Restaurant : St. JOHN

Last night we were treated to a very special meal with some good friends visiting from New York. They took us to the trendy St. JOHN restaurant right near the Smithfield Market. When you enter the place, you are in a very informal space with a bar and bakery counter with a small set of ovens behind. The entire place is very industrial feeling with white washed walls and floors. Sort of hovering above this informal space is the restaurant, with windows looking down into the bar area and the street.

Once inside the restaurant, you are welcomed to a spacious table, often shared with other guests, with simple glasses and white china. The menu changes daily with even a few extra specials not listed. We picked a variety of starters and shared:

• bone marrow on toast with parsley-onion salad
• langoustines with mayonnaise
• brown shrimp in a white cabbage salad
• a dozen raw oysters

All of it was wonderful and generous. Then for dinners we got:

• lamb tongues with spinach and butter beans with anchovy sauce
• old spot pork with swede
• calf’s liver with chard
• lemon sole
• ox tail with mashed potatoes

It was all wonderful. Desert was:

• chocolate pots with biscuits
• rhubarb fool with short bread
• Eccles cake with cheese

Again all good. The Champaign (St. JOHN’s brand) and wine was excellent as well. It was a memorable night and I would recommend it for a very special occasion.