The Best Central London Restaurants

The Waterway

Address: 54 Formosa Street, W9 2JU
Telephone: 020 7266 3557

It would be a mistake to underestimate this modern gastropub, which with its groovy retro decor looks like just another cool place to hang out on the Maida Vale/Notting Hill borders. The menu is deceptively simple, with its apparently straightforward offerings of Bayonne ham with honeyed figs, pan-roasted mullet with English peas & cabbage or Toulouse sausage with mash & onion gravy, but presentation is exquisite & much attention has clearly been paid to tracking down the very best ingredients. A sublime dessert of apricots with honey, lavender & mascarpone was enlivened by tiny croutons of shortbread, while the selection of Italian cheeses was yet another example of careful sourcing. The evening menu differs from lunch by the addition of an extra degree of complexity &, in summer, the canal-front terrace offers a fab barbecue menu. Helpful service can sometimes be overwhelmed by demand, but on the whole The Waterway is a prime example of a gastropub that hasn?t let success go to its head.