A novel taste for design - Restaurants - Going Out - Evening Standard
       

A novel taste for design

Critic Rating
Reader Rating 0

In Irish legend, Fergus was a warrior king of Ulster. In contemporary restauration, chef-proprietor Fergus Henderson is the patron saint of British food. Without ever stating it as an aim, Henderson has redefined our indigenous cuisine.

He has removed pomp and parody and concentrated on the potential in well brought-up produce. Nothing escapes him as the starting point for a dish, whether it be crispy pig's ear as a salad garnish or oxtail in a jellied terrine.

Not everything on the daily-changing menu is what some would regard as simply offal. There are noble fish dishes, and seasonal vegetables are often allowed to take centre stage, sometimes unrehearsed as in a pile of fresh peas to pod.

Henderson trained as an architect, and his sympathy for space is evident in the uncluttered dining room with, at its feet, a bar designed for robust snacking.

St John, 26 St John Street, EC1 (020-7251 0848). Mon-Sat (closed Sat lunch) £80 **

St. John
St. John Street, London, EC1M 4AY

Comments

Don't Miss
The Glamour Awards - stars turn on the style

Glamour Awards

Stars turn on the style
Duchess of Cambridge is pretty in pink at her first Buckingham Palace garden party

Garden party

Duchess of Cambridge is pretty in pink
FIRST review of Ridley Scott's latest sci-fi blockbuster Prometheus

First review

Is Ridley Scott's Prometheus any good?
Fair-weather goths

Fair-weather goths

The sultry shades of summer darks are coming out of the shadows
London gets ready for the Diamond Jubilee - in pictures

Diamond Jubilee

London gets ready - in pictures
Dog save the Queen: Corgis surge in popularity

Dog save the Queen

Corgis surge in popularity
'He’s a better ex than he was a husband', says Boris Johnson's ex wife

A better ex than husband

We talk to Boris Johnson's ex wife
TV Baftas - in pictures

Best of the Baftas

Stars on the red, white and blue carpet
You big softie: Has Giles Coren put down his poison pen?

You big softie

Has Giles Coren put down his poison pen?
Pop star Paloma Faith, former Labour minister and Tory blogger back gay marriage video

Gay marriage

Pop star, former Labour minister and Tory blogger back gay marriage video