well cooked and fell off the bone easily. It must also be noted that the service was very good and we were really well looked after by the staff despite the fact they were totally full and turning people away. We had a great table in the window and whiled away the evening contently sipping white wine watching the world go by. Despite being a two minute walk from the hustle and chaos of Earls Court tube station this French haven transports you back in time and we both left feeling relaxed and merry- I even got to brush up on my school girl French on the staff!

18 Hogarth Pl, London SW5 0QY020 7370 0366 

A Right Royal Wedding Party

Now we've waxed lyrical about our friendly (very) local boozer many times before. The Sands End does absolutely gorgeous food and is perfect for an after work drink with a luxury Scotch Egg. But now, it's only gone and bloody surpassed itself.

It's a not very well kept local secret that the pub's co-owner Mark Dyer was for a long while part of the Royal entourage. In fact, a few lucky locals (including ourselves) have seen Harry and Pippa Middleton knocking about the pub with friends. So it only seems right that the Sands End Pub & Kitchen put on the mother of all Royal Wedding Parties.

The Sands has applied for a street party licence, and plans to lay out table and chairs to feed their neighbours tea and cake - lucky us! There will also be a £200 bar tab for the best-decorated local house. Thats A LOT of scotch egg!

We'd best go buy our bunting!

You can read about a typical meal at the Sands End Pub and Kitchen here.
You can read an extended article of the Royal Wedding Party in the Fulham Chronicle here.

The Sands End Pub & Kitchen
135-7 Stephendale Road
London SW6 2PR

A Wandsworth Gem... Out of the Blue

I used to be a Wandsworth girl, but am ashamed to say I wasn’t aware of having a local lust-list of restaurants (except Chez Bruce of course, which sadly, despite living around from the corner, has eluded me in all my 24 years!). In fact, I’ll admit that the only reason I knew of Out of the Blue’s existence was because a colleague wanted to borrow my Tastecard to go somewhere (“anywhere”) in Clapham Junction. As well as being “Out of the Blue” it is a little bit out of the way – a 10 minute walk from Clapham Junction – and in a small stretch of restaurants on St John’s Hill that you have to be fairly clued up to know about (or maybe I just lived at the wrong end of Wandsworth).

But this is a real hidden gem. Whilst the decor is simplistic, it retains some understated elegance. You can see that this place converts well from a sunny lunch spot, to a low-lit dinner (all with a few tea-lights) which still gives a feeling of intimacy.

The menu is also pretty interesting, and very global. Usually I’d be dubious of this jack-of-all-trades approach, but the menu is also fairly streamlined (12 mains total) and the dishes I sampled were all hearty, authentic and delicious. Between myself and my dining companion we spanned the culinary globe, from France (moules in a white wine sauce and wonderfully salted fries) to Morocco (rich red hummus with seeded flatbread), over to the States (prawn and chorizo jambalaya) and finally India for curry (what else!).

Each night features a special starring a different main, and we took advantage of the Early Bird Offer, giving us two courses each for £13.50. If you’re going straight a la carte, you can also use your TasteCard. All in all, that makes the evening extremely reasonable. In fact, I’d consider the menu incredibly reasonably priced anyway considering the size of the portions, and the calibre of the food. Out of the Blue won’t be entering the Michelin guide, but the food does hit the spot.

Out of the Blue bar and kitchen
140 St Johns Hill
Battersea
London SW11 1S

http://www.outofthebluebar.co.uk/

Battersea just got sexy...

As a former resident of SW11, I have frequented the eating and drinking establishments of Battersea for the past 4 years and seen the new openings, the closures and the havoc that is Albert Bridge being closed. However, never really have I seen a place that is so worth coming south of the river for. Bennetts Oyster Bar and Brasserie has very recently opened on the corner of Battersea Square, a square that in my opinion has so much potential but has never really taken off and always looks a bit lonely.

My mother is still living in ‘South Chelsea’ as some of her neighbours like to call it (what a joke!) and had invited my sister and I to a belated mother’s day supper last Saturday night. I was dying to see the new incarnation of this spot as she had already been once and was impressed, which means for the average layman like me I would be wowed. Having been a Londoner just north of half a century her local ‘canteen’ is Daphnes in Chelsea and she has a friends and family account at Le Caprice and The Ivy. I would never call her fussy, ahem, she just knows what she likes and what she most definitely does not like is bad food and bad service.

We instantly arrived to an impressive sized room split up into a long bar, high stool food bar and various seating areas-it was packed. There was a spattering of DILFS accompanied by glamorous women sipping champagne and necking oysters at the bar and all the tables were full of fortysomethings laughing and bopping along to the funky beats blasting from the sexy bose speakers. 

We had a fun corner table where we were seated like an X factor judging panel overlooking the whole room. Our waiter was extremely friendly and infectiously happy and we were soon pouring over the vast Anglo-French menu of seafood, oysters, and home cooked mains. My mum went for 6 mixed Oysters to start, my sister safely ordered the smoked salmon and I had razor clams- I tried all three and was very impressed. The portions weren't huge but the flavours were interesting enough that this didn't matter, that and the fact I had ordered a substantial main course as the diet was starting on Monday naturally. My mum covered the oyster I tried in Tabasco sauce so the elegant throw back motion I was aiming for was less James Bond's vixen and more choking child sadly. 

For mains my sister and I both opted for the fish pie and my mum had salmon-again big thumbs up all round. The food quality is very high and the ingredients fresh and well prepared so you feel like you are getting your money's worth. There is nothing worse than going to a 'smart' restaurant and leaving feeling rather ripped off wishing you had gone to your local Italian instead. This is not the case at Bennett's- the service was excellent, the food was very good and the atmosphere was great. Battersea might just be getting its groove back, more places like this please!

 7-9 Battersea Square, Battersea Village, London SW11 3RA

http://www.bennettsbrasserie.com/

Get your Cape, you've pulled

Abel Lusa, the creator behind Cambio de Tercio (and also Tendido Cero and Tendido Cuatro, which we LOVED and reviewed here) has his the jackpot once again. Already having London's most extensive wine list to his name, at his first venture Cambio de Tercio, Lusa has recreated the typical Andalucian sherry and tapas bar, and thrown in London's largest sherry offering to boot.

Having spent a short while living in Seville as an Erasmus student, I can say that I have been to my fair share of authentic Andalucian tapas, and he has transported the concept pretty faithfully. Despite the gaping canyon in price points (I seem to remember getting pretty amazing tapas in my local for 2 euros, tapas at Capote are northwards of £4.50) I was thrilled to see that sherry had managed to escape the drinks list and permeate the cooking as well, featuring in many of the delicious tapas dishes. Although stylish, the tables and chairs were suitably plain so as not to detract from the deep red walls covered in old photographs, bullfighting memorabilia, a wall of wines and some rustic barrels.

Whilst my old favourite the humble solomillo (a small but tender pork chop, preferably done in a whisky or sherry-based sauce) did not feature I couldn't wait to tuck into the pimientos de padron (stuffed sweet red peppers) and my unadventurous, but always delicious favourite, garlic prawns.

In the end, between the two of us we ate:

Goats Cheese Salad
Piquillo Peppers stuffed with Ox Tail (definite recommendation!)
Garlic Prawns
Traditional Albondigas (Meat Balls)

Sarah drank a glass of rose, and I asked for a sherry recommendation (of course!) from the staff and sampled the Colosia Amontillado, which is a fairly potent sherry that still tastes medium-light and refreshing.


Capote y Toros
157 Old Brompton Road

Ad Hoc Fashion Show with DV8 Fulham at Miss Qs

Ad Hoc is a bit of an institution around these parts. It's a fun, bold and brassy store in the midst of the King Road's usual fare of polished, designer and pared down boutiques. It sells everything from kooky fashion, to bright nail polishes, costume jewellery and a whole range of quirky gifts and accessories and it's been a real hive of activity ever since I can remember. So, although a lot of the clothes aren't exactly wardrobe staples of mine, the style has a distinctive attitude, and bags of it. I knew that the event with DV8 Fulham (a great new local magazine focusing on young Fulham) would be LOTS of fun.

I hadn't been to Miss Qs previously, and the venue is definitely a good one. Although the dance floor is TEENY TINY, there is a chilled out vibe, as the club boasts loads of seating areas based around all sorts of nooks and crannys and some pool tables which definitely change the feeling of the place. DV8 had arranged some great goody bags for us including nail polish and vouchers for Hari's Salon, and for drinks we sipped upon the specially-created Tanquer-8 cocktail: a delicious mix of Gin and Lychee.

The fashion show was a great success. The models looked like they were having loads of fun, and really pulled off the bold outfits. The girls sported huge fake eyelashes, and high ponytails with the ends dip-dyed in neon colours - a look I can only dream of emulating without looking like a total tit but looked brilliant. The male models wore a small repertoire of clothes - tighter than tight jeans in neon yellow or pink with a navy wife-beater with a Britannia theme, but somehow they managed to strut the catwalk and pull the look off with cheeky swagger. The girls showed off a mix of sequins, hot pants, neon tutus and lots of sheer layering. There were some leather fringed shorts in particular that I will be buying next time I hit the Kings Road, and some great sheer shirts that will probably find themselves worked into some (slightly more conservative) ensembles in my own wardrobe.

Cafe culture Mediterranean style in Fulham Broadway-yes really!

Last weekend the weather finally turned and it seemed Summer was on its way. Following too much alcohol the night before and a lazy morning indoors it was time to brave the outside world and embark on the strenuous ten minute walk to Fulham Broadway in search of re-fuelling. We decided to avoid the typical gastro pub route and try out one of the deli’s that sit tucked behind the broadway on Vanston Place. As we meandered up the cobbled street we felt a sense of a romantic Mediterranean cafe culture in the air, bar the drunk football fans glugging pints of Fosters at 11am outside Brogans. We avoided the super busy Del Aziz and opted for a very cute Italian delicatessen opposite called Al Santo (I can’t find a website for it sadly- http://www.yelp.co.uk/biz/al-santo-deli-london details the location and has some reviews).

We were greeted like old friends in true Italian style and given a sweet little table by the window to watch the world go by. A gentleman I presumed to be the owner of this authentic little establishment came over and asked us if we needed any recommendations, to which we gratefully accepted and proceeded to drool over his tales of a homemade pesto lasagne that he had prepared lovingly that morning. He recommended salads, bruschetta and even agreed to an ad hoc request for my starter, we were instantly smitten with his Italian charm and helpful attitude. The decor of this deli come restaurant genuinely makes you feel like you could be in grandmas kitchen in a farm house in Tuscany circa 1970- there are old black and white pictures in albums of families laughing and smiling dotted around and various terracotta ornaments.

I had an ice cold Peroni and felt my fuzzy head instantly slipping away, now was time for the carbs and lots of them. The homemade pesto lasagne was indulgent, rich, flavoursome and utterly delicious. We both went for the same following the glowing recommendation and were not disappointed-the portion was huge and every mouthful was cheesier than the last. The service was excellent and the final bill was not eye watering, especially compared to some of the deli’s in Chelsea that charge £10 for a small salad box. It was the perfect venue for a sunny Saturday afternoon in London (they also have outside tables) and we left full, fat and very happy.

No Sharwoods mango chutney in sight at Chutney Mary

Chutney Mary is somewhat of an establishment in Chelsea having attracted customers from far and wide for over 20 years since its opening in 1990. Boasting a prime location in the heart of antiques land on the New Kings Road the chances are if you are a Chelsea resident you will have frequented this establishment at least once. It has been on my hit list for a long time but has always escaped a visit in favour of its cheaper gastro pub neighbours. I had heard wonderful things about this restaurant and in particular rave reviews about the quality of the food. Unfortunately for me I had also heard that this taste of Indian heaven comes at quite a high price and sadly I am not in a position yet to command a salary worthy of regular dinners at £150 a pop.

Fortunately for me my lucky Aries stars had aligned and my birthday was imminent. My lovely new boyfriend, eager to please, had informed me he had booked a table for a Friday night. Having enjoyed a balmy walk there from my flat I was practically hopping with excitement to see what all the fuss was about. I am a huge fan of Indian food and especially a spicy curry on a Friday night and so to sample one of my favourite cuisines at such a high standard was a real treat.

We were greeted with precision and ease in what appeared to resemble a boutique hotel lobby more than an Indian restaurant. After a mere five minute wait we were guided downstairs to an impressive room filled with round tables splayed on varying levels, all of which were heaving with people dressed up to the nines quaffing champagne. This restaurant obviously attracts the ‘celebrating’ crowd on a Friday night. Our table was at the back in a tropical greenhouse/conservatory style glass room with a large tropical tree in the centre- I can well imagine this is some people’s idea of hell but having loved the rainforest cafe as a child I squealed with delight at this adult equivalent.

We ordered cocktails to start and I practically guzzled a lychee martini while salivating over the eclectic and sophisticated Indian menu. After some hand holding and eye gazing we ordered another round of drinks and our food. I decided on the chicken tikka with raspberry chutney to start and the special of the day king prawn coconut curry for a main, both of which had one chilli next to them indicating I was in for some spice. The starter was light, delicate and extremely flavoursome- the chicken pieces fell apart and melted in my mouth while the combination of the spicy tikka and sweet chutney was close to what I imagine a ‘taste explosion’ is like. I had switched to the house wine by this point which was light and dry while new boyf was enjoying an authentic beer (can’t remember name sorry!). The main king prawn curry was equally as delicious and presented beautifully with the pilau rice arriving in a terracotta pot type thing, anyway it did the trick and kept it warm!

Thanks to new boyf advising them this was a birthday meal I was then presented with a lovely icing coated cupcake decorated with a candle on a plate emblazoned with ‘Happy Birthday’- such a thoughtful touch and the perfect end to a wonderful evening.

Join the Jam

Ever since I have lived in Fulham, I have frequently made the walk up to the King’s Road and turned right over the bridge towards Embargo’s, Public and beyond. Ever since I have lived in Fulham, the little corner site just across the bridge from Chutney Mary has either been derelict, under construction, or hosted some kind of venue with a very brief tenure.

I bloody hope the new Jam Tree Chelsea outpost lasts a bit longer because I think it is fab. We’ve got plenty of gastro-pubs in the area so I was really pleased to hear that The Jam Tree would have a twist: a menu based on favourite Anglo-Colonial dishes, an ample beer garden (make that pretty huge) and a 2am licence. I love fusion-style cuisine, and particularly love Asian food so was really excited to have an unpretentious local, who’d serve me up a good Malaysian curry, along with plenty of pints/white wine spritzers. PERFECT, right?

Right indeed! I went along to the Jam Tree with le garcon on Saturday for an early supper and the food did not disappoint. Whilst it’s not the cheapest of places (my starter was £7.50) and the mains range from £10.50 to £18.50 I would say the prices are definitely worth it. The Sotong Manis (battered sticky squid with a chilli, garlic and spring onion dipping sauce) was one of the best starters I’d had in ages (I love sweet flavours in starters and mains) and the Malaysian Prawn Laksa was a decent-sized portion, creamy, hearty and with the perfect consistency and amount of heat.

For my main I went for the Jamaican curry, and the portion was absolutely enormous. The curry was great and the accompanying chutney really made the dish – my only complaint would be that there was not a big enough curry:chutney ratio. More chutney with that dish please, it was so delicious that I wanted a generous helping with every mouthly. Boy went for the Lamb Rump with jersey royals, pea and mint jus and wouldn’t shut up about it the entire evening. It must have been pretty damn good, as he wouldn’t give me a single bite (meanie!).

As we were in a rush, we didn’t get to sample the beer garden. But we did have table with a fairly good view of it, and even at about 6:30pm it was doing a pretty fair trade (though not quite full). There’s loads of space, loads of tables and some pretty nice decking out there. They also have a late license and frequent DJ nights so I reckon this could be a bit of a hot spot come the Summer. I’ll have to go back for girly drinks and check it out.

The Jam Tree

541 Kings Road

Chelsea

SW6 2EB

http://www.thejamtree.com/chelsea/index.php