Rosemary focaccia which they make daily in-house and served with their own Extra Virgin Bono olive oil which is super green and peppery. Pop the bread in the oven for a minute or two and it's amazing.
So what do we need to know about Lorne At Home?
As you've probably guessed, it's the delivery service from the wonderful restaurant Lorne in Victoria. Like a lot of other restaurants, they've moved to a halfway house of a menu that they say "does 90% of the work for you". So everything's pre-prepared with only the lightest amount of cooking involved.
If you haven't been to Lorne before lockdown (and if not - why not? It's quite lovely as you might recall from our Test Drive), then let us give you a bit of background. The duo behind it is Katie Exton (former Head Sommelier at The River Cafe and Chez Bruce) and chef Peter Hall (ex-The Square and Brawn). They set out their stall as "inventive yet unfussy, seasonal British & European dishes".
What kind of menu is it?
You get a choice. You can go down the a-la-carte route, with around three or four choices in each course. Alternatively, they've selected two set menus - one of which is vegetarian. We went for the set menu (£24) plus a few additional courses, which we'll note below). There isn't much work to do and very clear instructions - and there's also some videos online should you want chef Peter's tips on serving up.
Here's what we had:
Salmon rillettes with pickled cucumber, horseradish and dill - an added extra at £7 and a good one. You just need something to scoop them up with.
Green beans and fresh peach salad with a lemon and herb dressing
Burrata with hazelnut pesto and breakfast radishes
Ham hock and parsley croquettes with aioli. All this needed was a quick burst in the oven for the croquettes for under 10 minutes.
Porchetta stuffed with sage + fennel served with peas à la Francaise. Even on the hottest of days, this would be a great main - hold the carbs and just enjoy the peas covered in a lovely onion fondue.
Chocolate mousse with English cherries - a perfect little pot of loveliness for dessert.
Brown butter madeleines - you should 100% add these in at just £1 each for the end of the meal.
What about drink?
We tried two of their bottled cocktails - the Lorne Aperitif, a refreshing mix of rosemary-infused white Port, Madeira & green Chartreuse (£7) and one of our favourite negronis so far this summer - an Elderflower White Negroni (£7) made with elderflower infused gin, Suze & Dolin. But they also do a small but perfectly formed selection of wines running from £14 to £35 a bottle.
Anything else we need to know about?
We really enjoyed the instructions sheet that came with our delivery, which not only gave details on what to do with each dish, but also included a playlist for Spotify, a suggestion to put a plant on the table, have a drink in hand when plating and to shout "service!" loudly from the kitchen before bringing each dish in. Yes, you're playing at restaurants, and that's why we liked it.
Overall thoughts
If you fancy the idea of getting a meal delivered, but really don't trust yourself in the kitchen, then this is for you. There's next to no prep involved. Just fire up the playlist, do a very little bit of plating up and you're away. The fact that the food's really quite lovely just makes the whole thing a no-brainer.
More about Lorne at Home
Where is it? 76 Wilton Road, London, SW1V 1DE
How to book: Book via their website for collection or delivery.
Delivery area: Within five miles of Lorne.
Find out more: Visit the Lorne Restaurant website and follow Lorne on Instagram @lorne_restaurant.
Hot Dinners were sent this meal by the restaurant. All prices correct at time of publication.
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