LB Loves…W8
W8 is one of the all-time favourites for us at Lurot Brand. Of course we’re biased, but not only is Kensington W8 home to many lovely mews, it offers a rich and interesting choice of everything you could wish for – cultural venues, galleries and museums. We don’t have space to tell you about all the fab and funky shops, bustling cafés and lovely pubs, bars and restaurants we love, but here are some of our local haunts.
1. THE HILLGATE – LOVELY PUB
The Hillgate is a local pub serving flavoursome dishes with a seasonal focus and using the best fresh British produce. You will find the pub tucked away in a pretty street behind Notting Hill tube station. Don’t think this is a pub only about good beer, although they do have a selection of real ales from around the UK which is rotated to keep things interesting. But the team here also love wine and have accrued an impressive cellar of wines from around the world. You can sit in or outside and there’s a private dining room upstairs, which makes a perfect place for hosting a special occasion.
2. THE ELEPHANT & CASTLE – THE PIE EXPERTS
This Kensington pub is proud of its delicious British pies served under pastry or mash, and consider themselves as pie connoisseurs, having created an award winning Steak & Nicholsons’s Pale Ale pie. If pie’s not your thing, then the skilled chefs have created a collection of summer dishes, perfect for the warmer nights, which include some delicious pub classics done rather well. They offer a great selection of cask ales and are renowned for having one of the most extensive whisky and gin collections in London.
3. SALLY CLARKE – ELEGANT DINING
Hard to believe that Sally Clarke first opened her restaurant in Kensington Church Street back in 1984. Fast forward, and today, and apart from being beautifully renovated throughout, nothing much has changed about the love, care and attention Sally and her team pay to every seasonal dish, using fruits, herbs and vegetables. Breads, pastries, ice creams and the heavenly chocolate truffles continue to be made by hand in the kitchen and everything on the British and Mediterranean inspired menu is freshly prepared and cooked on the day. Customers love the elegant service and unforgettable simple food.
4. KITHCEN W8 – REALLY GREAT FOR DINNER
This is a special find, a relaxed, friendly neighbourhood restaurant with a Michelin star, and head chef Mark Kempson at the helm, who has been there since it launched in 2009. This is all about the feel good factor for customers. Co-owners, Philip Howard and Rebecca Mascarenhas and their team, are on a mission to ensure you feel better than when you arrived, enjoying amazing food and great wine.
5. THE KENSINGTON STUDIO – ON THE LOVELY RADLEY MEWS
The spacious and exclusive studio can be found in the beautiful Stratford Village area of Kensington. The 2,000 square foot studio with the latest state-of-the-art equipment and trainers who understand your goals and needs, offer the best chance to maximise your results.
There are no membership fees so you only pay for the training you do with highly qualified trainers. Combine this with all the other health, lifestyle and fitness services provided at the Kensington Studio, and this is a place where you will enjoy working out.
6. LA PICCOLA DELI – NEXT DOOR TO KENSINGTON STUDIO AND GREAT FOR COFFEE/FOOD AFTER THE GYM
Small friendly café that serves arguably the best coffee in London. They serve and sell a multitude of Italian dishes, pastas, and antipasto. People discover it by chance and then become regulars, choosing it as a stop-off before work for breakfast, to pick up a sandwich or grab a coffee. It has a friendly atmosphere and the smell of Italian delicacies wafting on to the street attracts many a passer-by.
7. PATRICK SANDBERG ANTIQUES – A KENSINGTON INSTITUTION
The Kensington showrooms display one of the largest collections of English antique furniture in central London; open from Tuesday to Saturday. Experts in fine English pieces from George II up to the Edwardian era. They are a cornucopia of expert knowledge and their blog provides fascinating information about everything from the ‘glitz and glamour of the Regency period’, to the exotic nature of wood used by furniture makers over the centuries. You’ve got the mews house, now time for a new piece of fine English furniture!