Kitty Fisher's

Lovely service, extremely quick and relaxed. The food is stunning and innovative. A real treat.

Delicious, concise and brilliantly executed menu, unique space, buzzing intimate atmosphere.

I've often (/sometimes......OK, purely for the purposes of this review!) considered restaurants as similar to guests at a party..... The shiny suited, square shoed braggard who spends his evening looking over your shoulder for a better option and making not infrequent trips to the loo? Brings to mind Sexy Fish. The sparsely dressed friend of a friend (head of PR at XYZ don't you know) who drops in at 10:30, drinks a glass of champagne with the DJ and leaves at 11:10 for cocktails elsewhere? Chiltern Firehouse all over. The silver fox Godfather who just popped by with his nieces 21st birthday present - but in the process wooed every single (& attached) woman (& man) in a half mile radius? Welcome to the Wolseley. A great party needs all of these. But the very best parties feature one more attendee; He (for Kitty Fishers is most certainly a man) wears a well cut navy blue suit and gifts the hostess beautifully cut flowers and fine white wine chilled to the bone. He meets every fellow guest with such sincerity and charm that they bask in the warmth of seeing of an old friend - no matter if they've only just been introduced. You find yourself politely chatting with other people but all the while wandering where he is - for all the fun is surely centred there. Kitty Fishers is this guest and it is the staff (in particular Tom the Restaurant Manager) who create such a memorable character. I could go on about the delicious bread & burnt onion butter, eulogise about the Galician steak & Tunworth potatoes - never did I think that £88 for beef could be deemed good value....how wrong I was - or urge you to try the Lemon tart even if you're not a dessert person. But I won't. I'll merely say that much like attending a party without meeting "that" guest feels like a waste of time, eating anywhere but Kitty Fisher's suddenly seems just a little pointless.

This restaurant is just too small to work ! As you enter, there are only 3 tiny tables for two, most of the space is taken up by the bar ! The wall at the side of us was dirty with food stains. Our lunch was average, the potatoes were hard and the fish full of bones. The bavette steak was tasteless, the ox cheek starter and the bread were the only good dishes ! The barman and waitress washed and dried cutltlery as we ate, eager to get cleared up and close ! The owner walked back and fourth through the tiny place chatting on his mobile for a considerable time which didn't add anything to the atmosphere ! We have had some fantastic meals in London, this was not one of them !

My friend and I have been trying to eat here for months and one Monday night got a last minute reservation. The restaurant was filled with tourists who were all dressed like they just got off the Big Bus. The waitress was dismissive and first tried to rush our order then ignored us for fifteen minutes. The crab was tasteless, the beef was chewy and the drinks weak. Honestly, what's the hype about? Massively underwhelming.

A tiny place, we were seated upstairs near the bar. Having heard about the bread and burnt onion butter we ordered it, and started with burrata with beetroot - said to be very good - and Cornish crab with barbecued cucumber and seaweed. The crab was lovely, but I don't think I'll go for cooked cucumber again - a strange watery and squashy but crunchy texture, but that's just me. Main courses were outstanding, the lamb was tender and delicious, and the Galician flank steak with pink fir potatoes topped with melted Tunworth cheese and mustard was phenomenal, so much flavour. It all felt very warm and relaxed, like a favourite neighbourhood restaurant even though it's in Mayfair, and with a great bottle of Priorat this felt like a very decadent way to spend a Monday evening.

The restaurant upstairs is tiny, you will end up talking to the table next door even if only to apologise for bumping into them whilst getting in and out of your seat, but that's all part of the fun at Kitty Fishers I think. It is cosy, perfect for sharing and the staff are so welcoming and chatty that you feel like you are crammed into a friends kitchen. We had the bread and burnt onion butter and whipped cod's roe on toast which were divine (and I really didn't think I would like the cods roe (bad memories of luminous pink taramasalata that my parents used to buy in the 80's) so do try it. I had the lamb chops with mint and anchovies and my husband the prawns and we shared a strawberry and ice cream dessert and a bottle of wine that was the perfect end to the meal. Now, the only downside - I would definitely like to go back, I think it would be a really great autumn/winter venue on a cold and blustery day, but not sure if I can be bothered with the "only taking bookings on the phone for one hour each day", I nearly lost the will to live hitting redial many times to get this booking, in fact I gave up months ago and only ended up with this table because I was tasked with getting one for a colleague, and booked one for myself at the same time.

I have to say the thrill of the chase to get a coveted booking at this attractive restaurant in Mayfair was the draw here. One always wants what one cannot easily have! Finally, after timing my phone call to perfection, I landed a booking, albeit in the height of summer in a deep, dark basement. The effort was worth it. This is a cosy 2 floor bijou dining room, apparently based on an infamous courtesan 'kitty fisher' from the 18th century. There is a feeling of a posh brothel/ gentlemans' club/ ye olde pub vibe, all of which makes it very inviting. The basement is small but intimate with flickering lights, red leather seating and an easy view into the bustling kitchen. Staff were fab, friendly and funny, like one of your best mates. The menu was small but perfectly formed with interesting and scrumptious combinations e.g.bread with burnt onion butter, beef and pink fir and cheese potatoes, burrata and beetroot to name a few. Big hunks of bread came out with fluffy butter with a dusting of soot, a nice beginning. Creamy burrata complimented by the right side of acidic beetroot was next. Then, the glorious, generous mains showcase the the chef's meat and fish skills with the most tender, slender red duck, that I have ever eaten and deep satisfying beef fillet with velvety red jus. Fish came plump, white and with crispy skin. Desserts topped off a perfect meal. Wine and conversation flowed and we left with a smile and a full stomach and then hopped, skipped and jumped to little house mayfair for a brandy and baileys. This is Mayfair at its best and least pretentious.

Having booked (thankfully) a month or so in advance, I went for dinner here on a Friday night recently. Expectations were inevitably high given its current status as one of the hottest places in town; an impressive feat for what is essentially a very simple and unassuming offering, particularly on the Bentley-adorned streets of Mayfair. But that's exactly why it's such a success. Mayfair has been crying out for places like this. Quality ingredients, mostly cooked on the specially installed wood grill, created by confident, young (not to mention award-winning) talent in a place that is a world away from "stuffy" or "pretentious" - words sometimes still associated with the area. The owners are friendly and welcoming, appearing almost overcome by the success of their project, which only opened its doors in December. "We're not taking any bookings till April now" exclaimed one of the co-owners, with a look of both humble disbelief and pride on his face. We ordered most of the 'bar snacks'. Bread and burnt onion butter, salt cod croquettes and whipped cod's roe on toast all delicious. Even if you think you don't like cod roe, try it! From the starters, the little leeks (Calçots) were perfect with creamy, soft goat's curd and steak tartar was delicious and spiked with peppery nasturtium. Everyone had been raving about the steak with charred onion, pickled walnut, pink fur potatoes and Tunworth cheese (pictured) so I ordered that with hardly a glance at the rest of the mains. Despite my dish arriving a little later than the rest of the group, once it arrived, every mouthful was a joy, the balance between flavours absolutely perfect. The beef was so juicy and flavoursome and the charred fatty edges provided a mouth-watering contrast. And I can safely say I would happily eat a whole plate of the potatoes. To finish, the chocolate mousse with rhubarb, crème fraiche & hazelnuts was far more delicious and exciting than it looked on paper. A perfect end to the meal. Prices are not low but you really get what you pay for here and I can't see that it would be much cheaper wherever it was in London. And this isn't a place you'll feel cheated by when you leave. If you're like me, you'll just want to go back again as soon as you can... which probably won't be until next year at this rate...