If you’re looking for an authentic, family-run British restaurant/pub drawing culinary inspiration from the continent, the Abingdon just off Ken High Street could well be your bag, and possibly your doggie bag too. This place has the feel of a local institution, where regulars return by the dozen every night of the week. The booths are intimate and spacious but not so decadent you’re worried about spoiling the velvet.
Here at the KCR, when we’re not swanning around fancy restaurants, we’re pretty partial to a tin of M&S pea and mint soup. For starters, the Staples’ freshly cooked offering was a welcome step up. Boasting an intense colour, achieved by proper petit pois savoir faire, this godly green dish was served with a healthy drizzle of olive oil and plenty of cracked black pepper. For the less virtuous among us, deep-fried cod cheek was the entrée of the day, served with a spicy tartar sauce and plenty enough to share without feeling hard done by.
For mains, a similarly generous portion of trout with beautifully layered potato galettes, wild garlic aioli and not-even-slightly-gritty agretti went down a treat. Manny’s chicken curry was just as impressive, particularly the vibrantly red lime pickle and peanut chutney for flatbread-dipping purposes. Sommelier Amicia Staples knows her wines, having curated her own list to pair punters with their perfect bottle of plonk. From vegan and organic options through to half bottles of Chianti and Bordeaux, there’s something for every occasion.
With a fun feel to the cocktail list too, you’d do well to get familiar with a Smoking Barrel illegal mescal or a Restless Rhubarb to go with your Armagnac prunes and Yorkshire forced rhubarb. Or why not pair a Lavender Pisco sour with a classic sticky toffee pud? Sólo se vive una vez.
But the Abingdon experience doesn’t end with coffee and petits fours. Suki, the youngest in the Staples family, has extended the invitation to the Costa Brava, where she runs exclusive gastronomic retreats at a Catalan farmhouse estate, featuring immersive wine tastings, olive farm visits, and hands-on cookery workshops led by her husband—a chef trained at the renowned Michelin-starred El Celler de Can Roca
54 Abingdon Road, W8 6AP
