trinity

whenever you go, just do; i am reasonably certain that if you try trinity once, you will, like me, be back again. and again.

makes one proud to live in clapham. truly world class food.

our 7-course tasting menu (new for the autumn/winter season) started with robust nibbles in the form of warm bread rolls and a sinfully delicious whipped goat’s milk butter. this was a first for me – and despite looking like slightly melted marshmallow, this was quite heavenly with a mousse-like texture and a flavour like the creamiest, sweetest fresh goat’s cheese i’d ever tasted.

cod, cockles, cauliflower, capers and raisins was probably the best dish of the evening as it had two flavours that stood out. one was the cauliflower and the other was the raisin. these two were probably the strongest and most exciting flavours of the evening. unfortunately.

many of the dishes we had during our dinner at trinity restaurant, we’ve seen done better at other restaurants. for instance, the ravioli was good, but apsleys, bocca di lupo or zucca do ravioli so much better), the pumpkin soup was nice but i’ll have forgotten about it in a couple of weeks (compare it to terroir‘s pumpkin soup, which will blow your mind), etc.

a gorgeous place to eat. i love trinity for a number of reasons. firstly, it actually feels good to be in this restaurant; it is gorgeous, the setting on the polygon is beautiful and everything has been furnished and finished with quality pieces. secondly the service is fantastic and finally the food is literally sublime. adam byatt knows seasonal food so well and the menu is always such a delight to read and experience. trinity is worth a visit, especially for sunday lunch. a true gem of a restaurant.
food: 8 / 10
service: 8.5 / 10
ambience: 8.5 / 10

a three course lunch will only set you back £20. each dish is generously portioned with exceptional quality that is no less than michelin starred restaurants.

i'm not entirely sure how or why or what we were thinking but one saturday about a month ago, with my brother in town, we somehow decided to visit clapham, just for the sheer fact that it was easy to get to with the overground. now, i'm quite in love with the overground with its air conditioning and, well, general over-groundedness but to travel to clapham junction just because we could was, in hindsight, absolute madness. still, i managed to dig up the name of a restaurant i'd been meaning to try in clapham for ages - trinity. a phone call to them confirmed that their set lunch was available on a saturday - £20 for three courses. good, we had a place to eat. this restaurant isn't actually near clapham junction but rather clapham old town, about a half hour walk through clapham common. that brisk autumn walk through the common was just what we needed to build up an appetite and at 1pm on the dot, we sat down, ravenous, in the restaurant. we were first brought an amuse of fresh radishe

i had a wonderful meal, though the quality of the company guaranteed that, with some great wines at a restaurant i'd eat at regularly if it was on the doorstep. there are flashes of brilliance from the kitchen, and the staff are close enough to where they need to be. but only one dish out of five will trouble my best of the year list, and that's just not enough for the price.

my first thought on entering trinity on the edge of clapham common, was that with its full length windows designed to open up onto the pavement, it would be a great place to go to in the summer. then i remembered it was summer (the british weather can be deceptive that way).

1/2 dozen oxtail stuffed snails with garlic butter and soldiers - a nicely presented brunch type dish that was a bit awkward to eat, but very tasty none the less.


-----21 jul, 2011-----

belly of old spot pork, charred spring onions, gooseberries, jerseys and crackling - the portion was huge, but fortunately the pork was nice and light and the gooseberries refreshing, so i had no problem finishing it off.


-----21 jul, 2011-----

fried ducks egg with scottish girolles, english mustard mayonnaise and toasted brioche - a sort of up market big breakfast, matched with a glass of wild boy chardonnay - kinda of weird, but it worked.

one of the joys of living in london is that it's so multi-faceted - it's like a bundle of mini-cities wrapped into one. while west london (where i live, and which i'm particularly fond of) boasts many of the iconic sights that tourists seek, like portobello market and hyde park, east londoners insist that you haven't seen the real london if you've not trawled brick lane for vintage gear or cocktailed it up at a trendy shoreditch watering hole. i'm a true creature of habit, only occasionally straying from the w-postcodes and when i do, it's usually to eat - be it at a cosy supper club or hip molecular restaurant . even with the lure of food, i need much prodding, which is why it has taken me literally years to set foot in trinity . i've heard a great deal about adam byatt's cooking and it has long featured in my lengthy 'to do' list. so when our friends suggested it for sunday lunch, we jumped at the chance. and once there i kicked myself for not having made it sooner - the car journey

the service was a delight and the food exceptionally well planned and executed as normal

the service at trinity was impeccable and chef adam is clearly very proud of what he has here.

would recommend. had a great time here last month, would recommend.