The Black Lamb, Wimbledon Review
Gladwin gastronomy comes to Wimbledon – we review The Black Lamb.
Venue: 67 High St, London SW19 5EE
OUR VERDICT:
When it comes to restaurants, expansion can be a tricky business. Recently opened in the heart of Wimbledon village, The Black Lamb is the sixth restaurant from the Gladwin brothers – the team behind Notting Hill’s The Shed, Rabbit on the King’s Road, Nutbourne in Battersea, Sussex in Soho, and most recently The Fat Badger in Richmond.
We visited on a Friday night and crossing the threshold was like stepping from suburbia into Soho; swish-looking cocktails were being quaffed at the bar, candles flickered, chatter and music pulsated; talk about atmosphere.
What to expect
The interiors are gorgeous – comfortable yet stylish. It's reassuringly familiar also but feels a bit special; the perfect date night place where comfy banquettes await, dried flowers romantically tumble from the ceiling and naked gardeners tend to their allotments (see wallpaper downstairs). It’s friendly and fun, but simultaneously sophisticated.
The approach to food here is classic Gladwin and I love it - hyper-seasonal with a focus on wild, foraged, and locally grown ingredients, including sustainable livestock from Gladwin’s very own farm in West Sussex. The menu is creative and exciting but not overly complicated or pretentious. Much like the restaurant, it too has a sense of fun.
The appetisers
Case in point – we started with a couple of mini mushroom Marmite éclairs with egg confit and cornichon (a must at any Gladwin spot) and the adorable and very Insta-friendly smoked mackerel cornetto, topped with lumpfish caviar and dill (see here).
Both perfect, playful and completely delicious canapé-sized mouthfuls of joy, even better when washed down with a glass of Nutbourne (affectionately known as Nutty) Wild – a vivaciously fizzy young pink bursting with strawberries and raspberries, produced by the Gladwins in Sussex.
To start
Starters were sublime – I had a neat pile of deliciously fresh and chunky sea bream tartare, which came standing in a deeply flavoursome soy mushroom dashi topped with zingy spring onions and a small, potently rich little quail egg yolk. I mixed it all together and enjoyed every moreish mouthful of flavour and texture.
The hand-dived scallops, with sweet cured pork belly, elderflower gel and peas, were exactly as they should be; sweet, plump and slightly caramelised, and made all the more delicious by the clever sweet and salty flavours on the plate.
The main event
When it came to mains, I had already spied the grilled cuttlefish on Instagram so ordered that immediately, and it did not disappoint. The deep charcoal flavour accompanied perfectly by a tasty Mediterranean peperonata, with flaked almonds for crunch and capers and aioli for extra deliciousness.
My date - a pescatarian - was keen on the hake with cauliflower, samphire and chardonnay butter sauce but sadly that had sold out, so instead it was the turn of the pea and mint orzotto with spring onions, burnt sesame and chilli gremolata; a huge plate of which arrived, lovely and fresh, but it too could have benefitted from a good dollop of aioli and a few capers.
Judging by our fellow diners, meat-eaters are well catered for here; the sweet cured confit hogget leg with sweetbreads, white beans, scapes and anchovies looked (and smelt) divine, as did the hefty beef sirloin with morels, asparagus and salted caramel horseradish sauce. Next time…
A bit on the side
Our brilliant waiter Giulio insisted that we try the crispy roasted potatoes with walnut ketchup, which I am very glad he/we did.
He also supplied us with delicious wines throughout; The Black Lamb's list has been carefully put together and offers a genuinely interesting mix. It’s also well-balanced price-wise - a bottle of house ‘Wimbledon White’, a South African chenin blanc, is £25 and a glass of sparkling Nutty Wild is just £9.50, whilst some special bottles can stretch up to £120+. You can also order by carafe, which I like.
The final word
Puds were robust and indulgent, as you’d expect. The cherry and white chocolate cheesecake with baked white chocolate and cherry sorbet was just the right balance of sweet, rich creaminess and mouth-tingling fruity sharpness, aka divine, pretty much like the entire evening. Not bad for a sixth restaurant…
Forget the tennis – The Black Lamb is Wimbledon’s hottest destination right now, and you don’t even need to enter a ballot to get in.
- Open now at 67 High St, London SW19 5EE
- theblacklamb-restaurant.com
Mon - closed. Tues 5pm-10pm. Weds-Fri all day menu 12noon-10.30pm (last orders 10pm), plant-led set lunch and a la carte 12pm-3pm, a la carte dinner 5.30pm-10.30pm. Saturday brunch 10am-4pm, lunch 12-4pm, dinner 5.30pm-11.30pm. Sunday brunch 10am-11.45am, Sunday roast 12pm -8.30pm
