Acorn House, Kings X

Starters…mixed salads

Ravioli filled with goats cheese and chard

Acorn House has got a slight canteen vibe about it, brown Formica-look tables and apple green plastic chairs, nouveau 70s styling. It is housed in a Terence Higgins trust building and the lucky staff get their lunch there every day.

I like the ethos of this place…it also offers job and retraining opportunities to local residents.

Arthur Potts, the Head chef says on his website:

“We want to instigate ‘breakfast club’ and ‘lunch box’ schemes for local school children, part-funded by businesses in the area, to both support local families and engage young people in the importance of a healthy, balanced diet.”

The website is worth a read…the whole project has been really thought through. A real attempt to do something different, challenging the perception of a chic restaurant as a haven for the rich and privileged.

Food in Britain is so often divided by class to a much further extent that it is say, in France, where everybody has the opportunity to eat well. Even the most working class of French families will go to a Michelin star restaurant, buy great food at the local market. 

The only surprising bit is that amongst the list of ‘Acorn House friends’, recycling organisations, social enterprises, organic this, ethical that…there is Muswell Hill locksmiths. Recyclable keys? (from ex-burglars?)

For some reason I always get this place mixed up with Konstam, a nearby restaurant which pushes a similar local/ethical angle(in their case sourcing all their food within the M25).

I asked the waitress if the strawberries in the Bellini were wild for they were intense in flavour.

A mixed plate of salads to share…lovely potato salad with red onions, and, this has got to be a first…a finely shredded Savoy cabbage salad that I actually liked! It reminded me of the fried seaweed that you get in Chinese restaurants, which in actual fact is cabbage.

As for the rest of the salads… I dislike beetroot and the mushrooms and broccoli were under-cooked and under-seasoned.

For mains I chose the Bachu curry, named after the Indian chef that shared his family recipe. The lentil curry was good but the large pieces of cauliflower on the side was again a little too al dente for my taste. 

My dining companion chose better…delicious buttery ravioli stuffed with chard and goats cheese.

The water was filtered tap water, refilled into glass bottles and tops that are recyclable. 

My favourite part of the meal was the lemon posset, a lovely balance of creamy and citrusy, and a subtle ginger cake.