The Petersham Covent Garden

The Petersham is just one element of a tranquil oasis in the heart of Covent Garden that also includes a beautiful florist, exquisite homeware shop and the other, less formal restaurant: the Italian-inspired La Goccia offering small plates.  On the evening I went we were also able to enjoy one of the herds of life-sized elephant sculptures which are currently in the courtyard. The artwork project is brought to us by the wildlife conservation charity Elephant Family, in partnership with The Real Elephant Collective, and aims to bring awareness to the challenges our wildlife faces on a crowded planet being ruled by humans.

The Petersham restaurant is insanely pretty with the gorgeous scent of freshly cut flowers filling the air. I was seated at my table by a very friendly waiter who made sure I had everything I needed while I waited for my guest. Before dinner I ordered one of the many cocktails on the menu, the Garden Fresco which was a blend of Plantation 3* rum, housemade cucumber and basil shrub, green apple and mint puree, elderflower cordial and soda water. It was just perfect for the warm summer evening. 

We had the seasonal tasting menu which at £85 I thought was pretty good value for the quality of the food. This menu is available paired with a wine flight for an additional £75, however we opted for a bottle of Rose suggested by the restaurant's resident sommelier.  I was told by the waiter that all the ingredients used are carefully sourced with the utmost importance on quality, provenance and are chemical free, with most of the meat, eggs and veg sourced from the Petersham family farm Haye Farm. This means that they are able to offer plot to plate dining in the heart of London, as well as being sure of the organic certification of the produce and the welfare of the animals.

To start, we had a lovely little appetiser of smoked mackerel and lemon croquette with horseradish, then we moved onto the starters which were a highlight for us. The chicken liver parfait with baby onions and toasted sourdough was delicious. It was so smooth and creamy, and really rich in flavour. This was followed by culatello D.O.P. with honeymoon melon and mint which was extremely fresh and was a perfect second starter to the chicken liver parfait. The next course was a Cacio e pepe bottoni with broad beans and mint and then came the two main events, the Red mullet in crusta di pane with olives, tomato, samphire and chickpeas and Fillet of Haye Farm beef with catalogna, confit garlic sauce and chickling peas. The beef was definitely my favorite, it the garlic sauce complemented its flavour perfectly. Even though I couldn’t eat much more, I couldn’t say no to the dessert of original Beans chocolate with Zisola olive oil ice cream and honeycomb. It was an interesting mix of flavours and textures. It felt delightfully decadent, especially when followed by coffee and chocolate truffles. The Petersham is a wonderful extension of the original Petersham Nurseries in Richmond and I thoroughly enjoyed my evening. The food, service and ambience were all top notch. 

https://petershamnurseries.com/restaurants/the-petersham/