There was a time when hotel restaurants were to be avoided; guardians of anxious formality and uninspired menus. Set within the Bankside Hotel, yards from Blackfriars, Art Yard leaves all that behind in favour of more casual dining and a contemporary feel.
Yes, there’s a trace of hotel-ness, but varied artworks, playful design, sun-soaked courtyard terrace and a separate entrance evoke the confidence of a standalone restaurant. It helps too that the banquettes are comfortable, the lighting flattering, and the bar glows like stained glass at golden hour.
From here, come locally-inspired tipples made with sustainable spirits, including an addictive Bees Knees number made with award-winning Bankside Honey direct from the hotel’s rooftop hives. The menu, meanwhile, reads like a fever dream of seasonal curiosities and familiar comforts; it’s hard to choose because, frankly, everything sounds good.
Eventually, we settled on seared scallops. Served with a generous smear of cauliflower puree, bolstered by a helping of housemade XO sauce, it’s an intense buttery highlight, layered with nutty umami sweetness. Burrata follows, paired with heritage tomatoes and wild garlic pesto. A scatter of orzo adds interest, though more tomato intensity wouldn’t go amiss. Still, armed with thick-cut sourdough and a parsley leek butter flecked with black sea salt, it’s soon polished off.
Elsewhere, pan-seared chicken hints at confident skilled hands in the kitchen. Well brined and tender, it arrives with a deft tarragon sauce and crispy brick of fried polenta - managing that seemingly effortless, often rare trick of being both fluffy and golden.
We raise an eyebrow at a side of asparagus (£6 for four spears), though blanched to a sweet verdant hue and swaddled in an airy wild garlic hollandaise, its well measured simplicity soon wins us over. The same is true of a scoop of Bankside honey ice cream: floral, elastic, almost chewy and topped with crunchy bee pollen.
Tiramisu offers a curveball: circular savoiardi sponge sandwiched with pistachio cream, all adrift in a chilled puddle of quality milky coffee. It’s a thing of beauty, and large enough to share - not that you’d want to.
All in all, Art Yard Bar & Kitchen is overwhelmingly pleasant, serving up more casual plates alongside others that could rival London’s trendiest bistro menus - keep this one in your back pocket.