What can you tell me about Apero?
Described as a modern Mediterranean restaurant, Apero is one of two new restaurants at the Ampersand Hotel. While The Drawing Rooms has a French influence, Apero draws from the Italian tradition of aperitivo.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner is served in the renovated 19th Century underground vaulted cellars of the hotel. When we visited in the evening, the understated white-walled room was almost full with diners sat on plush leather chairs, under filament lights immersing the room in a soft ambient light.
Food comes courtesy of head chef Chris Golding who was formerly at top London restaurants Zuma, Nobu and Galoupet. He serves a daily-changing menu with dishes that focus on shared communal eating and seasonal ingredients.
Where is it?
On Harrington Road, look east from South Kensington tube and you’ll see the sleek grey exterior of the Victorian hotel, complete with flying Union Flag. Go through the main doors, down the stairs and Apero is right in front of you.
Who’s it suitable for?
Apero is in the heart of London’s museum district with the Victoria and Albert, Natural History and Science museums all just five minutes walk away, perfect for breakfast before or lunch/dinner following an afternoon of culture and education..
Where should we meet?
Meet at South Kensington tube before heading to the hotel and taking the weight off on one of the big, bold, blue seats at the bar for a cocktail - no visit to Apero is complete without trying their signature classic Aperol Spritz (£7.50).
And where should I sit?
Take along a group of friends and sit under the original arches and secret hideaways complete with curtains to cut you off from the rest of the room or cosy in a corner for a romantic rendezvous.
Is bread included?
No but you can order crispy tapenade straws (£2) to nibble on while you peruse the menu.
What should I order?
The idea is to get two or three plates each and share them with the rest of the table, dishes are served as and when they’re ready. If you don’t want to make your own choices, let the chef do it for you – the tasting menu is great value at £26 per person and includes a variety of dishes from the a la carte as well as cheese and dessert.
We kicked off with the smoked almonds (£3) a must-order of creamy soft stracciatella (£4.50) cheese served with warm flatbread, tomato and basil followed by the French pumpkin (£5.50) wrapped in streaky bacon with goats curd, chicory and mint.
The stone bass with sumac and beetroot risotto (£11) is a firm favourite with diners - a fine piece of pan-fried fish with crispy sumac-enhanced skin atop a creamy bed of beetroot risotto mixed with Parmesan cheese.
Larger dishes are plentiful and also really good value for this part of town. We had the tender Norfolk free range chicken (£12.50) thighs served on the bone in a beautiful copper saucepan with bacon, roasted mushrooms and sweet onions in a creamy broth as well as the pork cutlet with fennel and honey (£9.50) which although a little fatty, was evenly balanced with thick strips of well-seasoned meat.
The fresh green apple and castelfranco leaf salad (£4.50) was a light retreat from the rich main courses.
Make sure you save room for desserts, pastry chef Ji-Sun Shin (previously at Nobu) creates masterpiece desserts and delivers them to the table herself. We tried the sweet saffron panna cotta with nectarines and honey (£5.50) and the almond parfait with chocolate (£5.50) a shot of hot espresso is poured over the chocolate ball so it melts and reveals a ball of ice-cream beneath.
What should we drink?
There’s a vast and very detailed cocktail list to get your head around, do like we did and ask our waiter to choose after telling him what your favourite spirits are. Gin was the key, we tried an earl grey-infused Sipsmith gin with sherry, blackberries, raspberries and homemade spiced sugar called the Inigo J (£7.50) and a fresh citrusy Frescobaldi (£7.50) with Sipsmith gin, limoncello and Fino sherry.
The wine list is fantastically priced, from £12-£20 for 500ml. We had the velvety Solarena Barrel-Aged Tempranillo (£14) with lots of fruity tones and a hint of vanilla. There are also sweet wines, beers and soft drinks.
Overall thoughts?
Despite being in a hotel, Apero had a brilliant vibe with a great mix of guests spread throughout the different spaces and areas of the restaurant. The low lighting provided an atmospheric feeling even if at times it was troublesome to see the food on our plates. Service was very attentive, sometimes overly so but never pushy or intrusive and the waiters had brilliant suggestions for both food and drinks. The menu features classic but not pretentious food, with simple seasonal ingredients combined with interesting touches and finishes.
Apero at The Ampersand Hotel, 10 Harrington Road, London, SW7 3ER.
Prices were correct at time of writing. Hot Dinners were invited to eat at Apero.
Follow Rebecca Brett on twitter at @hungrybecs and on her blog The Becs Diet
