Hand and Flower, Fulham

To be honest, the only reason I�m writing this is the selfish desire to be able to visit the Hand & Flower again and again. Otherwise I would never tell anyone about this place, and only bring my close friends and family - and probably blind fold them en route so they wouldn�t know how to get there themselves.

There are a couple of decent places in Fulham that we�ve discovered, but the Hand & Flower has delivered on several occasions the best meals we�ve had west London. I have to say that quality of food and cooking at this place is as good as cetain starred central London establishments, but at a fraction of the cost in a much more relaxed atmosphere. The service (save one run-in with an overstretched Australian lass) is always welcoming, warm, attentive but not intruding.
It has a lovely warm dining room and open kitchen, with a gorgeous little garden out the back. The front acts as proper pub-ish space, nut you can also eat there.
Although there a reasonably balanced menu (not too many or few choices), I�d recommend going for dinner and trying the scallops 3 ways or salmon tartare for starters and the rib eye or sole for mains. The last time we visited we ordered a to-die-for chocolate fondant for dessert, to which we were told there would be at least a 25 minute wait as these are made from scratch. I�m not really a �chocolate person� but we almost ordered a second after scraping the plate. The wine list � in my novice opinion � has a well chosen selection with a few organic bottles on the list as well.
A bit of background, I�ve lived in Fulham for 2 years now and (rented in) Kensington the 2 years before that. Although now in other professions, my partner and I have both worked in restaurants a few years ago (myself in the kitchen and front of house, and my partner in front of house) so (I hope) we have a reasonable idea of what good food and service standards can be.
Although I�ll regret writing this if the Hand & Flower ends up being packed every night, I�ll take the chance if that means I�ll still be able to visit (and maybe reward the lovely people there).They have an offer on at the moment - Mon-Thurs 2 courses for �15 - well worth every penny and then some.

16 Feb 2010 13:11