"On 27 March 2012, Sir Edward Lister, the Deputy Mayor and Chief of Staff, acting under delegated authority, considered a further report on the matter (PDU/2832/02) and decided that he was content to allow Camden Council to determine the application itself, subject to any action the Secretary of State may wish to take and therefore did not wish to direct refusal."Camden has already approved the plans, so it rather seems as if that is that. The developers had previously stated that work would start in spring 2013 and it's a two-year build. It will be interesting to see whether the height and scale of this development prompts other developers to be more ambitious with their own plans for other sites as and when they come up. Are we entering an era of high-rise West Hampstead?
Saturday, 31 March 2012
City Hall gives the go ahead for 187-199 West End Lane
It was the news many residents feared. On Tuesday, City Hall decided not to raise any objections to the proposed development of 198 flats, including a 12-storey tower, in West Hampstead. Here's the relevant extract from an e-mail sent by the public liaison team:
Next whampreview: Guglee on April 12th
It's time to check out West End Lane's newest Indian restaurant, Guglee.
This is the second branch of the restaurant - the original is on Finchley Road, where its brand of vibrant Indian street food has been pulling in steady trade for more than a year.
The new venue, superceding the short-lived Costello's, is larger and is already busier than the first operation. So, it's time to find out whether it's up to the standard we expect in West Hampstead.
There are 24 places available, and the Guglee boys are offering us a set price that covers:
Starters to share: poppadums, mixed street food and grill platter;
Mains: choose from Indian Railway special lamb curry (think Rogan Josh), Great British chicken tikka masala, saag paneer, kadhai vegetables and coastal Goa fish curry;
Sides to share: yellow lentils, chana masala, "Veggie Veggie 5", pilau rice and mixed breads;
Desserts: phirni-saffron flavor rice pudding or kulfi/
Cost: £23 each, before drinks.
As usual, if the event is oversubscribed then names will be drawn out of a hat next Tuesday (3rd).
Whampreview basics: dinner will be at 8pm and we'll meet at the Alice House for a drink from 7pm. During the evening whoever is running your table (there'll three tables of eight people) will note down comments about the food/service/value etc., which will go into the write-up, although the evening is more about meeting people than being ultra-critical about restaurants. The bill is split equally between your table unless there's been a large discrepancy in alcohol consumption. Any questions, just ask.
To put your name forward, or tweet me @WHampstead before next Tuesday. If your name is picked, I will need a mobile number and active e-mail address from you. Please don't commit to this on the offchance you might be free. We're making a reservation for a large group at the restaurant so it's not fair on them (or me!) if we suddenly have lots of dropouts.
Of course, I understand there are always one or two genuine last-minute dropouts, so even if you're unlucky, I may come back to you at short notice to see if you're still interested.
Read more about whampreview.
This is the second branch of the restaurant - the original is on Finchley Road, where its brand of vibrant Indian street food has been pulling in steady trade for more than a year.
The new venue, superceding the short-lived Costello's, is larger and is already busier than the first operation. So, it's time to find out whether it's up to the standard we expect in West Hampstead.
There are 24 places available, and the Guglee boys are offering us a set price that covers:
Starters to share: poppadums, mixed street food and grill platter;
Mains: choose from Indian Railway special lamb curry (think Rogan Josh), Great British chicken tikka masala, saag paneer, kadhai vegetables and coastal Goa fish curry;
Sides to share: yellow lentils, chana masala, "Veggie Veggie 5", pilau rice and mixed breads;
Desserts: phirni-saffron flavor rice pudding or kulfi/
Cost: £23 each, before drinks.
As usual, if the event is oversubscribed then names will be drawn out of a hat next Tuesday (3rd).
Whampreview basics: dinner will be at 8pm and we'll meet at the Alice House for a drink from 7pm. During the evening whoever is running your table (there'll three tables of eight people) will note down comments about the food/service/value etc., which will go into the write-up, although the evening is more about meeting people than being ultra-critical about restaurants. The bill is split equally between your table unless there's been a large discrepancy in alcohol consumption. Any questions, just ask.
To put your name forward, or tweet me @WHampstead before next Tuesday. If your name is picked, I will need a mobile number and active e-mail address from you. Please don't commit to this on the offchance you might be free. We're making a reservation for a large group at the restaurant so it's not fair on them (or me!) if we suddenly have lots of dropouts.
Of course, I understand there are always one or two genuine last-minute dropouts, so even if you're unlucky, I may come back to you at short notice to see if you're still interested.
Read more about whampreview.
Friday, 30 March 2012
Little Bay: low prices but high expectations
March's whampreview at Little Bay was the biggest yet. Thirty one of us descended on the quirky Belsize Road restaurant spread across four tables already cluttered with menus, bread, cutlery and glasses. Over the course of a couple of hours we chatted, ate, drank and generally had a lovely time.
Little Bay's menu has a few surprises up its eastern Mediterranean sleeves. The price is one - this place is famously cheap, espcially if you go off-peak. Alongside the standard menu there are also specials, which are more typical NW6 restaurant prices. But does cheap mean good value? We were about to find out.
The pigs cheeks proved a popular choice for starters. The three plates on Will's table all got a thumbs up, "just an all-round solid dish". It was also my option, and while my neighbours peered suspiciously at the food when it arrived, the empty plate 10 minutes later was testament to the taste (hint: it tastes just like pork, who'd have thought). The dish was also one of the high points of Anna's table.
Choux de crab (that's crab profiteroles to you and me) polarised opinion. The menu gives no hint of the fieryness that lies within - so those for whom it was a pleasant surprise liked it and.. well, you get the idea. Someone also commented that it "looked a bit rude", which is the sort of highbrow conversation you can get at whampreview, although normally later in the meal after a few glasses of wine. This many also have been why Robyn referred to them as "food porn".
Crab wasn't just available in choux form, there was also dressed crab which went down well, although Kat felt it could have been more ambitious despite the pleasing citrus zing. Garlic mushrooms were a hit - and made up for the longish wait Tom's table had for their starters although as the conversation and wine flowed, no-one seemed to mind too much.
A plate of asparagus looked good, but the asparagus itself underwhelmed Divya (it is out of season, so perhaps no great surprise) while the accompanying coleslaw "had a bit too much to say for itself," according to Will. Tom was more positive saying the spears were cooked just right and it was a simple but enjoyable dish.
Pastry also figures heavily on the menu - Blake opting for the mysterious sounding Parsons Pastry, which was a main course sized "definitely smoked" chicken pasty . Daniel C. liked his "big juicy mussels" - a perennial Little Bay favourite, while Laura's mushrooms were "the best I've had", and Debbie said they were "very lovely". High praise indeed for the humble fungal.
From the starters, many of which came with a bright orange roasted red pepper sauce (or in Amy's case roasted red pepper in a terrine) to the mains, some of which also came with a bright orange roasted red pepper sauce. Which, if like Sam you'd had already, was a bit disappointing. Meat dishes got a mixed reception - the steak struggling to elicit any enthusiasm: "the kind of steak-chips-sauce combo you could pick up at any pub chain," according to Lizzie. And, inexplicably, it came with a yorkshire pudding. The lamb steak was well received - although not everyone had it cooked as specified, while the lamb knuckle "fell off the bone" in a good way!
The Belsize chicken - the house special I suppose - is chicken breast stuffed with minced lamb. "A bit odd," said Ged. But "Worked really well," said Sue, "very filling!". Duck breast is another Little Bay favourite, although in this case Caroline and Goetz said theirs was overcooked. Isabelle opted for duck salad, and although the duck itself wasn't perfect, the dish itself went down well, especially the "delicious, crunchy" pak choi.
The plaice (a fillet wrapped around crab) was another popular choice, although the "spicy" kick of that crab centre again took some by surprse. "Absolutely delicious," said Debbie. "The centre of the terrine harboured a core of unexpected, unnecessary, overwhelming pepperiness," said Will. The salmon was on the money for Ben and Tom: "Really nicely cooked and seasoned." The sea bass worked for Tony: "good side dishes and sauces." Divya liked the flavours and combinations but thought there needed to be more variation in textures.
Those red peppers reappeared - stuffed this time. "Very yummy," said Rebekah and "Good taste," according to Daniel L., but "tasteless" according to Federica.
I haven't mentioned the wine, which is odd because quite a lot of it was consumed. The list is good and prices are broadly in line with the food - ie, reasonable. It's actually a more interesting list than one might expect too.
Desserts were generally deemed perfectly acceptable, if not thrilling. Somehow Will contrived to get the word "historiographical" into his notes on the profiteroles, which I can only assume was a bet that he's just won, while also describing the tiramisu as "po-faced". If he's not careful he'll be doing all the write-ups from now on!
Despite some hits and misses in the food, the overall impression of Little Bay was positive, especially given the price, with tables paying between £22 and £28 a head (depending how much wine they got through). That's £10/head cheaper than our last trip to Ladudu. The service at Little Bay was good, especially given how busy the restaurant was that night, with not just us keeping them on their toes. The slightly quirky decor also added to the evening, and the consensus was that people would happily come again. Little Bay is great value, an entertaining experience and long may it continue to be a local's favourite.
Scores
Will's table: 6.8
Jonathan's table: 7.8 (must have been the company)
Tom's table: 7.2
Anna's table: too busy discussing American politics to score, so "an enjoyable and stimulating evening all round" will have to do.
Little Bay
228 Belsize Road
NW6 4BT
T: 0207 372 4699
W: www.littlebay.co.uk
Little Bay's menu has a few surprises up its eastern Mediterranean sleeves. The price is one - this place is famously cheap, espcially if you go off-peak. Alongside the standard menu there are also specials, which are more typical NW6 restaurant prices. But does cheap mean good value? We were about to find out.
The pigs cheeks proved a popular choice for starters. The three plates on Will's table all got a thumbs up, "just an all-round solid dish". It was also my option, and while my neighbours peered suspiciously at the food when it arrived, the empty plate 10 minutes later was testament to the taste (hint: it tastes just like pork, who'd have thought). The dish was also one of the high points of Anna's table.
Choux de crab (that's crab profiteroles to you and me) polarised opinion. The menu gives no hint of the fieryness that lies within - so those for whom it was a pleasant surprise liked it and.. well, you get the idea. Someone also commented that it "looked a bit rude", which is the sort of highbrow conversation you can get at whampreview, although normally later in the meal after a few glasses of wine. This many also have been why Robyn referred to them as "food porn".
 |
| Choux de crab (with red pepper sauce) |
Crab wasn't just available in choux form, there was also dressed crab which went down well, although Kat felt it could have been more ambitious despite the pleasing citrus zing. Garlic mushrooms were a hit - and made up for the longish wait Tom's table had for their starters although as the conversation and wine flowed, no-one seemed to mind too much.
A plate of asparagus looked good, but the asparagus itself underwhelmed Divya (it is out of season, so perhaps no great surprise) while the accompanying coleslaw "had a bit too much to say for itself," according to Will. Tom was more positive saying the spears were cooked just right and it was a simple but enjoyable dish.
Pastry also figures heavily on the menu - Blake opting for the mysterious sounding Parsons Pastry, which was a main course sized "definitely smoked" chicken pasty . Daniel C. liked his "big juicy mussels" - a perennial Little Bay favourite, while Laura's mushrooms were "the best I've had", and Debbie said they were "very lovely". High praise indeed for the humble fungal.
 |
| Mushrooms (with the red pepper sauce) |
From the starters, many of which came with a bright orange roasted red pepper sauce (or in Amy's case roasted red pepper in a terrine) to the mains, some of which also came with a bright orange roasted red pepper sauce. Which, if like Sam you'd had already, was a bit disappointing. Meat dishes got a mixed reception - the steak struggling to elicit any enthusiasm: "the kind of steak-chips-sauce combo you could pick up at any pub chain," according to Lizzie. And, inexplicably, it came with a yorkshire pudding. The lamb steak was well received - although not everyone had it cooked as specified, while the lamb knuckle "fell off the bone" in a good way!
The Belsize chicken - the house special I suppose - is chicken breast stuffed with minced lamb. "A bit odd," said Ged. But "Worked really well," said Sue, "very filling!". Duck breast is another Little Bay favourite, although in this case Caroline and Goetz said theirs was overcooked. Isabelle opted for duck salad, and although the duck itself wasn't perfect, the dish itself went down well, especially the "delicious, crunchy" pak choi.
The plaice (a fillet wrapped around crab) was another popular choice, although the "spicy" kick of that crab centre again took some by surprse. "Absolutely delicious," said Debbie. "The centre of the terrine harboured a core of unexpected, unnecessary, overwhelming pepperiness," said Will. The salmon was on the money for Ben and Tom: "Really nicely cooked and seasoned." The sea bass worked for Tony: "good side dishes and sauces." Divya liked the flavours and combinations but thought there needed to be more variation in textures.
 |
| Sea bass (yes, you guessed it) |
Those red peppers reappeared - stuffed this time. "Very yummy," said Rebekah and "Good taste," according to Daniel L., but "tasteless" according to Federica.
I haven't mentioned the wine, which is odd because quite a lot of it was consumed. The list is good and prices are broadly in line with the food - ie, reasonable. It's actually a more interesting list than one might expect too.
Desserts were generally deemed perfectly acceptable, if not thrilling. Somehow Will contrived to get the word "historiographical" into his notes on the profiteroles, which I can only assume was a bet that he's just won, while also describing the tiramisu as "po-faced". If he's not careful he'll be doing all the write-ups from now on!
Despite some hits and misses in the food, the overall impression of Little Bay was positive, especially given the price, with tables paying between £22 and £28 a head (depending how much wine they got through). That's £10/head cheaper than our last trip to Ladudu. The service at Little Bay was good, especially given how busy the restaurant was that night, with not just us keeping them on their toes. The slightly quirky decor also added to the evening, and the consensus was that people would happily come again. Little Bay is great value, an entertaining experience and long may it continue to be a local's favourite.
Scores
Will's table: 6.8
Jonathan's table: 7.8 (must have been the company)
Tom's table: 7.2
Anna's table: too busy discussing American politics to score, so "an enjoyable and stimulating evening all round" will have to do.
Little Bay
228 Belsize Road
NW6 4BT
T: 0207 372 4699
W: www.littlebay.co.uk
Monday, 26 March 2012
What have I missed since March 19th?
The sun came out this week, but what was the illuminating news in West Hampstead?
The London mayoral election campaign got underway and Ken Livingstone kicked off on home turf: Kilburn.
Harry Potter actor and West Hampstead resident Jamie Waylett was jailed for his part in the August riots.
West Hampstead men's hockey team achieved a second consecutive promotion.
Kilburn residents aren't keen on yet another amusement arcade opening on the High Road.
A new Japanese restaurant - Sushi Kou - opened in Fortune Green Road. An initial report was positive.
David Mitchell, Kilburn's most eligible bachelor, is offically off the market.
Vince Power has drastically reduced the scale of his proposed Feis festival during the Olympics.
The Kitchen Table summed up all that's good about Mill Lane.
If you're single and live in the area, why not sign up to #lovewhamp - a singles night on April 25th that will also raise money for The Winch.
Coming up
On Tuesday "Sing in Spring".
Tuesday's also when the GLA will consider the 187-199 West End Lane development.
From Wednesday, the Kingsgate Workshop Trust is showing UAL students' work until April 19th.
Fantastic jive/jazz band Kai's Cats perform at La Brocca on the 29th.
Tweet of the Week
Keeping it simple this week:
The London mayoral election campaign got underway and Ken Livingstone kicked off on home turf: Kilburn.
Harry Potter actor and West Hampstead resident Jamie Waylett was jailed for his part in the August riots.
West Hampstead men's hockey team achieved a second consecutive promotion.
Kilburn residents aren't keen on yet another amusement arcade opening on the High Road.
A new Japanese restaurant - Sushi Kou - opened in Fortune Green Road. An initial report was positive.
David Mitchell, Kilburn's most eligible bachelor, is offically off the market.
Vince Power has drastically reduced the scale of his proposed Feis festival during the Olympics.
The Kitchen Table summed up all that's good about Mill Lane.
If you're single and live in the area, why not sign up to #lovewhamp - a singles night on April 25th that will also raise money for The Winch.
Coming up
On Tuesday "Sing in Spring".
Tuesday's also when the GLA will consider the 187-199 West End Lane development.
From Wednesday, the Kingsgate Workshop Trust is showing UAL students' work until April 19th.
Fantastic jive/jazz band Kai's Cats perform at La Brocca on the 29th.
Tweet of the Week
Keeping it simple this week:
Plans for Feis festival scaled back
There wasn't a whole heap of support for music promoter Vince Power's original plan for an 18-day festival to be held in Kilburn Grange during the Olympics.
As it seemed that the proposal had a snowflake's proverbial of being approved, Power has scaled back the proposal considerably. Local Lib Dem campaigner James King sent me the details:
"He is now proposing that the event should be four days long, on the final weekend of the Olympics. The operational hours now proposed are as follows:
Thursday 9th August - Doors open 5pm - Live music finished by 11pm - site and bars closed midnight;
Friday 10th August - Doors open 2pm - Live music finished by 11pm - site and bars closed midnight;
Saturday 11th August - Doors open 2pm - Live music finished by 11pm - site and bars closed midnight;
Sunday 12th August - Doors open 12 midday - Live music finished by 11pm - site and bars closed midnight.
The proposed build time for this event would be Monday 6th - Wednesday 8th (3 days) and the ‘de-rig’ would be Monday 13th - Tuesday 14th. The capacity would now be 2,500 public visitors maximum at any one time.
This is obviously a significant change to the original application, and would involve the middle of the park been taken up for a week rather than more than three weeks. However, local residents may still have concerns about the risk of anti-social behaviour and late night noise, and the entry/exit arrangements via Netherwood Street. Furthermore, if there any problems, we may not be able to rely on Camden police as normal because they will be stretched by Olympic-related responsibilities.
I am trying to confirm whether a decision will still be made by the Licensing Panel on 5th April."
As it seemed that the proposal had a snowflake's proverbial of being approved, Power has scaled back the proposal considerably. Local Lib Dem campaigner James King sent me the details:
"He is now proposing that the event should be four days long, on the final weekend of the Olympics. The operational hours now proposed are as follows:
Thursday 9th August - Doors open 5pm - Live music finished by 11pm - site and bars closed midnight;
Friday 10th August - Doors open 2pm - Live music finished by 11pm - site and bars closed midnight;
Saturday 11th August - Doors open 2pm - Live music finished by 11pm - site and bars closed midnight;
Sunday 12th August - Doors open 12 midday - Live music finished by 11pm - site and bars closed midnight.
The proposed build time for this event would be Monday 6th - Wednesday 8th (3 days) and the ‘de-rig’ would be Monday 13th - Tuesday 14th. The capacity would now be 2,500 public visitors maximum at any one time.
This is obviously a significant change to the original application, and would involve the middle of the park been taken up for a week rather than more than three weeks. However, local residents may still have concerns about the risk of anti-social behaviour and late night noise, and the entry/exit arrangements via Netherwood Street. Furthermore, if there any problems, we may not be able to rely on Camden police as normal because they will be stretched by Olympic-related responsibilities.
I am trying to confirm whether a decision will still be made by the Licensing Panel on 5th April."
Monday, 19 March 2012
What have I missed since March 12th?
Mother's Day, St Patrick's Day, Rebekah Brooks arrested, and cricketing god Sachin Tendulkar finally scored his hundredth international century. Busy week beyond the West Hampstead borders. Was anything to exciting happening closer to home?
There was a public meeting about the proposed lengthy festival in Kilburn Grange park over the Olympics. There are some watered down proposals, but the details remain unclear.
I wrote a round up of the lively the parking debate from last week (more pay & display needed, or too much traffic already?).
The proposed housing development on the old Iverson Rd garden centre site was due to be given the yes/no decision by Camden on Thursday, but debates on other plans in the borough took so long, the decision has been deferred.
Do you know anyone who might be eligible for help with the switch to digital-only TV broadcasts?
Sea Lantern's has decided to move from being a fish & chips place to a pizzeria. Odd.
Even 100 years ago "signal failure" was causing problems on the tube around here.
The West Hampstead breakfast blog turned its attention to Pumpkin Café on Fortune Green.
The old Benihana site by Swiss Cottage will become a Shisha Lounge.
Camden council leader Nash Ali resigned.
Coming up
Local boy and rising comedy star Sam Wong does his first gig at the Good Ship this Monday. A fiver on the door for four acts - come along and support Sam on his home turf!
Next Saturday, Sington Nursery on Broomsleigh Street, a charity and a Camden Community Nursery, is having a "Nearly New" fundraising sale of children's clothes, toys, books, games etc (for newborns to 5 years old) from 10am-1pm.
Tweet of the Week
There was a public meeting about the proposed lengthy festival in Kilburn Grange park over the Olympics. There are some watered down proposals, but the details remain unclear.
I wrote a round up of the lively the parking debate from last week (more pay & display needed, or too much traffic already?).
The proposed housing development on the old Iverson Rd garden centre site was due to be given the yes/no decision by Camden on Thursday, but debates on other plans in the borough took so long, the decision has been deferred.
Do you know anyone who might be eligible for help with the switch to digital-only TV broadcasts?
Sea Lantern's has decided to move from being a fish & chips place to a pizzeria. Odd.
Even 100 years ago "signal failure" was causing problems on the tube around here.
The West Hampstead breakfast blog turned its attention to Pumpkin Café on Fortune Green.
The old Benihana site by Swiss Cottage will become a Shisha Lounge.
Camden council leader Nash Ali resigned.
Coming up
Local boy and rising comedy star Sam Wong does his first gig at the Good Ship this Monday. A fiver on the door for four acts - come along and support Sam on his home turf!
Next Saturday, Sington Nursery on Broomsleigh Street, a charity and a Camden Community Nursery, is having a "Nearly New" fundraising sale of children's clothes, toys, books, games etc (for newborns to 5 years old) from 10am-1pm.
Tweet of the Week
Monday, 12 March 2012
Help available for Digital Switchover
I'm sure most of you know that in April, the London TV region will be going fully digital. What does this mean? Well, it's the biggest change in television since the introduction of colour. In April 2012 analogue television will be switched off across the London TV region. If you don’t have digital TV by the time of switchover, you will lose your TV channels.
For the vast majority of you this will mean nothing more than pressing a button and retuning your TV on April 4th and again on April 18th. Because you have Freeview, or Sky, or Virgin. There's loads online about this, but the best single thing to read is this PDF.
Now imagine you're an older person who's not that tech savvy. Maybe you've got family who'll help you. But maybe you haven't. And perhaps the television is a big part of your life, especially if you're not very mobile. As strange as it may sound, not having Jeremy Kyle in your living room of a weekday morning may actually be MORE distressing than the prospect of the show itself.
Thankfully, help is at hand for people aged 75 and over, or who are eligible disabled. The digital switchover help scheme offers equipment, installation and free aftercare to convert one of their TV sets to digital. It costs £40, or is free to eligible people who are also on income related benefits.
Everyone eligible will already have received a letter telling them all about it, but the Beeb needs to reach 100% of people, not 99.9%, so it's trying all avenues. I've been involved in an extremely minor way with helping the BBC think how it can use local websites such as this to reach those people eligible for the help scheme.
So, although you as a website reader are probably already aware of the whole thing, maybe you know a neighbour or a relative who isn't. Or perhaps you're a member of one of the residents associations, or generally come into contact with eligible people through your job - doesn't have to be in West Hampstead, all of London will switch at the same time. The Switchover Help Scheme has launched a ‘Helping Hand’ campaign calling on everyone to try to make sure every older and disabled person in the area knows about the help they can get.
There is a lot of information available for people who want to get involved , and the team is determined to do all it can to make sure that everyone gets the help they need. For more information, call 0800 40 85 900 or visit helpscheme.co.uk. Textphone users can call 0800 40 85 936.
For general information and guidance on switchover please call Digital UK on 08456 50 50 50 or visit digitaluk.co.uk.
For the vast majority of you this will mean nothing more than pressing a button and retuning your TV on April 4th and again on April 18th. Because you have Freeview, or Sky, or Virgin. There's loads online about this, but the best single thing to read is this PDF.
Now imagine you're an older person who's not that tech savvy. Maybe you've got family who'll help you. But maybe you haven't. And perhaps the television is a big part of your life, especially if you're not very mobile. As strange as it may sound, not having Jeremy Kyle in your living room of a weekday morning may actually be MORE distressing than the prospect of the show itself.
Thankfully, help is at hand for people aged 75 and over, or who are eligible disabled. The digital switchover help scheme offers equipment, installation and free aftercare to convert one of their TV sets to digital. It costs £40, or is free to eligible people who are also on income related benefits.
Everyone eligible will already have received a letter telling them all about it, but the Beeb needs to reach 100% of people, not 99.9%, so it's trying all avenues. I've been involved in an extremely minor way with helping the BBC think how it can use local websites such as this to reach those people eligible for the help scheme.
So, although you as a website reader are probably already aware of the whole thing, maybe you know a neighbour or a relative who isn't. Or perhaps you're a member of one of the residents associations, or generally come into contact with eligible people through your job - doesn't have to be in West Hampstead, all of London will switch at the same time. The Switchover Help Scheme has launched a ‘Helping Hand’ campaign calling on everyone to try to make sure every older and disabled person in the area knows about the help they can get.
There is a lot of information available for people who want to get involved , and the team is determined to do all it can to make sure that everyone gets the help they need. For more information, call 0800 40 85 900 or visit helpscheme.co.uk. Textphone users can call 0800 40 85 936.
For general information and guidance on switchover please call Digital UK on 08456 50 50 50 or visit digitaluk.co.uk.
Do we need more visitor parking?
Last week, a Twitter debate raged (i.e., a few people commented for about an hour) about whether West End Lane needs more pay & display parking to encourage people from outside the area to come in to West Hampstead to shop/eat/drink, especially during the week. It's a timely discussion, in light of Camden's imminent parking review. Here's how it went - more commentary after the tweets.
Afterwards, I asked André for some more background on the problem as he sees it.
He says that customers tell him and other local business owners that they hesitate to come during the day because they can't park. "This is one big fat feedback message that echoes around West Hampstead every day."
Perhaps there's an argument for targeted marketing. Lets say Camden agreed that footfall was low in some parts of the area, perhaps they could split the relevant budget between pay & display parking and funding marketing for the area in very specific places along the transport corridors so we try and boost footfall but do so using public transport. Certainly any pay & display parking would have to have restrictions that meant it matched the need without encouraging excessive car use when it wasn't needed - at weekends for example when there's enough footfall in West End Lane already.
There is one very different perspective: keep the cars away and footfall low and the large chains will start to lose interest/move out, which could bring rents down and make local busineses more viable. But that's a long-term game, and at odds with the fact that West Hampstead is destined for a large increase in population over the next 10 years.
What do you think? Is there a problem at all? Is a small amount of extra parking going to make much difference? Is it worth trying to lure the residents of Elstree & Borehamwood, or Stanmore, or Acton onto the tubes and trains to visit West Hampstead? Perhaps businesses should behave very differently on weekdays and weekends to maintain profitability?
Afterwards, I asked André for some more background on the problem as he sees it.
"It took me years to recognise the problem, so I do see it from the locals' point of view: the idea of more traffic, more pollution, harder for locals to park etc. I empathise with and experience that myself.At the recent West Hampstead business forum meetings that have started, it's been a strongly voiced concern. Weekends in West Hampstead are generally busy and profitable, but weekdays can be a struggle. It's true that the area has a high number of self-employed and home workers, but they're not hanging out in cafés all day (unless it's to have a cappuccino while they use the Wifi) and aside from lunchtime, it's not that busy around the area, especially at the northern end of West End Lane away from the transport hub.
But 20 or so extra pay & displays (that exclude residents permits) would make little difference to those issues - in fact, maybe less traffic as people wouldn't be circling for hours. But it would make a positive difference to retailers."
 |
| Click for full-size. NB: predates new Thameslink station on Iverson Rd |
He says that customers tell him and other local business owners that they hesitate to come during the day because they can't park. "This is one big fat feedback message that echoes around West Hampstead every day."
"I had a meeting last week around midday, the guy called to say he'd been circling for 45 minutes and could we postpone... and he wanted to sell me something! Customers aren't that determined. In fact, we've lost valued suppliers because they decided parking's too difficult."Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is that the people who proclaim to support independent businesses are also those who tend to be anti-car. So how do we reconcile that? People want more people to use our local businesses so they stay, but they don't want more traffic - either locally or even generally. West Hampstead is, of course, amazingly well connected by public transport so the arguments of those who say enough people can come in to the area that way are valid. But are they realistic? If you live further out on the Jubilee or Met lines, or along the Overground routes, do you know much about West Hampstead - would you come in and meet your friends for lunch here, or pop into the bookshop rather than going somewhere else nearer and more convenient?
Perhaps there's an argument for targeted marketing. Lets say Camden agreed that footfall was low in some parts of the area, perhaps they could split the relevant budget between pay & display parking and funding marketing for the area in very specific places along the transport corridors so we try and boost footfall but do so using public transport. Certainly any pay & display parking would have to have restrictions that meant it matched the need without encouraging excessive car use when it wasn't needed - at weekends for example when there's enough footfall in West End Lane already.
There is one very different perspective: keep the cars away and footfall low and the large chains will start to lose interest/move out, which could bring rents down and make local busineses more viable. But that's a long-term game, and at odds with the fact that West Hampstead is destined for a large increase in population over the next 10 years.
What do you think? Is there a problem at all? Is a small amount of extra parking going to make much difference? Is it worth trying to lure the residents of Elstree & Borehamwood, or Stanmore, or Acton onto the tubes and trains to visit West Hampstead? Perhaps businesses should behave very differently on weekdays and weekends to maintain profitability?
What have I missed since March 5th?
Amid solar storms and international women's day (50% of the population, 0.2% of the days?), it was a relatively quiet week in West Hampstead, so what were the highlights?
Hampstead School in Westbere Road was praised highly by Ofsted insepctors.
Netherwood Day Care centre secured another reprieve.
A West Hampstead man was convicted of being involved in a Ponzi scheme.
WHAT published its latest minutes.
On the website:
The fate of 187-199 West End Lane rests with City Hall.
The Neighbourhood Development Forum had it second meeting.
We tried to decide where the best Sunday lunch is in West Hampstead & Kilburn.
Tom went to Woody Grill.
A new deli opened on the Kilburn High Road.
You can now collect Amazon parcels from lockers in the O2 centre.
Photo of the Week
Amid a crop of sunset photos, we had a clear winner
Hampstead School in Westbere Road was praised highly by Ofsted insepctors.
Netherwood Day Care centre secured another reprieve.
A West Hampstead man was convicted of being involved in a Ponzi scheme.
WHAT published its latest minutes.
On the website:
The fate of 187-199 West End Lane rests with City Hall.
The Neighbourhood Development Forum had it second meeting.
We tried to decide where the best Sunday lunch is in West Hampstead & Kilburn.
Tom went to Woody Grill.
A new deli opened on the Kilburn High Road.
You can now collect Amazon parcels from lockers in the O2 centre.
Photo of the Week
Amid a crop of sunset photos, we had a clear winner
Sunday, 11 March 2012
Sunday Lunch in West Hampstead and Kilburn: The Ultimate Challenge
One of the most frequently asked questions on Twitter is "where's good for Sunday lunch" and, frankly, the answer is often "go to Hampstead". But surely NW6 can rival NW3 for a simple piece of roast meat and a few trimmings. It was time for some scientific research. Five Kilburn pubs one Sunday, five West Hampstead pubs the next. (jump to West Hampstead results). [update: the review of the five "periphery" pubs is also now online]
Sunday lunch in Kilburn
Today we would tackle Kilburn. We were a merry band of five and five pubs were in our sights: The Westbury, The Priory Tavern, The Betsy Smith, The Black Lion and the North London Tavern. Yes, yes, before you all start ranting, there are other Sunday lunches available, but we couldn't do all of them in one day and we opted for the pubs that people generally talk about. And frankly we didn't want to think too hard about what went into the £4.99 offer at The Bell. All the pubs had been told we were coming and all but The Black Lion had replied and reserved us tables.
Midday: The Westbury
Bloody Marys in hand we took stock. Our methods were simple - one roast beef in every pub and one other meal from the Sunday lunch menu. Between us. Not each. We're not made of lycra. Here at the Westbury, which rather boldly claimed outside that it did the best roasts, we opted for the veggie dish - mushrooms. This was a transparent and futile attempt to make us feel good about the amount of meat we were going to consume.
Not everyone knows the Westbury, I realise. During the daytime it's a pretty nice spacious pub with lots of comfortable seating. It opens at 12 on Sunday, so we'd been sat outside on benches on the High Road like alcoholics desperate for the pub to open. We did have to wait a little while for our food, but we'd ordered just after a table of four, so we can forgive the kitchen for being a little sluggish so early in the day.
What of the food. So this doesn't get incredibly dull I'm just going to pick up on the main points! Beef (Lancashire rib eye) was good - one of the better beefs in fact. The Yorkshires were average. The carrots were delicious (best carrots). The potatoes were... well, Tom will get annoyed if I call them inedible, and strictly speaking they were edible but they were the worst of what was frankly a bad bunch of potatoes across all five pubs. So, high marks on beef, low marks on potatoes. Good gravy (and we were offered extra when served).
The mushroom dish tasted fine, but looked pretty underwhelming for £9.95 - we'd been imagining three really large mushrooms roasted with herbs and looking like they were any match for some roast beef. What we got was a four or five rather black looking mushroom discs that would have been quite nice as a mushroom side dish, but didn't cut the mustard (also on the table) for a good veggie Sunday lunch.
Roast beef: £12.95
Yorkshire pudding score: 4
Roast potato score: 4
Tom's favourite roast beef in Kilburn
1.30pm: The Priory Tavern
The welcome was warm as usual and the place was busy, so landlord Merlin warned us there might be a bit of a wait, although in reality it wasn't noticeable.
We ordered beef and lamb here. The Priory is the only place that said on the menu which butchers its meat comes from (Josh Pettit & Hillman's). While we discussed the challenges of food waste - to doggy bag or not to doggy bag - we opened the house red (the first of the day's many Tempranillos). Our food arrived - the potatoes were better, but still too soft. However, overall, the Priory offered the best vegetables of anywhere we went in both Kilburn and West Hampstead.
The beef was definitely chewier than at the Westbury though perfectly pleasant. The lamb however was really good (I may be a bit biased here as I love lamb), tender, sweet, and the right amount of rosemary. The pub was "between mint sauces", but did its best with a sort of makeshift mint sauce. The yorkshire puddings divided opinion.
We also decided it was time for a pudding and promptly gorged ourselves silly on a perfect (not a word I use lightly) chocolate brownie with ice cream. We have commented before on the Priory's misguided fondness for chopping boards instead of plates. So I won't mention it again. Just imagine what happened as the ice cream melted.
Roast beef £12.50
Yorkshire pudding score: 4
Roast potato score: 6
The roast lamb was Jonathan and Claire's favourite overall dish in Kilburn
3pm: The Betsy Smith
The strange Narnia meets Alice in Wonderland design of the Betsy Smith meant that this was the only Sunday lunch we were gong to have sitting in a wardrobe. It was lunch number three and by now we were a well-drilled team. The house red was ordered even before we'd sat down.
Then it was beef and our first roast chicken. Huge bonus points for hot plates - apart from Anna who for reasons only she can explain prefers cold plates. Also the staff were on the ball enough to offer us each a plate rather than having us all attacking the two roasts like starved hyenas.
Betsy's chicken wasn't a triumph - it was nicely presented, but was a little dry and bland. The potatoes were once again a step in the right direction with a crispy outside, but a little heavy inside. Both plates came with mange tout, which seemed incongruous, and a side dish of cauliflower cheese.
The beef was better than the chicken - nothing to write home about, but here's the kicker: Betsy Smith's roast is under a tenner. It's cheaper than everywhere else, and perfectly decent. The wine (another Tempranillo) was also pretty decent. So much so that we had a second bottle with a top-drawer sticky toffee pudding.
Roast beef: £9.95
Yorkshire pudding score: 6
Roast potato score: 5.5
Best value roast beef in Kilburn
4.30pm: The Black Lion
There was no room in the bar at the Black Lion so we had to go through to the fairly recently remodelled restaurant. It's nice, but not as nice as the bar. Beef and pork was the order of the day here. We were starting to flag slightly at our fourth pub, but another bottle of Tempranillo soon revived us (once it had reached room temperature).
Overall, this was a good Sunday lunch, or would have been without the red cabbage (at least for me - it had soaked into the gravy making everything a bit too sweet and acidic).
We ordered roast pork, which was nicely cooked but a little bland. It was also pretty much gone before I had the chance to take a photo. The Black Lion was the first place that asked how we'd like the beef - and more or less got it right - in fact the beef itself was quite good. The veg was not great: most of our carrots were burnt. However, the Black Lion had better potatoes than most places and a good yorkshire.
Roast beef £13.50
Yorkshire pudding score: 7
Roast potato score: 7
Dom and Anna's favourite roast beef in Kilburn.
5.30pm North London Tavern
There was a distinct sense of acheivement as we arrived at the NLT. Like great explorers we had experienced adversity (those Westbury roasties), elation (delicious lamb), and had bonded over more bottles of red wine than was clearly advisable based on current government guidelines. We planted a flag in the table and settled in for the rest of the evening.
Expectations among some were high. Others (me) had been underwhelmed by the NLT's food before. It was the most expensive of Kilburn's roast dinners - would it be the best? Along with the beef, we had salmon for a change. I confess that by this stage my notes are slightly harder to read and not quite as extensive. The beef split the room - Tom liked it, I felt it had good texture but lacked flavour. It was one large thick slice of beef rather than a few thinner slices.
Portions were generally notably smaller than elsewhere. The salmon was nice, if perhaps slightly overcooked. The NLT did deliver the best yorkshire pudding of the day though.
We treated ourselves to more (quite a lot more if my hazy memory recalls) red wine (another Tempranillo blend) and puddings that we got to eat all on our own without clashing cutlery with each other.
Roast beef £14.50
Yorkshire pudding score: 8
Roast potato score: 6.5
The salmon was Anna's favourite overall dish.
We rolled home... but seven days later...
There were just four of us for this installment of our Sunday lunch taste test. This would mean more food each, more wine each and less ranting by absentee Dom about the state of roast potatoes.
Under the microscope today were The Gallery, The Railway, La Brocca, The Alice House and The Alliance. We were back on home turf and we were hoping for a higher average standard. We bypassed The Lion, which was about to close for a major overhaul, but we've since been to its new incarnation as The Black Lion - what did we think?
Midday. The Gallery
I'm an unashamed supporter of the food at The Gallery since they revamped the menu some months back.
Therefore, I wanted our opening dinner to be good. The Bloody Marys once again got us limbered up for the task ahead. Along with the beef we opted for the poussin.
Right off the bat we were happy whampers. The potatoes were very good and the yorkshire was better than anything we'd had in Kilburn. The beef was good but not great, but the poussin was perfect - juicy and tender with a good flavour on the skin. The veg were a little bit bland - they needed the kick of herbs or just more butter. Cauliflower cheese was a nice addition, although Claire was a bit sceptical that the cheese sauce was quite right.
It was, very simply, a good start to the day.
Roast beef £13.95
Yorkshire pudding score 9
Roast potato score 8
The poussin was Jonathan's favourite meal of the day
We crossed the road
1.15pm The Railway
We weren't expecting great things from The Railway to be honest, but we wanted to see what it could offer at the value-end of the market.
The Sunday roast options were beef or "chicken breasts", but we decided to eschew the chicken - partly 'cos we'd just had poussin and partly because none of us were entirely sure whether we fancied chicken from the cheaper end of the industry. So, we had scampi & chips instead.
Lets get the scampi out of the way first - it was scampi. There. That's it. It wasn't bad at all - i've had much worse scampi. And there are some pubs in the area that would be better off with the Railway's chips than the ones they make themselves. But that's scampi and chips.
The menu had a picture of what our roast beef dinner would look like but actually it looked better in real life.
We were a bit divided on this. Anna in fact just declined to eat it but that was hardly entering into the spirit. It was cold, which wasn't a good start. Not deliberately cold, but definitely not hot. It was borderline complaining-level cold, but we couldn't be bothered and the gravy and other bits and pieces were hot enough.
I felt that although it didn't look hugely appetising, it actually tasted perfectly ok and I would happily have eaten it all. Tom and Claire were less convinced. The accompaniments - well, I'd be lying if I said the Yorkshire pudding was good. The mixed veg would have been absolutely fine if they'd not been overcooked. There's nothing nutrionally wrong with frozen veg, but they shouldn't be soggy. However, the potatoes were actually pretty good (and came in both mashed and roast form) and there were peas and who doesn't love peas?
One thing that I will say about The Railway is that the service is always noticeably good - friendly, helpful and eager to please. They'd even given us an extra Yorkshire pudding as Tom had asked nicely. Had we complained about the cold beef I'm sure they'd have been nice about it and sorted it out. Obviously this was a lot cheaper than anywhere else, but it's only £4 less than the Betsy Smith, which had delivered a better plate of food.
Roast beef £5.99
Yorkshire pudding score 3
Roast potato score 6
It fills a gap in the market in West Hampstead
3pm La Brocca
Tom practically lives at La Brocca but had never had Sunday lunch there, so we were all intrigued to see what the Italian-inspired kitchen could deliver. The Sunday roast options were chicken or beef, so we had both and branched out from the ubiquitous Tempranillo to Tom's favourite Pinot Noir.
The beef had good flavour, but needed the gravy without which it was a little tough. The chicken - again, just chicken breasts which is no good for those of us who prefer legs - was also nice, but it didn't excite us.
The vegetables were average - perhaps slightly disappointing for a kitchen of this standard - and unsurprisingly the Yorkshire was so-so. But the roast potatoes... oh dear me the potatoes were almost as good as Dom's mother allegedly cooks.
As we had a bit of time before the Alice House would be ready for us, we indulged in a good sticky toffee pudding and an apple crumble that was a lot more apple than crumble, but tasted good nonetheless.
The vibe is always good at La Brocca too, and although it was a mixed success, I could see myself coming back here for more of the beef (with extra gravy).
Roast beef £13.00
Yorkshire pudding score 3
Roast potato score 9
The best roast potatoes in Kilburn or West Hampstead.
4.45pm The Alice House
Now, before we get into the food, I need to sort one thing out. When I'd e-mailed to book the Alice House I'd been told that the kitchen was closed from 4-5pm on Sundays, and they couldn't guarantee there'd be any roast dinners left when it reopened. The website does in fact say that Sunday lunch is served from 12-4pm, which I hadn't noticed. Nevertheless, it seems strange in an area rife with late Sunday lunchers, and it's not hugely conducive to doing a review! Anyway, after a very amicable correspondence, we agreed that I'd pre-order the food so they'd keep two plates back for us, and then when the kitchen reopened at 5pm they could serve us. This meant weweren't entirely sure what sort of state the food would be in.
I'm delighted to say it was in an excellent state. We had the beef and the lamb and for the first time we had a REAL Yorkshire pudding - that is a proper size one with all the beef and gravy and vegetables served inside.
If we're being very pedantic (and as someone who's half Yorkshire that's not just a right, but a duty), the yorkshire wouldn't be served like this, it would be a separate dish, but this was a good approximation of the idea and it was good, although not quite as good as The Gallery's.
The beef was also top-notch, very tender and well cooked. The lamb was good too, though not as good as the Priory's for my money. There was a very good range of vegetables, but the potatoes divided opinion. Tom liked them, while the rest of us thought they were ok, and more like mini-jacket potatoes with a very thick skin albeit soft inside.
So, the end result was that we left the Alice House pretty happy. But had we been lucky? I saw a tweet that evening from someone who - for the second week running - had been told at 2pm that they'd sold out of Sunday lunches and there would be a lengthy wait for the next batch to be made. Surely, the AH must know that it's going to be a popular place for Sunday lunch and can prepare accordingly? And if the food is always this good then they really are missing out on a goldmine.
Roast beef £14.50
Yorkshire pudding score 8
Roast potato score 6 (amid a lot of argument)
Best roast beef in West Hampstead
We needed the walk along Mill Lane to The Alliance by now. Although the conversation had remained sparkly, we were feeling the weight of responsibility - largely in our stomachs - as the mission drew to a conclusion.
6pm The Alliance
By the time we reached The Alliance most people had sensibly stopped eating lunch and were perhaps having a cosy pint in front of the football. Not us. No siree.
The menu sounded appetising and good value, but we decided to finish as we'd started a week earlier with the beef and the vegetarian option. We'd heard good things about the roast dinners here, and although the beef wasn't exceptional it was perfectly fine. The veggie roast was more than fine, it was damn good and long-time vegetarian (obviously not any more) Claire said it was much better than many she'd had.
Ironic then that the potatoes weren't the best, ranking down with the Westbury's. The Yorkshire wasn't bad either but by this stage we were all well and truly roast dinnered out.
Obviously we had room for pudding. Duh. Plum fools, more crumbles (really really good), a cheesecake and generous cheese plate all found their way down.
You can't argue with the friendly service at The Alliance, and if you're up that end of town it's well worth the money - we were also right at the end of their service, so it's possible that the potatoes might have been better earlier in the day. And although we only tried a couple of non-meat options across both weekends, if there were many veggie dishes better than this then I'd be surprised.
Roast beef £11.50
Yorkshire pudding score 6
Roast potato score 3
Good value - would try again a bit nearer traditional lunchtime!
We were done. We were very full. Kids, don't try this at home. I have literally no idea how Anna ran to work the next day - I could barely move.
Before you ask... yes, we know there are more places in Kilburn that do Sunday lunch; no, we're not going to do Hampstead, you can explore the pubs there for yourselves; but yes, we will do one final Sunday lunch field trip when we tackle "The periphery" [update: This is now online]. In the meantime, thank you to Tom, Anna, Claire, and Dom for their company and firm opinions.
Photos are courtesy of Anna, Claire and me.
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| Two Sundays, twenty plates of food, and an awful lot of red wine |
Sunday lunch in Kilburn
Today we would tackle Kilburn. We were a merry band of five and five pubs were in our sights: The Westbury, The Priory Tavern, The Betsy Smith, The Black Lion and the North London Tavern. Yes, yes, before you all start ranting, there are other Sunday lunches available, but we couldn't do all of them in one day and we opted for the pubs that people generally talk about. And frankly we didn't want to think too hard about what went into the £4.99 offer at The Bell. All the pubs had been told we were coming and all but The Black Lion had replied and reserved us tables.
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| Is the Westbury's hubris justified? |
Midday: The Westbury
Bloody Marys in hand we took stock. Our methods were simple - one roast beef in every pub and one other meal from the Sunday lunch menu. Between us. Not each. We're not made of lycra. Here at the Westbury, which rather boldly claimed outside that it did the best roasts, we opted for the veggie dish - mushrooms. This was a transparent and futile attempt to make us feel good about the amount of meat we were going to consume.
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| Westbury's Sunday menu |
Not everyone knows the Westbury, I realise. During the daytime it's a pretty nice spacious pub with lots of comfortable seating. It opens at 12 on Sunday, so we'd been sat outside on benches on the High Road like alcoholics desperate for the pub to open. We did have to wait a little while for our food, but we'd ordered just after a table of four, so we can forgive the kitchen for being a little sluggish so early in the day.
What of the food. So this doesn't get incredibly dull I'm just going to pick up on the main points! Beef (Lancashire rib eye) was good - one of the better beefs in fact. The Yorkshires were average. The carrots were delicious (best carrots). The potatoes were... well, Tom will get annoyed if I call them inedible, and strictly speaking they were edible but they were the worst of what was frankly a bad bunch of potatoes across all five pubs. So, high marks on beef, low marks on potatoes. Good gravy (and we were offered extra when served).
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| The Westbury's roast beef |
The mushroom dish tasted fine, but looked pretty underwhelming for £9.95 - we'd been imagining three really large mushrooms roasted with herbs and looking like they were any match for some roast beef. What we got was a four or five rather black looking mushroom discs that would have been quite nice as a mushroom side dish, but didn't cut the mustard (also on the table) for a good veggie Sunday lunch.
Roast beef: £12.95
Yorkshire pudding score: 4
Roast potato score: 4
Tom's favourite roast beef in Kilburn
1.30pm: The Priory Tavern
The welcome was warm as usual and the place was busy, so landlord Merlin warned us there might be a bit of a wait, although in reality it wasn't noticeable.
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| Priory's Sunday menu |
We ordered beef and lamb here. The Priory is the only place that said on the menu which butchers its meat comes from (Josh Pettit & Hillman's). While we discussed the challenges of food waste - to doggy bag or not to doggy bag - we opened the house red (the first of the day's many Tempranillos). Our food arrived - the potatoes were better, but still too soft. However, overall, the Priory offered the best vegetables of anywhere we went in both Kilburn and West Hampstead.
 |
| Priory's topside of beef |
The beef was definitely chewier than at the Westbury though perfectly pleasant. The lamb however was really good (I may be a bit biased here as I love lamb), tender, sweet, and the right amount of rosemary. The pub was "between mint sauces", but did its best with a sort of makeshift mint sauce. The yorkshire puddings divided opinion.
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| Delicious lamb at The Priory Tavern |
We also decided it was time for a pudding and promptly gorged ourselves silly on a perfect (not a word I use lightly) chocolate brownie with ice cream. We have commented before on the Priory's misguided fondness for chopping boards instead of plates. So I won't mention it again. Just imagine what happened as the ice cream melted.
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| Perfect Priory Brownie (via Gail's Bakery) |
Roast beef £12.50
Yorkshire pudding score: 4
Roast potato score: 6
The roast lamb was Jonathan and Claire's favourite overall dish in Kilburn
3pm: The Betsy Smith
The strange Narnia meets Alice in Wonderland design of the Betsy Smith meant that this was the only Sunday lunch we were gong to have sitting in a wardrobe. It was lunch number three and by now we were a well-drilled team. The house red was ordered even before we'd sat down.
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| Betsy Smith |
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| Long descriptions at The Betsy Smith |
Then it was beef and our first roast chicken. Huge bonus points for hot plates - apart from Anna who for reasons only she can explain prefers cold plates. Also the staff were on the ball enough to offer us each a plate rather than having us all attacking the two roasts like starved hyenas.
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| Roast chicken at The Betsy Smith |
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| Betsy scored high for presentation |
Betsy's chicken wasn't a triumph - it was nicely presented, but was a little dry and bland. The potatoes were once again a step in the right direction with a crispy outside, but a little heavy inside. Both plates came with mange tout, which seemed incongruous, and a side dish of cauliflower cheese.
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| Roast beef and ALL the trimmings at The Betsy |
The beef was better than the chicken - nothing to write home about, but here's the kicker: Betsy Smith's roast is under a tenner. It's cheaper than everywhere else, and perfectly decent. The wine (another Tempranillo) was also pretty decent. So much so that we had a second bottle with a top-drawer sticky toffee pudding.
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| Betsy's desserts all under a fiver |
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| Delicious sticky toffee pudding |
Roast beef: £9.95
Yorkshire pudding score: 6
Roast potato score: 5.5
Best value roast beef in Kilburn
4.30pm: The Black Lion
There was no room in the bar at the Black Lion so we had to go through to the fairly recently remodelled restaurant. It's nice, but not as nice as the bar. Beef and pork was the order of the day here. We were starting to flag slightly at our fourth pub, but another bottle of Tempranillo soon revived us (once it had reached room temperature).
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| A "no frills" menu from The Black Lion |
Overall, this was a good Sunday lunch, or would have been without the red cabbage (at least for me - it had soaked into the gravy making everything a bit too sweet and acidic).
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| Roast beef at the Black Lion |
We ordered roast pork, which was nicely cooked but a little bland. It was also pretty much gone before I had the chance to take a photo. The Black Lion was the first place that asked how we'd like the beef - and more or less got it right - in fact the beef itself was quite good. The veg was not great: most of our carrots were burnt. However, the Black Lion had better potatoes than most places and a good yorkshire.
Roast beef £13.50
Yorkshire pudding score: 7
Roast potato score: 7
Dom and Anna's favourite roast beef in Kilburn.
5.30pm North London Tavern
There was a distinct sense of acheivement as we arrived at the NLT. Like great explorers we had experienced adversity (those Westbury roasties), elation (delicious lamb), and had bonded over more bottles of red wine than was clearly advisable based on current government guidelines. We planted a flag in the table and settled in for the rest of the evening.
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| NLT roasts |
Expectations among some were high. Others (me) had been underwhelmed by the NLT's food before. It was the most expensive of Kilburn's roast dinners - would it be the best? Along with the beef, we had salmon for a change. I confess that by this stage my notes are slightly harder to read and not quite as extensive. The beef split the room - Tom liked it, I felt it had good texture but lacked flavour. It was one large thick slice of beef rather than a few thinner slices.
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| The priciest roast beef on the High Road |
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| Roast salmon at the NLT |
Portions were generally notably smaller than elsewhere. The salmon was nice, if perhaps slightly overcooked. The NLT did deliver the best yorkshire pudding of the day though.
We treated ourselves to more (quite a lot more if my hazy memory recalls) red wine (another Tempranillo blend) and puddings that we got to eat all on our own without clashing cutlery with each other.
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| Very good chocolate tart at the NLT |
Roast beef £14.50
Yorkshire pudding score: 8
Roast potato score: 6.5
The salmon was Anna's favourite overall dish.
Kilburn summary: Nothing outstanding, but everywhere had something going for it. The lack of agreement on what was the best roast dinner here shows that it's hard to recommend anywhere as outstanding. It also suggests that given that the cost of a roast beef lunch varies by £4.50 between the Betsy Smith and The North London Tavern, value for money and general atmosphere probably carries as much weight as quality of food.
We rolled home... but seven days later...
Sunday lunch in West Hampstead
There were just four of us for this installment of our Sunday lunch taste test. This would mean more food each, more wine each and less ranting by absentee Dom about the state of roast potatoes.
Under the microscope today were The Gallery, The Railway, La Brocca, The Alice House and The Alliance. We were back on home turf and we were hoping for a higher average standard. We bypassed The Lion, which was about to close for a major overhaul, but we've since been to its new incarnation as The Black Lion - what did we think?
Midday. The Gallery
I'm an unashamed supporter of the food at The Gallery since they revamped the menu some months back.
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| Sunday menu at The Gallery |
Therefore, I wanted our opening dinner to be good. The Bloody Marys once again got us limbered up for the task ahead. Along with the beef we opted for the poussin.
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| A damn fine plate of food |
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| Good yorkshire pudding and roast potatoes at The Gallery |
Right off the bat we were happy whampers. The potatoes were very good and the yorkshire was better than anything we'd had in Kilburn. The beef was good but not great, but the poussin was perfect - juicy and tender with a good flavour on the skin. The veg were a little bit bland - they needed the kick of herbs or just more butter. Cauliflower cheese was a nice addition, although Claire was a bit sceptical that the cheese sauce was quite right.
It was, very simply, a good start to the day.
Roast beef £13.95
Yorkshire pudding score 9
Roast potato score 8
The poussin was Jonathan's favourite meal of the day
We crossed the road
1.15pm The Railway
We weren't expecting great things from The Railway to be honest, but we wanted to see what it could offer at the value-end of the market.
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| The Railway keeps things simple |
The Sunday roast options were beef or "chicken breasts", but we decided to eschew the chicken - partly 'cos we'd just had poussin and partly because none of us were entirely sure whether we fancied chicken from the cheaper end of the industry. So, we had scampi & chips instead.
Lets get the scampi out of the way first - it was scampi. There. That's it. It wasn't bad at all - i've had much worse scampi. And there are some pubs in the area that would be better off with the Railway's chips than the ones they make themselves. But that's scampi and chips.
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| Scampi & chips at The Railway |
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| In case you didn't know what a Sunday roast looked like |
The menu had a picture of what our roast beef dinner would look like but actually it looked better in real life.
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| Mash AND roast potatoes. And peas. |
We were a bit divided on this. Anna in fact just declined to eat it but that was hardly entering into the spirit. It was cold, which wasn't a good start. Not deliberately cold, but definitely not hot. It was borderline complaining-level cold, but we couldn't be bothered and the gravy and other bits and pieces were hot enough.
I felt that although it didn't look hugely appetising, it actually tasted perfectly ok and I would happily have eaten it all. Tom and Claire were less convinced. The accompaniments - well, I'd be lying if I said the Yorkshire pudding was good. The mixed veg would have been absolutely fine if they'd not been overcooked. There's nothing nutrionally wrong with frozen veg, but they shouldn't be soggy. However, the potatoes were actually pretty good (and came in both mashed and roast form) and there were peas and who doesn't love peas?
One thing that I will say about The Railway is that the service is always noticeably good - friendly, helpful and eager to please. They'd even given us an extra Yorkshire pudding as Tom had asked nicely. Had we complained about the cold beef I'm sure they'd have been nice about it and sorted it out. Obviously this was a lot cheaper than anywhere else, but it's only £4 less than the Betsy Smith, which had delivered a better plate of food.
Roast beef £5.99
Yorkshire pudding score 3
Roast potato score 6
It fills a gap in the market in West Hampstead
3pm La Brocca
Tom practically lives at La Brocca but had never had Sunday lunch there, so we were all intrigued to see what the Italian-inspired kitchen could deliver. The Sunday roast options were chicken or beef, so we had both and branched out from the ubiquitous Tempranillo to Tom's favourite Pinot Noir.
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| La Brocca's Sunday lunch menu is tucked away in a corner |
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| Empty |
The beef had good flavour, but needed the gravy without which it was a little tough. The chicken - again, just chicken breasts which is no good for those of us who prefer legs - was also nice, but it didn't excite us.
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| Roast chicken from La Brocca |
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| The best roast potatoes |
The vegetables were average - perhaps slightly disappointing for a kitchen of this standard - and unsurprisingly the Yorkshire was so-so. But the roast potatoes... oh dear me the potatoes were almost as good as Dom's mother allegedly cooks.
As we had a bit of time before the Alice House would be ready for us, we indulged in a good sticky toffee pudding and an apple crumble that was a lot more apple than crumble, but tasted good nonetheless.
The vibe is always good at La Brocca too, and although it was a mixed success, I could see myself coming back here for more of the beef (with extra gravy).
Roast beef £13.00
Yorkshire pudding score 3
Roast potato score 9
The best roast potatoes in Kilburn or West Hampstead.
4.45pm The Alice House
Now, before we get into the food, I need to sort one thing out. When I'd e-mailed to book the Alice House I'd been told that the kitchen was closed from 4-5pm on Sundays, and they couldn't guarantee there'd be any roast dinners left when it reopened. The website does in fact say that Sunday lunch is served from 12-4pm, which I hadn't noticed. Nevertheless, it seems strange in an area rife with late Sunday lunchers, and it's not hugely conducive to doing a review! Anyway, after a very amicable correspondence, we agreed that I'd pre-order the food so they'd keep two plates back for us, and then when the kitchen reopened at 5pm they could serve us. This meant weweren't entirely sure what sort of state the food would be in.
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| We had to use Google Maps to find Aldington |
I'm delighted to say it was in an excellent state. We had the beef and the lamb and for the first time we had a REAL Yorkshire pudding - that is a proper size one with all the beef and gravy and vegetables served inside.
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| Now THAT is a Yorkshire pudding |
If we're being very pedantic (and as someone who's half Yorkshire that's not just a right, but a duty), the yorkshire wouldn't be served like this, it would be a separate dish, but this was a good approximation of the idea and it was good, although not quite as good as The Gallery's.
The beef was also top-notch, very tender and well cooked. The lamb was good too, though not as good as the Priory's for my money. There was a very good range of vegetables, but the potatoes divided opinion. Tom liked them, while the rest of us thought they were ok, and more like mini-jacket potatoes with a very thick skin albeit soft inside.
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| Roast lamb at The Alice House |
So, the end result was that we left the Alice House pretty happy. But had we been lucky? I saw a tweet that evening from someone who - for the second week running - had been told at 2pm that they'd sold out of Sunday lunches and there would be a lengthy wait for the next batch to be made. Surely, the AH must know that it's going to be a popular place for Sunday lunch and can prepare accordingly? And if the food is always this good then they really are missing out on a goldmine.
Roast beef £14.50
Yorkshire pudding score 8
Roast potato score 6 (amid a lot of argument)
Best roast beef in West Hampstead
We needed the walk along Mill Lane to The Alliance by now. Although the conversation had remained sparkly, we were feeling the weight of responsibility - largely in our stomachs - as the mission drew to a conclusion.
6pm The Alliance
By the time we reached The Alliance most people had sensibly stopped eating lunch and were perhaps having a cosy pint in front of the football. Not us. No siree.
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| The Alliance menu |
The menu sounded appetising and good value, but we decided to finish as we'd started a week earlier with the beef and the vegetarian option. We'd heard good things about the roast dinners here, and although the beef wasn't exceptional it was perfectly fine. The veggie roast was more than fine, it was damn good and long-time vegetarian (obviously not any more) Claire said it was much better than many she'd had.
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| Top-notch veggie roast |
Ironic then that the potatoes weren't the best, ranking down with the Westbury's. The Yorkshire wasn't bad either but by this stage we were all well and truly roast dinnered out.
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| Our tenth and last plate of roast beef |
Obviously we had room for pudding. Duh. Plum fools, more crumbles (really really good), a cheesecake and generous cheese plate all found their way down.
You can't argue with the friendly service at The Alliance, and if you're up that end of town it's well worth the money - we were also right at the end of their service, so it's possible that the potatoes might have been better earlier in the day. And although we only tried a couple of non-meat options across both weekends, if there were many veggie dishes better than this then I'd be surprised.
Roast beef £11.50
Yorkshire pudding score 6
Roast potato score 3
Good value - would try again a bit nearer traditional lunchtime!
We were done. We were very full. Kids, don't try this at home. I have literally no idea how Anna ran to work the next day - I could barely move.
West Hampstead summary: Definitely a higher standard overall, although again struggled to say that one place got everything right. The Alice House food was very good, but I wouldn't want to get there and find the kitchen was shut. La Brocca's atmosphere was lively and it delivered top roast potatoes. The Alliance was good value, but I'll be heading back to The Gallery for that poussin.Across both Sundays, the lamb at the Priory and the poussin at The Gallery were my two personal favourite dishes and the beef at The Alice House was my favourite roast beef.
Before you ask... yes, we know there are more places in Kilburn that do Sunday lunch; no, we're not going to do Hampstead, you can explore the pubs there for yourselves; but yes, we will do one final Sunday lunch field trip when we tackle "The periphery" [update: This is now online]. In the meantime, thank you to Tom, Anna, Claire, and Dom for their company and firm opinions.
Photos are courtesy of Anna, Claire and me.
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