The Game Bird — London, UK
You know you’re in for a good meal when the waiter provides a bib in the likelihood that your foie gras, truffle and oozing garlic butter-stuffed chicken Kiev could become a messy business. Of course, the bib in question was a chic, black leather apron that is perfectly in keeping with the restaurant’s new look – part of a wider concept overhaul that was overseen by chef James Durrant.
Now called The Game Bird, the restaurant – which is located inside London’s discreet Stafford Hotel – is a thoroughly British affair with a menu that nods to the chef’s Cheshire roots and uses produce from around the country. Expect homey classics from the belly-filling steak and ale steamed suite pudding to the signature roast pigeon dish and even a smoked fish trolley with offerings such as the Chalk Stream trout gravadlax or the Lincolnshire smoked eel, sliced table-side for added theatre.
This is all reinforced by the restaurant’s spruce-up, courtesy of local studio, Rosendale Design, who highlighted the original 17th century bones of the building with handsome wood panelling, leathers and rich velvets in muted, stately tones, pepped up by chairs upholstered with a floral motif and a display cabinet showcasing the day’s produce.
The other factor indicative of a good meal is a wait-staff that has stood the test of time. Make sure you ask for Riccardo or Sylvain, both decade-long veterans at the hotel who, if you ask nicely, will also show you around the restaurant’s 300-year-old wine cellar and museum that is peppered with war memorabilia from when the hotel served as a club for American and Canadian officers.
INFORMATION
Website
ADDRESS
16-18 St James's Place
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
Lauren Ho is the Travel Director of Wallpaper*, roaming the globe, writing extensively about luxury travel, architecture and design for both the magazine and the website. Lauren serves as the European Academy Chair for the World's 50 Best Hotels.
-
Take off: Mathieu Lehanneur's Olympic Cauldron rises into the Parisian night sky
The Paris 2024 Olympics’ opening ceremony was closed with a soaring cauldron spectacle that will go down in history
By Hugo Macdonald Published
-
Phaidon’s new Graphic Classics is a lavish greatest hits of graphic design
Graphic Classics is a compendium of seven centuries of visual culture, from the everyday and ephemeral to visionary works that reshaped our world
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Birley Chocolate hits the sweet ’n’ chic spot in London’s Chelsea
The new Birley Chocolate shop, a sibling to Birley Bakery, is a confection of colour as delicious as its finely crafted goods
By Melina Keays Published
-
Cabaret, martinis and Yorkshire puddings: The Cockatoo by Bistrotheque has it all
The Cockatoo, a bar, restaurant and performance space designed by Nice Projects, adds spice and rhythm to storied east London venue Bistrotheque
By Daven Wu Published
-
Recharge at Praktyka, the glamping spot all creatives should know
Architectural cabins and art workshops await at Praktyka, a creative retreat on the wild North Devon coast
By Tom Howells Published
-
Tollington’s is the new Spanish-inspired fish bar making a splash in north London
Tollington’s in Finsbury Park is a new opening from the team behind The Plimpsoll, championing Spanish-style dining and interiors
By Billie Brand Published
-
The Orangery at Kensington Palace offers high tea and verdant vistas in a royal London setting
The Orangery at Kensington Palace Gardens is the perfect green setting for a sunny day treat of afternoon tea and more
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Meet Paradise 2.0: the beloved Soho-based Sri Lankan restaurant, reinvented
Paradise 2.0 embraces tropical brutalism following a renovation by Dan Preston Studio
By Billie Brand Published
-
Step inside the majestic Mandarin Oriental Mayfair, London
In matching its exclusive and central location, a sleek building by RSHP houses the new ultra-refined Mandarin Oriental Mayfair, London
By Lauren Ho Published
-
Soak up London’s sunshine at these stylish rooftop bars
Discover the best London rooftop bars, from the Middle Eastern-themed Yasmin Soho to Spanish tapas haven, Amano Rooftop Bar
By Sofia de la Cruz Published
-
Celebrate summer in Ladbroke Hall’s new garden dining space
The London arts space introduces an al fresco oasis boasting a landscape design by Luciano Giubbilei and a pavilion by Jean Prouvé
By Sofia de la Cruz Published