New Chiswick House Café Opens Its Doors

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Serving sandwiches, soups and best of modern British cooking to local residents and visitors

The new Chiswick House Café will open its doors on Monday 1st February, serving delicious sandwiches, soups and the best of modern British cooking to local residents and visitors.

The café is the latest element in the restoration and transformation of one of the most important landscapes in Britain.

Designed by award-winning architects Caruso St John, the contemporary space looks out on the magnificent gardens and neo-Palladian villa, surely one of the best settings in the capital. Seating 60 indoors, with space for a further 80 outdoors, the Café will offer a wide selection of refreshments throughout the day, as well as catering for private functions in the evening.

Sarah Finch-Crisp, Director of the Chiswick House and Gardens Trust, said, “The Café will provide a valuable year-round resource for the local community and other visitors. We have responded to what local users said they would
like to see in a café and we hope that it will become a hub for them. Also, we are particularly proud that, given its very special surroundings, the café stands in its own right as a fine example of modern architecture.”

Company of Cooks will run the Café and Mike Lucy, the Company’s founder and Chief Executive,, explained their ethos: “We believe in menus that feature an honest, simple approach, highlighting seasonality and great quality. The Café has been specifically created for the residents and families in the Chiswick area, and we hope that they will find our food and drink interesting, seasonal and wholesome, and our service warm and friendly. We want to ensure customers return and recommend us to their friends.”

The menus at the Café will mostly concentrate on the best of modern British ingredients. They will evolve throughout the day, kicking off with breakfast items such as Croissants, Bircher muesli, Greek yoghurt with rhubarb compote, Free-range bacon or sausage sandwiches, and the Full English. A broad all-day menu will comprise Sandwiches (Tuna and chive mayonnaise;
Spiced ham and Keens cheddar; Smoked salmon), Salads (Smoked chicken, watercress and orange), and Soups and Stews (meat and vegetarian options). The pastry and cake selection will be diverse, featuring temptations such as Orange and lavender cake, Rhubarb and ginger crumble cake, Marmalade meringueand Chocolate and hazelnut brownie, and there will be a
good range of confectionary and ice cream. In addition, special weekend lunch dishes will be offered, such as Fish pie and Hot roast pork sandwiches.

On the drinks side, the full range of hot and cold beverages will be available throughout the day, using Fairtrade coffee and tea. Local Fullers beer and cider will be offered, in addition to organic wine by the glass.

Aiming to be very family-friendly, there will also be a selection of dishes for children, including Macaroni cheese, Sandwiches, and Orange jelly.

While the service at the Chiswick House Café will be self-service, there will be a strong team of staff, led by general manager Jenny Shaw, who has been working with Company of Cooks for the past 13 years at Kenwood House, Hampstead.

Chiswick House Café will be open daily from 8.30am until 6pm (summer), and until 4pm (winter). It will only close on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Private event hire, for celebrations such as birthdays and anniversaries, can be arranged in the Café in the evenings for up to 100 people. Enquiries should be directed to Jenny Shaw on
chiswickhousecafe@companyofcooks.com.

Local dog walkers were among those consulted and although dogs will not be
permitted inside the Café, dog bowls and water will be provided outside. Full
details on Chiswick House Café can be found on www.chiswickhousecafe.co.uk or on www.chgt.org.uk.

January 28, 2010