Renowned fish and seafood restaurant, Kensington Place opens their pop-up diner, Fishbone, serving up a very different kind of fast food.
At the north end of London’s Kensington Church Street sits one of the capital’s best-known fish and seafood restaurants, Kensington Place. A favourite with the Kensington Set, the locals have a shock in store for them this year, as the restaurant opens its very own pop-up, running throughout February and March.
Fishbone is everything its big sister, Kensington Place isn’t. For a start it’s serving up dishes based on London’s current obsession with fast food, so instead of your grilled sea bream or steamed Shetland mussels, expect doners, wings, dogs and burgers.
Despite what the menu sounds like, each and every dish is made up of fish. So if it’s an actual doner or hotdog you’re after you’ve come to the wrong place.
Housed in what is usually Kensington Place’s private dining room, the team has turned what was once a quiet, rather tame space into a fun and frivolous pop-up, complete with regulation neon sign, an East London playlist and a tongue-in-cheek menu to match.
We picked a selection of fast food favourites, all be it with a fishy twist. First up, the Tuna Burger – yellow fin tuna packed up in a seeded bun with sesame, soy and radish. Unlike a regular beef burger, this was fresh, light and didn’t leave us feeling sluggish. A hint of wasabi gave it a wonderful, Eastern kick too.
We also tried the Crab Bahjis, accompanied with a cooling yoghurt, cucumber and dill dip, and served up in a traditional chicken shop style box. They may look like fast food, but these were fresh and tasty thanks to the good quality ingredients the restaurant uses. They were a little greasy but entirely satisfying and we’d return to Fishbone for these alone.
Next up was the Salmon ‘Doner’ – probably the poshest doner ever made. Confit of salmon is served up in a traditional pitta with salad and garlic sauce. The salmon was fresh and tender and this is without a doubt Fishbone’s star dish.
To accompany the mains, the menu has a good selection of sharing sides from Triple Cooked Chips to Onion Rings. The Fennel Slaw was our favourite, raw, crunchy, and with a slight heat it cut through the fried dishes perfectly.
We washed everything down with zesty Sloe Gin Sours, served up in fisherman-style tin beakers. There’s also a good choice of wine and craft beers on offer, but the cocktails are Fishbone’s winners, interesting, fun and reasonably priced at £8 each.
It’s safe to say London doesn’t need another fast food restaurant or burger joint, but Fishbone has come up with a way to standout in an already saturated market. It’s Dirty Burger by way of Billingsgate and it works.
It’s also bravely shaking up the Kensington food scene, which can notoriously be a little stuffy and set in its ways. It’s still W8 however, and the Miller Harris hand soap in the bathrooms does work wonders after chowing down a salmon doner.
The Fishbone pop-up runs until 29th March 2014.
Fishbone, 201 Kensington Church Street, London W8 7LX
Tel. 020 7727 3184
Opening Hours: Tues-Thurs: 12noon-3pm and 6.30pm-10.30pm / Friday & Saturday: 12noon-3pm and 6.30pm-11pm / Monday: closed.
Read our review of Fishbone’s big sister restaurant, Kensington Place here.