Five to try: Restaurants with a sense of humour

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Dry wit: Andrew Edmunds amuses and delights

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Wit, even in catering, is always a virtue. Fay Maschler finds five great restaurants that don't take themselves too seriously.

ROOBUROO
21 Chapel Market, N1 (020 7278 8100) £25
Promotional cards devised by Mumbai-born Michael Tarat poke fun at Indian stereotypes and send up common perceptions about Indian restaurants. They make me smile, as does the fresh, light, home-style food, each dish distinctive in its own base (rather than drawn from the typical three pots). Five greens with five spices are cooked al dente; rooburoasts include corncobs rubbed with wild lime and roasted chilli butter; rooburreckless — “off the eaten path” — offers double mango duck and lamb pepper fry.

AMBASSADOR
55 Exmouth Market, EC1 (020 7837 0009) £35
Wit without intelligence is a poor thing. Clive Greenhalgh's experience and confidence resonates in this easy-going local restaurant styled, it seems, as a tribute to Edward Hopper's painting Nighthawks. The menu jumps to attention with each change of season or arrival of a timely ingredient and the chef understands well how to get the best out of what's best. Greenhalgh's deep, esoteric wine knowledge is something to attend to, as is the set-price lunch/pre-theatre deal at £12.50/£16 for two/three courses.

LUCKY SEVEN
127 Westbourne Park Road, W2 (020 7727 6771) £30
Any fan of American coming-of-age indie movies will respond to this diner which Tom Conran scrupulously designed to resemble in look, burgers, drinks and weak coffee the places where high-school kids hang out. The British being British won't crowd into the few booths; they prefer to queue, reducing an already small capacity. Eggs sunny-side up, buttermilk pancakes, exterminator chilli, New England clam chowder, Cobb salad and, of course, fries are all present and correct.

LES TROIS GARCONS
1 Club Row, E1 (020 7613 1924) £70
You probably couldn't do better than a stuffed monkey with a tiara as an emblem of these parlous times. More in the same vein furnishes the dining room of this former pub, renovated and decadently fitted out by the eponymous trio who live above the shop. The website claims various celebrities as customers but don't rely on Gwyneth, Stella, Yoko or Nicole for your fun (as if); it's glam and glitzy for everyone. Recently, more rigorous cooking seems almost worth the money.

ANDREW EDMUNDS
46 Lexington Street, W1 (020 7437 5708) £35
The wit of Andrew Edmunds himself could be categorised as dry. When it comes to wine, he amuses and delights. The list has been described as if “picked up at auction following the death of a rich crank”, offering drinking pleasure at unworldly prices. A small kitchen puts useful constraints on the cooking: imagination is shown in the composition of straightforward dishes. Often described as romantic, the love you need at Andrew Edmunds is for your fellow man when squashed next to him. Especially in the basement.

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Prices estimate a meal with wine for one.

 

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