Little Bay (Battersea)
Little Bay
228 York Road
London
SW11 3SJ
Tel: 020 7223 4080
228 York Road
London
SW11 3SJ
Tel: 020 7223 4080
Ambience
Cuisine
Cuisine
Service
Value for Money
Value for Money
Little Bay Interior 1
Little Bay Interior 2
Little Bay Interior 3
Little Bay Interior 4
Little Bay Dish
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Peter Ilic is a restaurateur who knows exactly what his diners want. It's not terribly clever, it's hardly a revolution, but he's one of the very few to have pulled it off.
What is it? Simply, excellent food served by enthusiastic young waiters and unbelievably low prices. There are five Little Bay restaurants in and around London (Farringdon, Battersea, Croydon, Kilburn and Fulham) and while I wouldn't normally review 'chain' restaurants, Little Bay is different.
It's difficult to describe the restaurants as 'trendy' (decadent, camp and a tart's boudoir more like) as they are all decorated in a different style but they are all very much 'over the top' - dark corners, red damask, winding staircases, little nooks and crannies, candles all over the place and an extremely eclectic mix of furniture. Peter's brief to his design team when opening a new restaurant is probably to fill it up with bric-a-brac and don't spend more than a grand.
But it's the food that attracts the punters and very good it is too. Starters are all £2.95 and mains £7.95; even cheaper if you eat before 6pm. Menus vary but a good example is the Battersea branch where I eat recently with friends. Steamed mussels, crab tartlet and garlic mushrooms were popular and all excellent. Main courses were even better. Barbary duck with baby leeks, ginger and Grand Marnier sauce was outstanding and would stand muster with similar dishes at twice the price and more, while the medallions of pork and roast shoulder of lamb got thumbs up all round. Other diners commented favourably on the rib-eye steak and the sea bream. Puddings are all priced at £2.95 (£1 less at lunchtime) and include the old favourites; dark chocolate mousse and apple cake with vanilla custard.
However, if you are really into food best check out the Little Bay website as different branches have different menus (Battersea even has live opera most evenings). Wine is equally reasonable and it's little surprise that Peter's restaurants have won the hearts and minds of the chattering classes. It does make you wonder how/why so many other restaurants are able to get away with charging so much for so little.
One word of warning. They don't take plastic so pop round to the hole-in-the-wall for some pictures of the Queen before eating. At around £40 for two including wine it doesn't get much better.
It's difficult to describe the restaurants as 'trendy' (decadent, camp and a tart's boudoir more like) as they are all decorated in a different style but they are all very much 'over the top' - dark corners, red damask, winding staircases, little nooks and crannies, candles all over the place and an extremely eclectic mix of furniture. Peter's brief to his design team when opening a new restaurant is probably to fill it up with bric-a-brac and don't spend more than a grand.
But it's the food that attracts the punters and very good it is too. Starters are all £2.95 and mains £7.95; even cheaper if you eat before 6pm. Menus vary but a good example is the Battersea branch where I eat recently with friends. Steamed mussels, crab tartlet and garlic mushrooms were popular and all excellent. Main courses were even better. Barbary duck with baby leeks, ginger and Grand Marnier sauce was outstanding and would stand muster with similar dishes at twice the price and more, while the medallions of pork and roast shoulder of lamb got thumbs up all round. Other diners commented favourably on the rib-eye steak and the sea bream. Puddings are all priced at £2.95 (£1 less at lunchtime) and include the old favourites; dark chocolate mousse and apple cake with vanilla custard.
However, if you are really into food best check out the Little Bay website as different branches have different menus (Battersea even has live opera most evenings). Wine is equally reasonable and it's little surprise that Peter's restaurants have won the hearts and minds of the chattering classes. It does make you wonder how/why so many other restaurants are able to get away with charging so much for so little.
One word of warning. They don't take plastic so pop round to the hole-in-the-wall for some pictures of the Queen before eating. At around £40 for two including wine it doesn't get much better.
Here Is The Writer : Richard Tobias
Richard Tobias brings a much needed dose of good behavior to HITC Life. His extensive career in tourism brought him an OBE in 1998. Richard is an experienced writer, lecturer and broadcaster, and is a Fellow of the Institute of Directors, the Tourism Society and the Institute of Travel & Tourism as well as non-executive chairman of World Media Publishing. His Who's Who entry lists golf, good food and Chelsea Football Club amongst his passions. His favourite dining companion is The Finn, and sometimes her daughter, The Finnette.
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