Review: Bistro Union
Abbeville Road in Clapham is one of the best kept secrets in London. This little street, like the now well-known Bermondsey Street before it, houses some lovely restaurants and has a quaint neighbourhood feel.
Bistro Union, with its bright yellow front, is a beacon of said street. The sister restaurant of fine-dining Trinity in Clapham Old Town, this aims to provide tasty dishes for those in-the-know at a friendly price.
My dining partner and I found it buzzing if not busy on a Tuesday night, and the doors were thrown open to the street lending a convivial feel to the place. The tables are simple wooden affairs (and the chairs more comfortable than they look), menus are old exercise books, and the day’s specials are written jovially on a huge bit of parchment on the wall. They have pared-down chic to a tee.
It was sweltering evening, and the cocktail list delivered. Particular note must go to the ‘English version of a mojito’, as described by our bubbly waiter, Kyle. Hendricks gin, mint, lime and ginger were muddled with flair to create a thirst-quenching tipple.
The menu changes regularly at Bistro Union, and is big on seasonality. There are around eight or so starters and mains, plus the specials, so it’s a decent selection. My starter of chicken liver pâté was rich and smooth, and set off by the simple accompaniment of fresh, crunchy cornichons. My friend’s mussels certainly looked impressive, and was served in a spectacular volume of buttery sauce.
For the mains, we opted to share the fish pie (a mainstay of the menu) and the recently added grilled quail. The latter was succulent, although typically fiddly, but the star of the show was the side of chickpeas and aioli, which were hearty and decadent. The fish pie looked magnificent with mussels baked into the top, but although the five types of fish were tender, it could have done with more of the dill sauce.
Pudding wise, the lemon curd posset with lavender biscuit was an unexpected hero. Tart yet creamy, and with a delightful base of lemon curd, it achieved the rare feat of being a refreshing sweet end.
With starters lying around the £7 mark, and mains around £15, this is the sort of place to go for meal which impresses without leaving you penniless. Listening surreptitiously to the conversations between other diners and the friendly staff, it is clear that they have lots of regulars, which always speaks volumes.
In the cornucopia of London restaurants, it’s surprisingly difficult to find a genuinely good independent eatery championing British food. Bistro Union is certain to become a destination restaurant once Abbeville Road is discovered – head there before the masses descend.
www.bistrounion.co.uk
Bistro Union, with its bright yellow front, is a beacon of said street. The sister restaurant of fine-dining Trinity in Clapham Old Town, this aims to provide tasty dishes for those in-the-know at a friendly price.
My dining partner and I found it buzzing if not busy on a Tuesday night, and the doors were thrown open to the street lending a convivial feel to the place. The tables are simple wooden affairs (and the chairs more comfortable than they look), menus are old exercise books, and the day’s specials are written jovially on a huge bit of parchment on the wall. They have pared-down chic to a tee.
It was sweltering evening, and the cocktail list delivered. Particular note must go to the ‘English version of a mojito’, as described by our bubbly waiter, Kyle. Hendricks gin, mint, lime and ginger were muddled with flair to create a thirst-quenching tipple.
The menu changes regularly at Bistro Union, and is big on seasonality. There are around eight or so starters and mains, plus the specials, so it’s a decent selection. My starter of chicken liver pâté was rich and smooth, and set off by the simple accompaniment of fresh, crunchy cornichons. My friend’s mussels certainly looked impressive, and was served in a spectacular volume of buttery sauce.
For the mains, we opted to share the fish pie (a mainstay of the menu) and the recently added grilled quail. The latter was succulent, although typically fiddly, but the star of the show was the side of chickpeas and aioli, which were hearty and decadent. The fish pie looked magnificent with mussels baked into the top, but although the five types of fish were tender, it could have done with more of the dill sauce.
Pudding wise, the lemon curd posset with lavender biscuit was an unexpected hero. Tart yet creamy, and with a delightful base of lemon curd, it achieved the rare feat of being a refreshing sweet end.
With starters lying around the £7 mark, and mains around £15, this is the sort of place to go for meal which impresses without leaving you penniless. Listening surreptitiously to the conversations between other diners and the friendly staff, it is clear that they have lots of regulars, which always speaks volumes.
In the cornucopia of London restaurants, it’s surprisingly difficult to find a genuinely good independent eatery championing British food. Bistro Union is certain to become a destination restaurant once Abbeville Road is discovered – head there before the masses descend.
www.bistrounion.co.uk