108 Garage - Removed from website August 2021 (closed) - Notting Hill, London

So, we think we may have found the coolest new restaurant in Notting Hill. 108 Garage comes to London compliments of erstwhile investor Luca Longabardi, who by some miracle found one of London's promising new talents through the medium of a Gumtree ad. Perched on Golborne Road which also plays host to West Thirty Six, the restaurant is injecting another strong hit of cool into the Westway area. 

The dining room is undeniably urban, nestled as it were in an industrial garage with gnarled brickwork and shiny iron girders, painted concrete flooring, burnished iron chairs, iron-screened booze lockers and a balmy orange sodium warmth coming from exposed filament bulbs and a 1950s style film spotlight. We'd be remiss not to mention the Great British touches though - outsized Tudor-ish paintings of nobility ready to wage war. 

Chef Chris Denney trained as a fine artist before segueing into fine dining, working in the kitchens of Nuno Mendes, Eric Chavot and Phil Howard. His technique is easily evident as he genre-skips between cuisines. We ordered a juicy bottle of Valpolicella - a dynamic foil to the many dishes that followed. An earthy note was struck with our starters. Trembling, wobbly wedges of sourdough with thick, crunchy crusts were served with whipped lardo butter, the fat offering a porcine pop. Chicken liver parfait was smooth as silk, as was tarama, which carried the saline flavour of the seashore. 

Denney really hit his stride with the mains. Delicately folded agnolotti pasta was impregnated by rich minced lamb heart and immersed in a swede dashi broth, with a garnish of pink onions. Crisp fried veal sweetbreads were served in a rich sauce of castlefranco yeast (reminiscent of tahina) and smattered with crushed hazelnuts for a textural counterpoint. Crispy guanciale deep fried in a cuboid was served with al dente kohlrabi and a piquant piccalilli which drove it all home. Rare yet butter soft fallow deer was served with chargrilled white asparagus, shavings of Blue 61 cheese and tahini. 

Turbot served with wild hop shoots, hazelnut romesco and buddha lemon successfully balanced the meaty white fish with al dente veg. Our dessert was a work of brilliance: rich, dense scoops of nutty chocolate cremeux were served with artichoke ice cream and wild rice. It reads weird on paper, but on the plate it's as harmonious as the Isley Brothers. We highly recommend this restaurant if you're looking for something trendy in northwest London. Pro tip: pull up a stool at the chef's counter. 

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