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Chiswick? The culinary capital of London?
Apparently so. According to the AA Hospitality Awards, that is, which has just awarded the west London neighbourhood’s the Silver Birch with the title of London Restaurant of the Year. It scored the gong for ‘excellence in food, service, and dining experience’, after appearing in last year’s AA guide with three Rosettes. The AA Rosettes were established in 1956 and restaurants are rated from one to five Rosettes. In 2023, the AA’s London Restaurant of the Year was Chutney Mary in St James’s.
The Silver Birch serves contemporary British cuisine, and was opened in 2020 by first-time restauranteur Tim Price. Current head chef Nathan Cornwell joined the restaurant last year after spending four years at The Barn at Moor Hall in Lancashire.
Speaking about this week’s win, Cornwell commented: ‘Winning this award is an incredible honour for the entire team at The Silver Birch. It’s a testament to our hard work, dedication, and passion for creating exceptional dining experiences. This recognition inspires us to continue pushing the boundaries of contemporary British cuisine and to keep delighting our guests with innovative and sustainably sourced dishes. We’re deeply grateful for the support of our wonderful guests.’
We here at Time Out reviewed the Silver Birch earlier this year and were equally impressed by its refined, low-key elegance. Our writer Amy Houghton went wild for ‘beautifully soft, mildly sweet Devonshire crab, which was hidden under a layer of foam and piquant discs of pickled Granny Smith topped with dill sprigs and caviar’.
Other winners at the awards including Tom Aikens of Muse in Belgravia, which was named AA Chefs' Chef for 2024, while the London Hotel of the Year was The Dorchester.
Did you see that this part of London is officially one of Time Out’s Coolest Neighbourhoods in the World for 2024?
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