The Hunger | LFW Special: Canteen at Covent Garden
— September 19, 2011 —
In this column, Ananda Pellerin and Neil Wissink uncover the secret pleasures of the gastronome.
Chocolate Pot Photography by Neil WissinkIn time for Fashion Week, London favourites Canteen have seized the trend for pop-ups to open a temporary restaurant in the heart of Covent Garden near Somerset House. In the centre of the market, the open air kitchen is a celebration of British food and British design. With furniture by Very Good & Proper and a menu of contemporary British classics made from quality ingredients, we enjoyed a simple, comforting meal including fish and chips, beetroot-cured salmon, ham hock and piccalilli, and a black currant jelly with vanilla ice cream. Covent Garden is slowly shedding its reputation as a culinary hinterland fit only for tourists. “It has always been a vibrant part of London but it has never managed to attract chefs or restaurateurs and has suffered on the eating out front,” Canteen co-owner Patrick Clayton-Malone tells us. “They approached us to be the first restaurant in residence and we felt drawn to be in the market hub.”
“It feels very alfresco,” Clayton-Malone continues. “We've got birch trees, festoon lighting and bunting. We've gone for post-war colours using standard green, blue and red, it's slightly village Fête-like.” A prominent design feature is the specially-designed utility chairs and the long, light wood tables; clean contemporary lines set in contrast to Covent Garden’s vaulting Victorian arches.
Having opened their first branch in Spitalfields seven years ago, Canteen are an all-day-dining, no reservations restaurant. “We have always had a democratic stance” says Clayton-Malone. Over the next six months Canteen will be hosting special events and bringing in celebrated chefs – “we just can’t say who” he teases – to tie in with Frieze and the London Design Festival.
Text by Ananda Pellerin
Ananda and Neil visited Canteen Covent Garden on Thursday September 15 at 8:45pm. Ananda Pellerin is a London-based writer and Neil Wissink is a visual artist also based in London. More from The Hunger here, and contact The Hunger here.
