A smart Caribbean restaurant with excellent rum cocktails, Cottons is something of a Chalk Farm institution. And with a history going back to 1985, how could it be anything else? It's just had a new lick of paint but, thankfully, the rum shack vibe still pervades – it wouldn't quite be the same otherwise.
Cocktails are as important as the food here, with a sunshine Caribbean slant to most – think coconut and banana daiquiris, Jamaican mules, a Cotton's pina colada and a reggae rum punch – it'll have you singing like Bob Marley, apparently. Whether that's his heyday or now, we're not sure. Wines, beers and mocktails complete the list.
The food menu is a showcase of traditional Caribbean dishes. Expect, then, fritters, coconut seafood soups, jerk chicken, curried mutton, rice n peas, fried plantain, Caribbean roti and callaloo. Set menus for groups offer good value.