Tom's Place Full Review
Posted: 04 April 2008 by SmartPlanet
Tom Aikens is the Michelin-starred, carrot-topped chef whose eponymous fine-dining restaurant and brasserie, Tom's Kitchen, rule the roost in Chelsea. He's just opened Tom's Place, a fish and chip restaurant and takeaway, not far from the other two. It's all very Sloaney pony, but it's also very sustainable.
Aikens sets out his agenda in an essay tucked into the menu. The salient points are these: fish is a finite resource, sustainable is good and food is at its best when it's fresh, seasonal and produced close to home. We can definitely get in bed with that.
The place itself is small and self-consciously witty, with a bold red and black colour scheme -- including recycled plastic tabletops -- that feels more like a diner than a chip shop. Downstairs is an open kitchen, takeaway counter and high bench tables, brightly lit with energy-efficient bulbs. Up the spiral staircase there's a casual, no-reservations dining room with bright nautical detailing and an electronic board displaying the types of fish (including pollock, gurnard and MSC-certified cod) that come battered and with chips. There are also some classic seafood dishes and a grilled section featuring temptations like Cornish sardines on toast.
Fish and chips is a simple meal that excites much nostalgic passion, and you're never going to square with everyone's memories of a Friday night fish supper. We raved over our Pollock, served on a rectangular black plate piled with fat, handsome chips (fried in beef dripping) and crisp fish. Halfway in, though, our relish paled a bit. The fish was good and hot and the chips occupied a pleasant middle ground between big, dark, crisp restaurant versions and flooby chip-shop ones. But there wasn't enough room on the plate for the excellent mushy peas, the tartare sauce lacked kick and a side of perfectly golden onion rings weren't seasoned enough. When we opened the flip-top jar of ketchup, which had been overfilled, it spattered the red stuff everywhere.
Ironically, a classier choice sidestepped the problems -- a buttery dish of grilled megrim sole with capers and parsley was cooked perfectly, and went well with a glass of Chapel Down Bacchus Reserve 2005. The all-English wine list is a great idea, and tasting it here should encourage people to consider ordering it elsewhere.
Ice cream is the only pud, and the eight flavours are made in-house. We loved both the dark, grown-up caramel flavour and the bittersweet tang of the orange marmalade ice cream. They're served in super-cute, recycled cinema-style paper tubs with little wooden scoops. Coke is served in cans, too, and even though the restaurant's rubbish is recycled, we can't help feeling it'd be better to use bowls for the ice cream and glasses for the Coke, and wash them up.
Tom's Place takes advice from the Marine Conservation Society and Marine Stewardship Council, so you can order with impunity. But the same close scrutiny is needed for the gastronomic aspect of the restaurant's fish suppers. With a few small tweaks, Tom's Place will be a chic and delicious chippy.
Essentials: A plate of fish an chips, a side and a glass of wine for two costs around £42. Tom's Place is within walking distance of South Kensington and Sloane Square tube stations. 1 Cale Street, London, SW3 3QT.
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