Lyon's Seafood & Wine Bar

This sustainable seafood joint is the brainchild of front-of-house aficionado Anthony Lyon and it’s immediately clear that everything about the place has been carefully thought through. From the menu scribbled up on a large blackboard and the exposed brickwork contrasting with bistro-esque green-and-white tiles surrounding the bar, to the engaging and highly knowledgeable staff, Lyon’s manages to be simultaneously serious and utterly charming.

Served naked, with a side portion of shallot emulsion, and also topped with a bitter kimchi foam, the fresh Morecambe Bay oysters were a smile-inducing start to proceedings, especially when enjoyed alongside a Martini made using wonderful An Dúlamán gin from County Donegal which matched the oysters for maritime zing. 

Stone bass tartare was lifted by a gentle smokiness from tobiko, while a splodge of wasabi mayo added a well-judged hint of heat. Any good fish restaurant needs some kind of playful take on a chip, and Lyon’s does this in the form of two cuboids of thinly sliced, crispy confit potatoes served with a dollop of curry sauce.

Catches of the day are brought to the table when ordering; we opted for a meaty monkfish tail topped with capers and covered in a sharp, buttery sauce, and chargrilled octopus served on top of a smoky pile of white beans – a crowd-pleaser of a dish. A rich miso chocolate marquise brilliantly balanced with sour cream and lime zest was the highlight of the puddings.

The wine list goes way beyond that of your average neighbourhood restaurant, with a number of unusual bottles on the menu; our Viñátigo Marmajuelo from Tenerife had strong fruit notes and a beautiful minerality on the finish.

Lyon’s isn’t breaking new ground but what it does, it does very well. If you live in Crouch End you should count yourself lucky to have a neighbourhood restaurant as good as this.

This seafood restaurant and wine bar in Crouch End champions sustainable seafood that has been sourced from around the British Isles.

Occupying an intimate glass-fronted space on Park Road, Lyon’s is able to accommodate just shy of 50 diners, while there is additional space at the bar and on window seats. The restaurant blends the old with the new, contrasting original Victorian tiles, dark wooden floors and green leather banquettes with a modern open kitchen and a custom-made white marble bar.

The kitchen is headed up by chef Talia Prince, formerly of Michelin-starred establishments such as Le Gavroche and Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck. The menu is written up each day on a blackboard, with the offering being decided by what is delivered to London from the day boats, with much of the seafood cooked over charcoal. Dishes might include Var salmon with a mustard glaze, as well as daily-changing chilled and fire-roasted shellfish platters. For true carnivores, there’s always at least one meat dish on the menu, such as Iberico pork with black garlic.

Oysters are a major part of the offering too, with each oyster on the menu paired with a garnish to amplify the flavour. For instance, Carlingford oysters are matched with a melon and cucumber salsa, while the Ostra Regal oysters are paired alongside a roasted hazelnut and lettuce purée.

Lyon’s also cares about food waste, having adopted a ‘fin to tail’ approach which sees the menu highlight parts of fish that are often discarded. This can be seen through dishes such as miso fish collars with seaweed butter, or the scallop roe taramasalata with fish skin crisps.

Alongside sustainable seafood, Lyon’s other passion is independent wine producers, with the wine list focusing on organic, biodynamic and minimal intervention wines. Alongside the wines, there is a short list of cocktails which are designed to match the seafood on offer, using unconventional tipples such as seaweed-infused gin and oyster vodka.