Wilder

A basement location is not exactly conducive to drawing a crowd but in a tranquil position at the bottom of the Boundary Hotel, chef Richard McLellan is quietly cooking up some culinary wonders that make it well worth the trip downstairs.

A Champagne Rhubarb Gimlet is a welcome start and the accompanying bar snacks should not be overlooked. Large shards of seeded crackers come served in a rustic paper bag with a pleasing pease pudding emulsion for dipping. Other enjoyable morsels include Pyefleet oysters which impart a surprising smoky flavour from a coal cream and smoked apple vinegar, and Tamworth pork belly, straight from the barbecue and topped generously with shavings of celeriac and medlar.

The rest of the menu reads much like a witch’s spell – full of unfamiliar ingredients but all of which we’re informed are native to the UK. It’s these flourishes of the unknown that make the dishes so memorable. Soft ribbons of squid and hispi cabbage are accompanied by a vibrant green chervil sauce and the raw beef tartare is a masterpiece in meticulous presentation and perfectly balanced flavours.

For the main event we opted for game. Pheasant comes nestled under a blanket of buttery kalibos cabbage with a punchy sauce. Fallow deer is equally moreish, served perfectly pink, tender and emitting the promised aroma of pine.

The wine list is just as diverse, with a range of old-world labels to choose from, all deriving from sustainable and biodynamic growers. Oenophiles and novices alike will benefit from the sommelier’s approachable and down-to-earth guidance.

From the desserts, the signature baked apple offers the comforting familiarity of a traditional crumble but presented with McLellan’s consistent finesse, while the rhubarb, white chocolate and buttermilk creation is a more playful blend of textures and flavours.

The restaurant’s interiors have been thoughtfully designed to create an earthy feel that’s in keeping with the menu, while the high ceilings and widely spaced tables are an unexpected highlight for an underground venue.

Exposed brickwork, rendered walls, ashwood tables and stoneware ceramics are consistent with east London style but also lend to the ’wild’ aesthetic. Most striking are the rambling vegetal installations suspended from the ceiling, which add an ethereal touch to an otherwise inconspicuous setting. As we burrowed our way back up to street level, we left feeling confident that in spite of its unfavourable location, Sir Terence Conran is onto a winner with Wilder.

You’ll find this contemporary British restaurant and bar in the basement of Boundary London. The hip hotel on Redchurch Street is set inside a converted Victorian warehouse and over the years has been home to restaurants including Boundary and most recently the charcuterie specialist Tratra, from French chef Stéphane Reynaud.

This latest incarnation is the result of a creative partnership between restaurateur and designer Sir Terence Conran (who founded not only Boundary but Orrery, Le Pont de la Tour etc) and chef Richard McLellan, who formerly worked in the kitchens at Bethnal Green’s now-closed Typing Room at the Town Hall Hotel and Michelin-starred Alyn Williams at The Westbury.

Wilder serves a menu which champions simple British ingredients sourced with a focus on sustainability and cooked without fuss. McLellan regularly visits Barton Court, Conran’s Georgian retreat in the English countryside, to source ingredients from the 145-acre estate, including sustainable trout and crayfish as well as watercress. Expect to find the likes of bread crackers with carrot emulsion and carrot oil or venison, beets, elderberries and rye.

While there’s no doubting McLellan’s commitment to finding the best ingredients to cook in Boundary’s kitchen, the biggest challenge this restaurant faces is its basement location, which in summer is far less appealing than the hotel’s buzzy rooftop bar and grill and its enviable views of East London. In winter, meanwhile, the retro ground-floor British café, Albion, lures diners with its cosy comfort food and cuppas poured from brown betty teapots.

Still, if anyone can make a success out of an unpromising site, it’s Terence Conran, who was responsible for turning the windowless likes of Mezzo and Quaglino’s into some of the hottest London dining rooms of the 1990s. And Wilder has a brilliant location one of east London’s coolest streets, moments from Shoreditch High Street station and surrounded by some of the area’s most famous shops and bars.