Fulham makes some people's skin crawl; for others, it is a natural stomping ground. The blonde highlights, the sense of entitlement, the expensively educated drawl; yes, Fulham really is like Marmite. Yet even if you fall into the 'loathe it' camp, there will be occasions when you need to go West (an unmissable show at the V&A, an appointment with denim destination, Donna Ida) and for those times, it's good to have a failsafe eatery up your sleeve. 86 Fulham Road, recently sprung up and just a ten minute Choo-booted stroll from South Kensington tube, is one such reasonably priced and friendly establishment.
Yes, the waitresses are posh teens, offspring of the local Chelsea establishment, and the owners George Adams and Charlie Kearns a pair of chips off the old block, from their Hackett shirts down to their Gucci loafers (Adams already has joints in Oxford, Verbier and, ahem, Bournemouth, to his name). But there's something fun, glam and even a little camp about the fur-covered chairs for smokers on the pavement, the velvet sofas inside and the gilt, mirrors and blank gold picture frames (watch out also for Charlotte Cory's artwork, which places taxidermy animal heads atop vintage photographs of clothed human bodies). Go upstairs and away from the beautiful person's scrum around the bar, and you find yourself in a quieter, calmer gallery space, where dinner is served, albeit at rather close quarters with fellow diners.
Adams and Kearns choice of chef Mark Broadbent proves the restaurant credentials. His menu is at pains to point out the exact British provenance of many of its dishes; being as he hails from Leicester, my boyfriend loved the Belted Galloway Beef, 35 day dry aged (provenance: LE12 5BG) while my Crackled Confit of Pork Belly (provenance: YO7 2HL) was also excellent. To begin, we'd gorged on Iberian ham and Irish smoked eel; for pudding, we could have restrained ourselves and ordered from the Skinny Mini menu, but instead plunged into the Proper Puds (treacle tart for me, pear 'Belle Hélène' for him). Starters go from £6.50 up to £12.50, mains from £11 to £65 (Côte de Boeuf for two) — not bad prices for Chelsea. And service, while initially slow (we waited an age for bread) was courteous without being over-familiar. Wine merchant Kearns has stocked an interesting cellar, ranging from vintage Chateau Leoville Barton, Mouton Rothschild and Cos D'Estournal to a decent glass of house wine for £4.65.
Adams and Kearns' engaging, characterful little restaurant deserves success. Looks like they'll be in Gucci loafers for a while yet.
86 Fulham Road, 86 Fulham Road, London SW3 6HR (+44 020 7052 9620; 86restaurant.co.uk)
