Month: August 2017

If you ever find yourself hungry in Fulham, there’s a delightful little eatery right on Fulham Road. Fulham is not always an ideal dinner choice from Notting Hill if you plan on taking the tube, but by car it makes for an easy night out in a different neighborhood. To park, I drive through the bustling center until it gets a little more residential. There, I can easily find free parking down one of the side streets.

Once parked and headed back to Fulham Road on foot, you come upon Manuka Kitchen–a cozy little eatery with minimalist, bistro decor. The name plays on the world’s obsession with the Down Under Manuka honey, which makes many appearances on the Manuka Kitchen menu.

We dined on a quiet weekday night, but I hear the place can get pretty slammed during weekend brunch hours. I didn’t mind the chill atmosphere, as it made for a relaxing catch-up with my girlfriends and allowed me to really observe the staff and open kitchen.

The chef seemed to be Canadian, and was really the only person on point in the establishment. While the food was delicious, and the price was right, the servers seemed a little oblivious. It entertained me to watch the chef from the kitchen constantly reminding the young waitresses to check the tables and refill water glasses. He must have reminded them 6 times while we were sitting there. At one point, he realized that one girl didn’t even know what “check the tables” meant, haha. Every time he said that, she just cluelessly looked at the computer screen. Some real winners on that staff. Hopefully by now they are more properly trained.

That’s something I do not understand about bad servers. Okay, so this is your first waitressing job, whatever, but SURELY you have dined at a restaurant before. Can’t you think about how you would want to be treated while dining? Don’t you know that people get thirsty while eating? It just seems like common sense to me. But, I digress.

The highlight of the experience, as it typically should be, was the food. The bread was delicious and eliminated my need for a starter. I skipped right to an entree and had the Wagyu Beef Bolognese which was rich, nicely seasoned, flavorful, and portioned just right. My friends enjoyed their steaks and mussels. And we all had room for dessert. After all, we had to see how Manuka honey was incorporated into the menu.

We shared the Salted Caramel Panna Cotta and had teas served with nice little honey presentations. The dessert was just as tasty as our previous course and all four of us unanimously gave Manuka Kitchen a London Checklist “Do.” I would consider this restaurant appropriate for all occasions–a first date, a place to bring the folks, a night out with the girlfriends, an easy weeknight dinner, etc. If you’re looking for a place to go for just about any reason, and don’t mind the trek to Fulham, head right over to Manuka Kitchen! Enjoy!

 

Manuka Kitchen
510 Fulham Road
London SW6 5NG