Trinity

The most important thing, the food at Trinity, was delicious, imaginative and elegant. My one criticism was that the mushroom flavour, as duxelles, cèpes and sauce, tended to overpower the perfectly cooked Dover. Where the place fell down was front of house. When I and my wife arrived, we were handed just one menu between us (actually that consisted of two cards with a different table d'hôte menu on each). I asked a couple of times for a second menu so that we didn't have to share but nothing happened. I was only given a second copy when I got a little trenchant. We were also given a covered menu each that I thought was the wine list. They turned out to be cocktail lists. I had to demand a wine list. Nevertheless, the waiting staff were all very pleasant and welcoming but some had strong accents that, in one case, meant I didn't understand a word he said throughout the meal. My comprehension wasn't helped by the fact that the restaurant, otherwise very pleasant, was quite noisy. Like many posh restaurants, they just had too many waiting staff. Despite, or perhaps because of, that, the service was slow, although not drastically so (lunch took two hours). Trinity has an open kitchen and I'm pretty sure there were more FOH staff than cooks. That seems the wrong balance to me. Ironically, there was a A-board outside advertising vacancies for FOH staff. They absolutely didn't need more people on the occasion we were there.

A visit to Trinity Restaurant had been a long time coming so therefore I'm now delighted to say that after today I can finally cross it of my list. I'm also delighted to say that the expectations I had before were not only met but surpassed in every department as the food , wine & service was excellent. I'd seen chef Adam Byatt on the television many times and had become a big fan. Then with hearing amazing feedback from friends I have in the hospitality industry only enhanced our decision to visit his restaurant. So on a chilli sunny saturday we headed from essex to south west london. We arrived at Clapham Common and made the short five minute walk to the restaurant. We entered the restaurant and received a warm and friendly welcome before first having our temperature taken and then sanitising our hands. We were then escorted to our table which was just in front of the reception desk and gave us a great view of the open kitchen. We were then given the drinks menu to order an aperitif. We decided to order a beer and the Trinity gin & tonic which we enjoyed while look at the food menu. Then it was time to meet manager Ashley who came over and welcomed us to the restaurant before asking if we had any questions regarding the menu. On that front there was a choice of two menus the four course lunch or the six course tasting menu. Our decision was to opt for the lunch menu with an addition of a cheese course. Then it was time to meet the sommelier to choose some wine and after a little chat in which he was very helpful and made some great recommendations we finally came to a decision. We started with a some homemade crackers and a small selection of charcuterie. This was followed by our first basket of bread and butter.

First Course

This led us onto our first course where we chose the Warm Salad of Chestnuts , Jerusalem Artichoke & Black Truffle that was a rich yet fabulous dish. For myself I chose the Beef Tartare with Pickled Mushrooms & Oscietra Caviar which was absolutely stunning and definitely one of the best tartare's I've ever tasted.

Second Course

If the first courses were a delight then two more amazing dishes were about to follow as I ordered the Warm Goose Terrine en Croute with Pickled Walnuts that was simply heaven on a plate. My wife decided to go for the supplement dish and a favourite the Cacio e Pepe with White Truffles and the verdict was an outstanding success.

Third Course

Now it was time for the main course where my wife opted for the Blanquette of Cornish Monkfish that was beautifully cooked on the bone. I decided to keep my rich dish theme going with the Short Rib of Beef , Duchess Potatoes & Smoked Bone Marrow that once again was another amazing plate of food.

Cheese Course

Before moving on to dessert we decided to opt for a cheese course where you had the option to pick three out of the six cheeses available. We chose the Westcombe Cheddar , Beaufort Alpage & Cromwell Bishop Stilton. These were accompanied with a side salad , small baguette , apple & chutney.

Dessert

We now moved to dessert where we had already pre booked the Apple Tarte Tatin. Well let me put it this way when it was offered there was no way I could refuse. It came with Prune & Armagnac ice cream that really complimented the tarte and of course some cream. I have to say it was absolutely delicious.

So that's it and after finishing with tea & coffee our first visit to Trinity had come to an end. The food from Adam and his talented chefs was amazing as every dish was just bursting with an abundance of flavour , the sommelier was very good and the wines he recommended were perfect , the service led by manager Ashley was excellent as everyone was so friendly & professional. So it will now come as no surprise when I say that I would highly recommend a visit which is something I will definitely be doing again in the new year.

Thank You Adam , Ashley and all the team for a fantastic lunch and look forward to seeing you all again soon.

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