Antidote

The first I heard of Antidote came from pictures posted on Twitter with photos giving a hint about the ownership. I’ll admit I guessed wrong who was behind it but a number of people identified the sourdough bread and the word slowly got out that Mikael Jonsson is behind the refurbished wine bar. Hedone ranks as one of my favourite London places but recently my trips have been at relatively short notice. I always try to reserve a table but have had no recent success. Antidote seemed like a good backup plan.

I haven’t been to this part of London since I used to hop from cheap record shop to cheap record shop on day trips to London. Carnaby Street occasionally turned up bargains beyond what was available in the various places round Berwick Street. Antidote is off the main tourist strip and occupies two floors of a property on the corner of Lowndes Court and Newburgh Street. As I announce my reservation I’m given the choice of sitting downstairs that seems geared for informal eating or upstairs. I opt for the much more relaxed first floor seating and am very surprised to see that it’s empty.

The room is light and informal, dominated by bare floorboards, light pastel shaded walls and blackboards detailing the daily specials. Single large lightbulbs with bright filaments dangle over each table. They’re next to no use for light but look great. The tables are wooden topped metal pedestals with matching metal red-cushioned chairs. Each table is simply laid with a knife and fork on a folded napkin on a side plate in each setting with accompanying wineglass. Table décor is limited to a houseplant in an aluminium bucket.

Lunchtime options include the very reasonably priced set lunch or the à la carte menu. The set lunch looks good but there are too many other tempting dishes so I go for à la carte. First dish to arrive is an amuse bouche combining strands of pickled cucumber, buttermilk and cucumber sorbet. What a wonderful refreshing appetiser. The sorbet is dazzling and the pickled cucumber has a hint of sweet rhubarb that gives it just little more depth. Lovely.

The bread basket has a generous helping of Mikael Jonsson’s famous sourdough bread. It’s really tempting to fill up on the bread but restraint is vital.

The starter is crispy egg with girolles, quince and Old Ford. The egg with its crispy shell of potato strands is excellent. Cutting into it reveals a delightful runny yolk that runs into the other ingredients giving them a silky edge. The aromatic quince purée works well with the crispy potato but the girolles are surprisingly muted. The slivers of Old Ford cheese are bursting with character and the strong dairy flavour is just what the dish needs to bring it all together. 

October in England means one thing to me. The chance to eat game is too good to pass up especially as we never see game in local restaurants back in the US. The roasted partridge with Cevennes onions and Isle of Mull totally vindicates my choice and I love everything about it. The partridge is simply wonderful. The breast and leg have great flavours with plenty of depth. The offal from the bird is used to make a creamy parfait that is accompanied by thin wafers. Nasturtium leaf gives a hint of pepper while the pear slices and pickled pear give a touch of acidity that works really well with the meat. The surprise of the dish are the leaves of crispy, tart, sweet onion each holding a pool of Isle of Mull cheese sauce. They’re a true delight in a wonderful overall dish.

Dessert is described as oatmeal parfait with English blueberries and yoghurt sorbet a description that doesn’t go anywhere near giving a hint of what to expect. What turns is up is really, really good. The centrepiece is a delightful blueberry mousse with a gelatine shell, complimented nicely by the blueberry sauce & native berries. The pieces of cake are a lemon blueberry cake that has a subtle spicing that is perfect in this setting. I’ve never had a bad yoghurt sorbet, the slightly savoury tang always appeals and it’s true here too. A great dessert to cap a great meal and I wander out onto Newburgh Street a very satisfied customer.

I’d judge Antidote very worthy of repeat visits and will definitely recommend it to other people. The food is excellent and very reasonably priced considering the quality. Antidote has a good relaxed atmosphere and service is nicely efficient. The biggest mystery for me I how it remained next to empty on a busy Saturday lunchtime. Only two other tables were used in the upstairs room while I was there. Fingers crossed this was the exception rather than the rule because Antidote definitely deserves to succeed.


Overall rating – 4.5/5