Sunday lunch January 20, 2007
Posted by CamdenKiwi in : Cafes & Restaurants,London , trackbackOne of my favourite British institutions is the idea of Sunday lunch. Start at about two in the afternoon, languidly while the rest of the away over a roast, some good wine and conversation before going home to sleep it off and contemplate the week ahead. Perfection.
If you live in the megalopolis its unlikely to be a family affair, and small flats filled with busy lives mean cooking for hoards is definitely an operation to be out-sourced. Why slave over a hot oven when there are so many fabulous pubs so very close?
Over the last wee while, a small group of friends has taken to gathering in a suitable gastro-pub every few weeks. We’re evenly distributed around the edges of zone 1 (Somers Town,
Lambeth, Bayswater, Canada Water) so the centre works for everyone. So far, we’ve tried the Norfolk Arms and the Marquis of Cornwallis in Bloomsbury, as well as the White Hart down in Kennington. We’ve twice tried to get a table at the Anchor & Hope by Waterloo, but they’re either always booked or their Sunday lunch is a figment of Dom’s fantasy.
The Norfolk Arms is a clear winner for me. Spanish tapas to start, followed by organic lamb roast, with sherry and a good rioja thrown in is an excellent mix. The tumblers and teatowel napkins are quirky but better than you’d get at my place.
The Marquis of Cornwallis has only just reopened, and is more traditional, but very comfortable and laid back.
At the White Hart, the rare roast beef was an exceptional treat, and went well with a little too much of the Montepulciano d’Abruzzo.
All of these places share good food with a friendly pub ambience where its okay to stay as long as you like. The wine lists are better than ordinary pubs, there are newspapers available and they’re hardly the same beastie as the blokish place across the road from me. They are cafes but this is Britain so we call them pubs.
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Comments»
This all sounds very civilised, especially when I keep reading about dreadful storms in England. I think you need a good roast meal to fortify yourself against the wind and cold.
I’m off to Sunday lunch myself in an hour’s time. This will be very laid back, and probably outside in warm sunshine. The temperature here is twenty-two degrees at present.
Its been windy, but not cold. It is finally getting a little colder now, but it was 12-13C last week, and the wind itself was almost warm.
It’s probably true that I fantasise about Sunday lunch at the A&H, but that’s because the food’s so good. I was in there on Saturday and it was fabulous again… one day they’ll allow us to have a Sunday roast – they have to!
In the U.S., we have Sunday Brunch. It’s normally available from around 11 AM to 2 PM (or thereabouts) as a buffet at a hotel or restaurant. Some Brunches are rather excessive affairs, with dozens of different dishes, freshly prepared eggs or pasta or grilled meats, and champagne.
One of the best Sunday Brunches I’ve ever had was at the Fairmont Princess in Scottsdale, AZ. Very costly at $75 US per person, it has more options and better champagne than all others I’ve had. When we asked for our bill after only 90 minutes, our waiter told us most people spend at least 3 hours at the table. (We had to catch a flight to New York.)
It’s no wonder so many Americans are so darn fat.