We love weekend brunches as much as every other Londoner does. It is a chance to have a unrushed meal to enjoy top quality relaxed food and catch up with friends and family. No. 197 Chiswick Fire Station must be a strong contender for West Londoners to consider.
The decor will be a strong talking point when you visit the venue. If you enjoy white spaces, you will love this restaurant. From ceiling to bar to the floor, there are endless amounts of white paint. The expert designers are architects from box 9 and Red Deer; they have actually won a Restaurant & Bar Design Award for best pub recently for their sister venue, No 1 Duke Street.
The service is very convivial and Antipodean, it’s the kind of place where you won’t be surprised if the server sits down with you to take your food orders. They want to achieve that feeling of you visiting a friend’s house for brunch rather than dining at a formal restaurant.
The great point of a brunch menu is you can choose a breakfast option as a starter than a proper main course from the lunch menu and then finished off with a healthy dessert.
I had a comforting tasting No 197 eggs royal; the sourdough was crunchy and freshly baked whilst the golden egg yolk soaked invitingly into the bread, along with the exquisite tasting smoked salmon. The single egg option isn’t an extremely large dish and makes an ideal starter dish.
Steamed Mussels Mariniere might be overpriced at £15.95 with fries but the quality of the mussels were undeniable. The mussel meat was as delicately soft as silk and the taste of the sauce with cream, white wine, garlic and parsley made for an extremely appetising main course. They were kind enough to offer a spoon with the dish knowing how addictive the sauce was.
You might think a light dessert is green apple sorbet with autumnal fruits, but their version is filled with a giant bowl of fruits including apples, blackberries, grapes, peaches and passionfruit. The green apple sorbet helped to cleanse the palate, whilst the selection of fruits, no doubt helped to fill the quota for your 5 a day requirements.
No 197 Chiswick Fire Station is an informal, well-designed venue perfect for Londoners looking for somewhere to enjoy a relaxing brunch.
baldwin@townfish.com