the Glasshouse, London – Heatwave Day 1

Tags

1 Michelin Star, LONDON, Michelin Star, Modern British, Modern French, Review

The Glasshouse
14 Station Parade,
Kew, TW9 3PZ
Tel: 020 8940 6777

Food type: Modern British/ French

Nearest tube: Kew Gardens

Website: The Glasshouse

I am pretty glad to have taken some annual leave this week what with the excellent weather – you don’t say that too often when you live in England. My plan for the day was to have a quick lunch and then head off to my local spa to enjoy some of the sunshine. I was not very keen on travelling down to London by train with the heat, so a restaurant within a reasonable driving distance and ample car parking space was essential. Unfortunately Hedone is only open for lunch from Thursday to Saturday so it was either La Trompette or the Glasshouse. I haven’t been to Glasshouse in quite some time so I thought I’d try my luck as a walk in customer.

The restaurant has pretty much kept the pricing pretty steady since I last visited some years back. 3 course lunch is £29.50 and dinner (pretty much the same menu as lunch) is £47.50. There are a few dishes with supplements but on the whole the menu sticks to the pricing formula. I absolutely hate restaurants with a fixed price menu only to have supplements for half the items on the menu (there is one specific restaurant I am thinking of here!). They have gone through a few head chefs since my last visit with the current head chef now Berwyn Davies.

The Glasshouse – Review

Tags

1 Michelin Star, Anthony Boyd, British, French, Glasshouse, LONDON, Michelin Star, Review

The Glasshouse
14 Station Parade,
Kew, TW9 3PZ
Tel: 020 8940 6777

Food type: Modern British/ French

Food rating: 5/10

Nearest tube: Kew Gardens

Website: The Glasshouse

Bruce Poole and Nigel Platt-Martin’s second restaurant, the Glasshouse opened its doors back in 1999 – the same year Chez Bruce earned its first Michelin star. We decided to make the journey all the way across West London as the restaurant was running a 1/2 price January offer in current with Chez Bruce (you receive a coupon after dining at Chez Bruce which is valid for all services except Saturday dinner and Sunday lunch).

Located a proverbial stones throw away from Kew’s Garden tube and overground station, the triangular shaped Glasshouse is unmissable with its glass-fronted room. The stylish, modern-looking dining room follows the theme at Chez Bruce with glossy wooden floors, plain white clothed tables and comfortable leather-upholstered chairs. The walls are covered with an embossed cream coloured wallpaper giving a ripple, water-like effect. Moving about in the restaurant may be tricky as tables are spaced quite close to each other.

Head chef at the Glasshouse, Anthony Boyd trained under Bruce Poole at Chez Bruce working his way up from chef de partie to the position of sous chef. Like Poole, Boyd continued his culinary training under the wing of Philip Howard at The Square. His talent was noted by ‘talent spotter’ Nigel Platt-Martin and the rest you can say is history. At the Glasshouse, Boyd developed his own unique style which had the Michelin man calling. The restaurant received its first Michelin star in 2002, which it has held on to since.