Eat & Drink
Originally published on Wednesday, 11th August 2010
Bond & Brook
Fashion hub Fenwick gets expert gourmet treatment
63 New Bond Street, W1A 3BS - 020 7629 0273
www.fenwick.co.uk
Location
This new Mayfair pitstop is the latest addition to family-owned department store Fenwick, which in the last three years has quietly undergone some major redevelopment. As well as the restaurant, the store now boasts a brand new spa and an affogato bar designed by Tom Bartlett. Voguettes from Hanover Square - a Celine bag’s throw away - will be flocking.
Vibe
The first venture for A Private View, the restaurant consultation group run by queen of critics Fay Maschler and Simon Davis, who have teamed up with posh catering company Rhubarb and former Le Cafe Anglais chef Daniel Taylor. London’s foodie community will no doubt be keeping a beady eye on the attention to detail, which should be immaculate.
Flavours
The menu at B&B - which is open for breakfast, brunch, lunch and high tea - is somewhat eclectic, featuring everything from girlie egg-white omelettes and an ‘Array of Cold Soups’ to steak frites, vitello tonnato and even prawn Pad Thai, which seems an odd inclusion. We’re looking forward to trying the bijou full English in a skillet with a Virgin Mary shot and the gilded fondant fancies.
Décor
Surprisingly space-age, the second floor dining room is adorned in the palest palette of dove-grey, silver and white, with a marble floor and sculptural pewter bar making the place feel almost clinically cool. Barbarella-style chairs and stacks of style tomes on the shelves are further reminders that this is a fashion cafe, sweetie.
Upshot
While there’s something a bit off-kilter about a food critic being involved so closely with the launch of a new restaurant, we doubt Fay & Co. have their sights set on a Michelin star but have instead drawn on all their positive experiences to create a rather chic little place to eat.
