If Stratford conjures memories of intense passenger chaos, Stone Island jackets and speeding rollerbladers, well, you’re not alone. Thankfully, we’re not in Stratford today, we’re in Stratford Cross - the new, acceptable face of Stratford as this easterly district continues to stake a claim for itself as a foodie neighbourhood of note.
Once you’ve battled your way through the assault course that is Westfield, hang a right as you head towards the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. The skies clear to reveal the newly built Stratford Cross, with its smart paving and glorious wide open boulevards. Templar sits right at the heart of it, underneath the jutting, industrial facade of an Everyman Cinema.
The inside styling is very slick. Terrazzo floors and tasteful mid-century furniture pieces give Templar a real air of sophistication. Stools are cosied up to the bar ready for small plates to be consumed at the counter, and overhead there’s a backlit wine room on the mezzanine, which shows off some of the wine list as you enter. There’s also an extensive terrace, which will require sunglasses from morning to mid-afternoon.
Restaurants in new developments can be wildly hit and miss, but the Templar team does have previous experience in sister site Darkhorse, which is already one of the best restaurants in Stratford. The food at Templar is equally superlative - intelligent, elevated, but never prioritising style over substance. The first thing out of the kitchen is a big puck of pig’s head croquette, and it delivers on expectation with rich, meaty, fatty oomph, offset by a fresh, crunchy fennel salad. Templar’s dishes are never pushing the envelope too far, but they still require careful execution: octopus is tender and buttery in a salad of chorizo and Pink Fir potatoes, for example; and a hefty pork chop is beautifully cooked, marrying grill-char with sweet Tropea onions.
A mandarin semi-fredo catches the eye, and it lives up to the promise. We dig the spoon down through layers of gin jelly, frosty mandarin ice cream, and blood orange - everything you could possibly want on a sunny day. Super, measured cooking, cheerful hospitality, and a menu packed with delicious things we just want to eat - maybe Templar really can put Stratford on the gastro-map.