Review: The Brook & Badger
Review: The Brook & Badger
By Angela Zaher
Eamonn Manson is a publican who knows what the community of Parsons Green – as well as Fulham, Clapham and Chelsea – look for in a pub and restaurant. He has been a publican in this part of West London for many years- since 1993 to be exact with a place called Pen in Parsons Green. He went on to open Sands End, Brown Cow and Cross Keys which he then sold as a group in 2016. He’s come back to Parsons Green now with the opening of The Brook & Badger on the Munster Road with pop art dealer Adrian Palengat.
You can’t miss this charming brick built pub with its welcoming façade. The Brook & Badger takes up a large corner of this bustling road and can accommodate what I’d estimate to be 30+ covers indoors and many more on the terrace. The interior also aligns with the country pub in the city style- green leather tub chairs border wooden tables and comfortable leather clad bar stools at the wood panelled bar.
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Punters who just want to drop in for a pint or a glass of wine have a substantial bar area to accommodate them whilst those who’d like a sit down meal are likewise amply catered for. There’s an elegant menu with a mix of pub classics and more refined dishes which will sit well with the clientele in this part of London. We stuck to classics for our mains, a hanger steak and chips and a roast salmon with fondant potato, samphire and chimichurri. But it was our starters that stood out. A feta, beetroot, blood orange, pumpkin seed and rocket salad on one hand and a seabream ceviche, rhubarb purée, pickled jalapeno, parma ham crumb on the other. There was creativity and flair in the flavour combination here and they were both so delicately arranged that they looked like works of art.
For dessert, I would argue that the ginger cake, dark chocolate mousse and white chocolate was too crammed but then if you’re sharing it, as we were, and one enjoyed the mousse more than the cake and the other the cake more than the mousse then it’s perfect.
A pub can’t be a pub if it doesn’t exude warmth and welcome. The Brook & Badger ticks that box- everyone who walked in whilst we were there was greeted with smiles and respect. Likewise, a restaurant has to look after its customers and be hospitable. I have an allium intolerance and one of the things I appreciated most about The Brook & Badger is that ahead of my arrival our waiter was already checking with the kitchen which items on the menu weren’t suitable for me. It’s these simple gestures that stay with you and build up goodwill.
Angela Zaher is a freelance writer and regular contributor on restaurants and cookery, find her on Instagram @angela_zaher.
