Hidden amongst a tangle of lush riverside properties and high-rise office blocks on a busy main road in Vauxhall is the quirky restaurant The Brunswick House Café – and what a valuable treasure to find.
Brunswick House itself is a stunning Georgian mansion that houses architectural salvage company, Lassco, and it’s these guys who furnish the bar and dining room in the Café to elaborate excess. From old-fashioned advertising boards on the outside brick wall to a very special visitor greeting you on arrival – a marble dog no less – this really is a feast for the eyes (as well as the stomach; more on that later).
The bar is a bohemian but civilized affair. Candles flicker in jars on wooden tables and mismatched designer stools and chairs are stylishly positioned. Bronze urns sit amongst interior and fashion magazines and jewel-coloured lanterns drip from the ceiling. The bar itself is plentifully stocked and illuminated with chandeliers and spotlights, and the cocktails certainly don’t disappoint. The Oh Gosh! with rum, cointreau and lime juice lives up to its statement name.
In the restaurant, the menu is a one-page affair with a mixture of ingredients that may not be obviously compatible but somehow work perfectly – just like the antique clocks, mirrors and prints surrounding you as you eat. The mushroom & tarragon tart I had melted in the mouth, the squash & turnip parcel with stichelton sauce was rich and gorgeous and the chocolate mousse with walnut flapjack was the perfect decadent ending.
This is not your average London café or restaurant – it’s a little bit pricier and the clientele are as stylish as the chairs. However, the food is delicious, the drinks sophisticated and what really makes this place so special is that everything you see comes with a price tag; you can buy whatever takes your fancy. This is why I think it’s well worth a visit if you’re after a quirky night out to remember in London.
Brunswick House Café’s Twitter profile proudly describes it as fresh, seasonal and South London – a fitting description for a modern gem of a restaurant just south of the river.
NicolaG
