CITY BARGE CHISWICK

A couple of weeks ago an email from The Handbook landed in my inbox that stopped me in my tracks - a pub within half an hour's walk of our house was about to reopen having been closed for a major refurb, which included adding a kitchen to the venue. I'd never heard of The Barge in Chiswick before, but was intrigued, as we live a little bit in no man's land  where pubs are concerned (in between Chiswick and Acton there's a lack of good pubs) so was excited to find out about The Barge. I popped down last Tuesday for a drink, and met the manager, who invited me back, with the boy, for some food. Even on a rainy Tuesday post-bank holiday it was busy in there, so we decided to go down on Friday night and try out the new menu.

Luckily by Friday the rain had stopped so we had a lovely walk through Chiswick's house and tree-lined roads until we got to the river. We were early so sat outside, right on the towpath, enjoying a drink and some people (and dog) watching.

I had the Rosie and Gin, which was a refreshing cocktail and was meant to be cucumber gin, elderflower, mint and soda - but this one had some rogue pink-ness in, not sure what it was, but it tasted delicious all the same! They've got some great ales on tap there as well.

The pub is really pretty from the outside, and the inside feels spacious and light. Apparently it's been done up using 100% reclaimed materials, which is a really nice touch. We were seated in the darkest part of the restaurant area, so asked to be moved to the front, overlooking the river, which was no problem at all for them. In fact, considering this was only their 8th night open, and a Friday, I thought the service throughout the night was fantastic.

So the ordering began! We went for wood pigeon, pancetta, beetroot and pomegranate; and beef carpaccio with anchovy mayonnaise for starters. Unfortunately the pigeon breast was overcooked for my liking and wasn't at all pink inside (which is how I like it). This was a real shame as the flavours of the dish were excellent - just the main ingredient wasn't done how I like it.

However, we forgot all about this when we tucked into the beef carpaccio starter - what amazing flavours and textures, and a hugely generous portion. Rich, raw beef was punctuated with sharp capers, salty yet creamy anchovy mayonnaise and the freshness of cubes of cucumber, cut to the same size as the beef. It was really, really good, and worth a trip to The Barge just to eat that!

The Barge's menu is all encompassing, and there's something for everyone on there, however their main focus is fish and shellfish, so for our mains we decided to go for things from the sea. We chose whole lobster and crabocado soft shell crab burger with den miso mayonnaise and a spiced tomato relish.

The lobster was perfectly cooked, tender and sweet and doused in garlicky, parsley butter, which was so delicious we wiped the plate clean with our chips to get the last of it!

The crabocado burger did not disappoint either. Crispy, slightly crunchy whole soft shell crab topped with avocado and a really more-ish mayo. The spiced tomato relish gave it an edge (that I forgot about whilst handing the burger to the chilli-phobic boy - oops!!) I hadn't had soft shell crab as a burger before but think it works really well, and is something I'll look out for in future.

Sides was a portion of beautifully tender and flavoursome asparagus, because at this time of year I just can't resist it (as you'll see in my next 2 recipes that I'll be putting on my blog!)

Normally too full for pudding we actually managed it this time! Although by then another friend had joined us and helped us with the sweets. We had a deliciously sticky toffee pudding, with lovely vanilla ice cream. And a slice of chocolate cake, that was a bit cocoa-y for my tastes, but that was probably because I'd eaten too much rich food in one sitting!! Excuse the photos - it was pretty dark by the time we got to pud!

The Barge not only has a large dining room, but there are tables around the bar area where you can sit and drink and eat too. There is also a lovely private dining room upstairs, which seats 20 and can be booked for private events. It would make a really great space for a sophisticated birthday meal, particularly during Summer, with The Thames running past right outside.

As well as lunch and dinner The Barge has a brunch menu that caught my eye. I can definitely see us jumping on our bikes and whizzing down to The Barge for a Bloody Mary and some sustinence on weekend mornings. For more info about The Barge in Chiswick check out their website here. You'll probably find me in their beer garden or by the river in front of the pub most weekends over the Summer!!