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The Victoria Restaurant
In the early nineties I worked as a designer in a niche
branding agency based (at the time), in unfashionable Battersea.
Our clients were a mixture of international hotel groups
and young restaurants in London's fledging gastronomic scene.
I say that because in many ways what existed before was
an extremely exclusive club of small elitist fine dining
establishments.
Our clients were from both the old and new school. There
were plenty of rising stars that are now household names
like Marco Pierre White, then out at Harveys in Wandsworth,
(where a very studious young Gordon Ramsey quietly cut his
teeth) and Gary Rhodes at The Greenhouse in the more exclusive
Hays Mews W1. It was here that a young Paul Merrett also
earned his stripes.
Paul built his reputation with impressive stints at The
Terrace (Le Meridien, Piccadilly), l'Interlude in media
land's Charlotte Street and Mayfair's, The Greenhouse, gaining
a Michelin Star. From there Paul did his reputation no harm
by embarking on a series of TV projects, but a guy with
a gastronomic pedigree like Monsieur Merrett was never going
to be away from the action too long.
So a visit to Paul's new venture, The Victoria was high
on my agenda. The journey from London was an easy 17 minutes
by train, with a short walk from Mortlake Station. Set back
in the quiet back roads of East Sheen, near Richmond Park,
The Victoria immediately had that welcoming glow in the
evening dusk, which was created by the informal, throng
of customers seated in the gastro pub, positioned at the
front of the premises.
To the rear, we found a relaxed, spacious dining area with
solid wood furniture and flooring offset by modern wallcoverings
and giant light shades just hitting the right note. The
dining area looks out onto a large, beautifully lit walled
garden, where ambient downlights create a real sense of
intimacy.
If the decor and setting were a real labour of love, then
the food managed to go one further. Starting with an interesting
combination of 'Roasted Scallops on caramelised pork belly'
balanced beautifully with green pea, herb puree and bordelaise
sauce £8.50. The tenderness of the pork and the melting
sensation of the scallops were a standout, as was the freshness
of the green pea puree. My partner entertained the Serrano
Ham with pan fried Manouri cheese, with a hint of thyme
and honey. The saltiness of the ham was met with sweet hits
from the honey and the Manouri cheese, lightly fried was
a delight.
Paul insisted we try the Sesame Prawn toast, one I'd sidestepped
imagining a heaviness prior to the main course. Actually
the lightness of the toast itself twinned with a wonderful
hot and sour broth was the winner that evening as the zestiness
of the fresh lime leaf, chilli and coriander combination
was not only was a welcome assault on my senses but primed
my palate for the main course of 'Roasted Rump of Cornish
Lamb'.
I'm always surprised when dining out just how many times
lamb dishes are served up complex, involved and overworked.
This was simplicity itself - roasted rump of Cornish lamb
on minted courgette with aubergine confit, honey and pine
nuts plus new potatoes £15.50. Good food, perfectly
realised. The other main was pan fried sea bass on sag aloo,
onion bhaji and tomato chilli jam. The flavours really came
through without overpowering each other. Onion bhaji, is
synonymous as standard starter fayre on most Indian menus,
forever the bridesmaid, never the bride, but is daringly
promoted to this main dish, offsetting the lush, tenderness
of the sea bass.
Another main, popular with the diners, is a flavoursome
combination of the intense seared Cornish squid with Alejandro
chorizo and spiced chicken, subtley balanced with pea puree
and coriander yoghurt £14.50. We chose an Argentinian
Filosur Malbec 2007 Red, (which best suited meat dishes),
from an easy to navigate, compact wine list created by the
insightful Olly Smith.
The desserts were buttermilk panacotta with English strawberry
sorbet and shortbread. Light, fresh and tangy. Added to
that we tried thyme blossom, honey and ginger semi freddo
roasted fig & pine nuts £5.50. In a word, scrumptious.
A rich Hungarian dessert wine Tokaji Noble late harvest
complemented the fruity texture of the fig dessert wonderfully.
Service was attentive and cheerfully informal. The Victoria
really had Paul's personality stamped all over it. It was
welcoming, charming, relaxed, unpretentious and real.
Get out your blackberry and clear an evening. This is a
must visit.
Dining Room / A la Carte
3 course dinner for two £70
Lunch: 12.00pm - 2.30pm Mon-Fri.
Breakfast & brunch: 8.30am - 3.00pm Sat.
Sunday menu: 12.00pm - 8.00pm Sun.
Dinner: 6.00 - 10.00 pm Mon - Thurs.
6.00 - 10.30 pm Fri & Sat.
Children’s menu is available from
6.00 - 8.00pm on Mon - Sat
See the International Life website for the full review
at: http://www.internationallife.tv
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