Berners Tavern

I was given the task of finding a British restaurant for my boyfriend's birthday meal this year and in my research found Berners Tavern. Located in the heart of Fitzrovia, Berners Tavern boasts a contemporary British menu serving the best seasonal produce under the direction of celebrated Michelin starred chef Jason Atherton.

The restaurant is breathtakingly beautiful, decorated floor to ceiling with golden framed paintings and warmly lit chandeliers. A champagne cart is brought to you upon arrival along with an extensive drinks list from the grand bar. We started with an Amaretto Sour and An Ageing Hipster, the latter served from a hip flask at the table.

The menu is predominantly meat-based, with one or two fish and vegetable dishes to choose from. I started with the Isle of White heirloom tomato salad with feta mousse, black olives and burrata. It was fresh and beautifully balanced with the creamy cheese and slightly sour pickled onion creating a flavour combination that we all know and love. The slivers of toasted bread provided a crisp texture that brought the dish together wonderfully and the finely chopped olives gave notes of bitterness that paired well with some of the charred tomatoes. Laurie had the Buccleuch estate beef tartare on toast with smoked marmite butter, pickled button mushrooms and English mustard egg yolk which he said was out of this world.

For my main, I opted for the roast Cornish cod, asparagus, herb and wild garlic risotto and sea kale. I’m not usually a fan of plain white fish, usually finding it to be on the bland side but this dish was enjoyable throughout. The cod was golden and crisp and well seasoned. The risotto was fragrant with herbs and the wild garlic was just utterly delicious. The kale was bitter, perhaps too bitter for my palette but was necessary to balance the buttery richness from the dish. Laurie had the Herdwick lamb rump, mashed potato, white onion puree, sprouting broccoli and anchovy dressing which he said was very special.

We concluded the meal with the chocolate and raspberry slice which was heavenly. 9/10 would go back.