If you ever get the opportunity, talk to Jeremy King about light. He knows light. Especially in the context of restaurants, where it’s as important as in painting. At The Park, King’s grand café on the edge of Hyde Park, the windows are large and curved and allow for the dining room to bathe. The restaurateur conceived of it to appear as “light through honey” with a “hint of caramel”. That’s what it is and how it feels.
It is true of the bar as it is of the dining room. The bar is now open for drinks and you may visit and drink there without eating. Enjoy snacks if you wish: pea and mint arancini and bruschetta with stracciatella and wild garlic. Both are Alan Titchmarsh-esque in their springtime melody. It’s rare to find decent arancini in London.
King and I mused that were The Park ever empty, a little gloomy, you might look through the window at the long wooden bar upon which a solitary figure might be resting. Edward Hopper would paint them melancholically. Maybe that’ll happen in winter. For now, it is a place that buzzes, which pours Negronis and martinis and margaritas with chilli. Sit down and you’ll be given seasoned popcorn.
The place is a bit like a film set but in a good way: Warren Beatty would be happy at The Park. He’d have a Manhattan and on his way to have a cigarette, would stop by the elegant clock and say hello to your mum. She might well leave with him. No matter, have another cocktail, or explore the wine list which isn’t as egalitarian as the food. West London I suppose. If you’ve got a hundy to spare, the Willamette Valley Chardonnay is the way to go.
So I must advise: enjoy a long walk through Hyde Park and finish at The Park. It’s a long lunch arena and the bar is the most diligent of accompaniments. Be an extra in the film.
2 Queensway, W2 3RX, theparkrestaurant.com
Bar snacks
Club Wembley
Wembley Stadium, wembleystadium.com
The Michelin-starred chef Tom Shepherd, the man behind Upstairs in Lichfield, has teamed up with Club Wembley to create a menu at the Bobby Moore Lounge. It’s a good move — the food wasn’t great before. Now there’s crab with avocado and Hereford beef with chips and mushroom ketchup to enjoy with your Guinness and champagne. For those unsure football can ever again reach the heights of Palace winning the FA Cup, this is evidence that done the right way, it just might.
Terry’s Cafe
158 Great Suffolk Street, SE1, terryscafe.co.uk
London institution Terry’s is to welcome Soho cocktail bar Three Sheets for oysters, Champagne and martinis on May 29. The café is opening a bar in place of its deli, serving drinks and snacks come evening. It’s a welcome move — Terry’s is one of the best places in town for a cooked breakfast and there can be little doubt proprietor Austin Yardley will do a sterling job as a barman. And, well, if he doesn’t, at least the capable Three Sheets are on hand with their lethal talents.
