Location: London, England
Cuisine: British
We can’t talk about St. John without talking about the French House. The French House, a pub in Soho, is very much tied to the history and rise of modern British cuisine in London. This is because the dining room upstairs at the French House was opened by Fergus and Margot Henderson in 1992. Fergus left in 1994 to establish his St. John restaurant in Smithfield, as head chef. Under his direction, St. John specialises in ‘nose to tail eating’, with a particular interest in reclaiming traditional British recipes by using offal and other rarely used cuts of meat (that in reality, have been largely neglected).
In 1996, Fergus’s business partner started to buy wines directly from growers in France, and so St. John Wines was born. Because St. John was increasingly providing its delicious sourdough loaves to restaurants, the bakery at St. John became too small and so in 2003 St. John Bread and Wine opened across the street from Spitalfields Market. While customers picked up their loaves, they were offered small plates and glasses of wine. And so, inevitably, it turned into a restaurant (rather than focusing on being a bakery). And this is where my review comes in!
Starters
Victor and I first visited St. John Bread and Wine in September 2022. Victor had been wanting to go for a long time, and since his birthday was coming we decided it was finally time. On this first visit, we started the Smoked Potatoes, St Cera and Spring Onion. It’s served with St Cera, an intense washed-rind cow’s milk cheese that’s very gooey, buttery and fruity. It’s a good pairing with the smoky flavour of the potatoes.
We also had their famous Smoked Cod’s Roe, Egg, Crispy Potato and Cress. It has these delicious crunchy layers of confit potatoes, which perfectly match the salty, flavourful whipped cod’s roe and boiled egg.
On our second visit, we had the Jerusalem Artichoke, Roast Red Onion and Olive. The Jerusalem artichokes were delicious as they were in season. We also had the Smoked Eel, Pickled Cucumber and Horseradish, which was a punchy dish full of flavour. We of course got the classic Anchovy Toast, a salty and comforting side to any plate.
Mains & Sides
St. John is not a small plates kind of restaurant, but very much a traditional first, second and third course kind of place. And so for our second course, the mains, we had the Cuttlefish, Saffron and Aioli and the Hake, Courgettes and Lemon. The cuttlefish dish was a kind of stew with a very deep flavour. The hake had perfectly crispy skin.
On our second visit we were a bit daring and ordered the Curry Crab. It was messy, slippery, and absolutely delicious. The flavour was great and the crab itself was incredibly yummy.
We also had the Smoked Haddock, Leeks and Watercress, which was light and refreshing, but still full of flavour.
Desserts
And now for the puddings! On our first visit, we had the Eton Mess. I had actually never had it until St. John, but I have since enjoyed this classic British dessert at numerous places. It’s a mixture of strawberries, meringue, and whipped cream. It’s similar to Australian pavlova, but a bit, well, messy.
We’ve also tried another classic, their Rice Pudding and Blackberry. I’ve come to learn that while rice pudding is found in almost every part of the world, the recipe differs significantly. The dessert can be boiled or baked. It can be made with different types of rice. And, the consistency can be quite different. A traditional British rice pudding is made with high-starch short-grained rice, sold as “pudding rice”. Then, you had milk, cream, sugar and sometimes flavours like vanilla, nutmeg, jam and/or cinnamon. It can be made in a saucepan or in the oven, though baking is the more traditional method. Fergus’s recipe involves mixing on the hob, and then baking in the oven. I loved the blackberry jam on top!
And finally, we can’t stop talking about St. John without talking about their madeleines. You can’t go without ordering a dozen, or half a dozen, madeleines. They are the softest, fluffiest and most delicious madeleines. They are Victor’s favourite and are certainly a wonderful treat. My pro tip is to order them for takeaway and have them with an afternoon coffee, or dessert at home!
St. John Bread & Wine truly is a lovely restaurant. Don’t miss out!
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