London,

Brasserie James

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Cuisine: French
A meal for two with wine, about £99.

47 Balham Hill, SW12 9DR

Nearest Tube: Balham

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Phone: 020 8772 0057

Open: Open Mon-Fri noon-3pm and 5-10pm, Sat-Sun 10am-3pm and 5-10pm.

 

 

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Brasserie James is kingdom of the bland

 

Rich pickings: Brasserie James may struggle to compete with local Indian, Chinese and Italian restaurants

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Opening a restaurant in London is a gamble at the best of times, but doing one now requires a special sort of courage or madness — or both. This thought sticks with me as we’re shown to our table at the new Brasserie James on Balham Hill.
A quick headcount reveals 12 covers, including ourselves. To be fair, it’s mid-week, but even so, this is a 46-seat establishment. The location cannot be faulted — it’s less than a minute from Clapham South Tube on a broad stretch of pavement.

In summer, the terrace outside could be a magnet. There is, though, something depressing about sitting in the window, watching people scurry home without coming in. You want the place to be bouncing but it feels forlorn. The staff are attentive but you crave an entertaining, vigorous maître d’.

Likewise, the choice of background music is Air, the bland French electronic duo — inoffensive enough but not foot- tapping material. Neither is there much on the walls to distract the eye — the look is solidly plain and uniform.

Brasserie James has been created by Craig James, 29, formerly the head chef at Quaglino’s. He’s clearly got an idea of what he wants, and in that he is not alone — parts of the capital are in danger of being over-run by restaurants trying to replicate the proven Ivy/Wolseley formula on your doorstep. The formula is always pretty much the same: a fusion of seasonal English and French cooking, simply presented, with side orders of staples such as glazed carrots and mashed potato.

While this works for the West End celebrity magnets and is de rigueur for every town of any size in France, translating it to the local high street does not make it a sure-fire winner. Most already have restaurants that stay open long hours, are informal and can be relied upon to provide decent fare at reasonable prices — and they’re Indian, Chinese or Italian.

Still, full marks to James and his brasserie for trying to break their hold. To start, we had Morris Gold black pudding, fried quail’s egg and grain mustard (£7) and roasted pear with goat’s cheese and red onion salad (£7).

There was no doubting the quality of the black pudding or its abundance — sometimes the portion can be tiny but here there was plenty. But it could have done with being a bit more peppery. As for the quail’s egg, it seemed a waste — all that effort by the quail and the cook to produce something the size of a thimble. The roasted pear was fridge- cold and not ripe but the combination with the cheese went well.

Mains were Montbelliard sausage, choucroute and Dijon mustard (£12) with yes, buttered carrots (£2.50) and roast corn-fed chicken breast, mashed potato and chasseur sauce (£13) with creamed cavalo nero, sweetcorn and bacon (£3).
The sausage and choucroute was a regular at Quaglino’s where it cost £15.50. Here, its authenticity conveyed rural France. The chicken did too, but it was not from the biggest of birds.

Passion fruit Pavlova (£5) and Eton mess (£5) were OK. A bottle of Brouilly Vieilles Vignes Domaine du Moulin Favre 2007 (£24) from a good list was light and fruity, leaving enough appetite for a pudding wine, two glasses of Château Loupiac Gaudiet at £3.50 each.

The total bill, with service, came to £99. It was far beyond our credit crunch challenge limit of £70. To come within that, a cheaper wine would have to suit and the starter or pudding dispensed with. The bill came as a shock and perhaps that says everything about the meal. It certainly wasn’t beating the crunch and the overall experience was of blandness.

For that sort of money in south London I would have expected something with more oomph, that supplied a memory or two. Brasserie James didn’t do that. It was good without being exciting. It needs to work harder and perhaps James needs to look at his prices — £99 buys you a banquet at the excellent Indians not far away in Tooting.

Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.

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