Northbank, London. The best river view in London

Northbank Restaurant & Bar
One Paul's Walk
Millennium Bridge
London
EC4V 3QH

www.northbankrestaurant.com

020 7329 9299

There are so many things that are right about Northbank, which makes it one of my all time favourite restaurants. They have a house pet, Veronica an English Bulldog, they have a great front of house team run by the owner Christian Butler and his deputy Mark Wilson, they have an envialbe collection of Country Life magazines of which I avail myself of by always turning up a little bit too early so I can have my fix of country houses that are being flogged , nestled at my table waiting for the others to arrive. All this before even looking at the always great menu devised by head chef Peter Wood.

But the one thing that is another constant is the view, as the restaurant is lapping distance away from The Thames and during the months when you can sit outside is the perfect backdrop to the restaurant. What could be better than to have a table on the terrace and have centuries of London to look at. Bang opposite the Globe Theatre and The Tate Modern with the expanse of the Millennium Bridge so ancient and modern buildings and also the river traffic make this, I think, the best place to be eating outside in London. Whether you are there for lunch or a balmy evening watching the sun set turn the skies all manner of colours, you too will realise what a magical place this can be. To be able to sit outside without streams of traffic going past is a rare commodity in London and will all the other elements proving to be so right at Northbank is the one reason that once tried never forgotten. Bliss.

Christian has fine tuned the running of the restaurant, which will be celebrating its 5th anniversary late this year, and it is now regarded by fellow restaurateurs as one of the best restaurants in London. Peter the head chef comes up time and time again with winning formulas on the menu and if you are lucky enough to  eat there on a Tuesday and have fish, chances are he has caught it himself after his weekly fishing trip with his father. There is a tilt towards Cornwall in the produce that is used as that is where Christian hails from and every now and again they do an amazing Cornish Pasty, but as I say a tilt, not buy the tea cloth as well approach and it all seems to work really rather well. But with the larder that is the west country they have some of the best suppliers and this is clearly evident in the quality of the food which is enhanced only by the presentation. A well presented plate shows the respect with which it has been cooked and on this again they never fail. 

The wines at Northbank are worth a visit themselves and have been cleverly picked to reflect both old and new world wines that will keep just about anyone happy. They can be enjoyed with food or at the bar which has its own bar menu. With a reported heatwave coming I can only advise you to make Northbank one to check out and enjoy the terrace, but really you would be a fool not to.

Full menu and wine lists are on their website, which has a link at the top of this blog.