What's the draw?
What do you get when you cross a minimalistic Scandi-style café, fresh-as-you-like local produce and brilliantly inventive recipes from chef Henrietta Inman, fresh from a residency at Leyton's Yardarm? The brand-new Stoney Street restaurant, that's what. Planted in the thick of the action at Borough Market, it's the latest venture from Alex Hely-Hutchinson of 26 Grains, the Neal's Yard porridge haven Insta-famous for its picturesque grain bowls. This time, Hely-Hutchinson and co are serving Inman's signature fresh baked Einkorn soda bread, complete with whipped raw Fen Farm dairy butter and confit garlic, inventive seasonal salads and whole-vegetable stews in a minimalistic yet rustic space developed by the creatives at Block 1 Design.
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What to drink?
Here, seasonality, provenance and supporting local ricochets throughout the dishes and drinks. There's a whole host on offer for non-drinkers and drinkers alike, from booze-free bergamot soda and, on the boozier side of things, a hibiscus margarita, quince G&T or a mint julep. Cocktails not your vibe? There's Leicestershire brewed Braybrooke lager or an extensive wine list, our favourite being the Cuvée des Galets Estezargues, a fresh and full-bodied natural red blend of grenache, syrah and carignan from the southern Rhône in France.
What to eat?
The philosophy here is straightforward: to serve high-quality produce, cooked when in season and paired simply but cleverly. Take the mains: a peacock kale, brussels sprout, fennel, pear and raclette salad, dressed with a tangy orange, buttermilk, walnut and thyme dressing and topped with malt crumbs for extra crunch. Or a hunk of roast kuri squash nestled amongst creamy leeks, sweet shallots and nutty Colston Bassett stilton, baked with sage, chive and parsley in a buttery wholegrain spelt pastry. That's not forgetting the apple and autumn leaf salad dressed with agrodolce, a sweet and bitter a juxtaposition to that rich pastry. Each dish is a riot of flavour concoctions, and – even better – each champions produce from its Borough Market neighbours. (Talk about supporting local – you can see the stalls from Stoney Street's window seats.) Don't miss the wooden hatch front right of the restaurant, where only glass separates you from tantalising rows of Inman's signature fruit and heritage grain tarts, freshly brewed Assembly roast coffee and rich-as-anything Pump Street ginger hot chocolate to take away.
Plates from £5, cocktails from £7. 2-3 Stoney Street, Borough Market, London SE1 9AA; stoneystreet.com
