Home SW15 is the lovechild of three chaps – Craig and “the two Freddies” – who met while working at the now-defunct Charlotte’s Bistro in Chiswick, where they won accolades such as Chiswick’s Best Loved Local 2015 in Time Out and Waitrose Readers’ Restaurant of the Year 2015 for London. They left in the summer of 2017 to bring us Home SW15; a neighbourhood gem that aims to nourish you with majestic food that carousels with the seasons, inebriate you with fanciful cocktails, and then bring you back to sobriety with sweet-smelling coffee. I like this charge they’re leading. Inside the two-floored venue, there’s a distinct brasserie feel, a colour palette of white-painted distressed bricks and duck-egg blue wood panels, with chestnut banquettes and matching tables and chairs. We sat on the second floor, where a long dining table dominates, as does the glass-panelled roof. It feels like a chipper place to be.
Seeing that it was only 9:45 a.m., the Mary Berry £5.50 was in order – a thickly spun forest berry, banana, and oat milk belly-liner for the debauchery ahead.
The boss goes for the “mint cooler” £4.50 which is made from celery cordial, mint infusion, lime and soda. Chuck in some vodka and you’ll have something serious for the morning.
Seemingly craft beer, Bloody Mary’s and espresso martinis were the order of the morning.
What came first, on the house whilst we waited for the brigade to arrive, were the cauliflower cheese croquettes. Cauliflower cheese can taste like gym socks from 1998, in my experience; however, these panko-armoured versions are stuffed with oozing cheddar and Gruyère that’ll make you swoon – one of the many compelling reasons to come back here. These were very, very good.
From the fishier side, there’s the “made @ home” shrimp burger (£17) with sriracha mayo, baby gem, and fries. The star of the dish is the shrimp patty – panko-coated, with solid lumps of pert prawns and a lustful hit of strident coriander. Give me a stack of them and I’m anyone’s. The bun, a parched companion, was either too big or the patty too small; not even the soak of sriracha could help, and I found myself leaving most of it. The chips did exactly what they said on the tin too – probably double-cooked, and entirely finishable.
If you fancy a break from meat, there is the portobello on sour dough toast £14 that comes with a good sprinkle of crispy crumb of gremolata.
Other folk get the French toast with “made @ home” brioche, bacon and banana £11.50 and eggs benny £12.50.
From there, we ordered the bright, sharp, mouth-puckering lemon posset £7 with a buttery shortbread crumb. It was impossible to pace myself with this mouth-gushing pudding – an attention-grabbing high point of the meal.
Something else quite delicious was the pistachio & honey kataifi £7.50 – a baked, buttered dough with a faint hint of spice and a drizzle of sugar syrup that soaks the base. The pistachio ice cream was a marvellous addition, as were the teaming frozen raspberries.
The birthday girl
Verdict
When did I go? Apr 2019
The damage: Expect to pay £30/45 per head with booze
The good: Home SW15 is a place where you can chase soothing, well-cooked food that speaks loudly of care and good ingredients. The deftly done cauliflower cheese croquettes are worth travelling for, as is the sweet shrimp burger – minus the bun, which I’d happily leave behind. I’d order the vibrant lemon posset again too, along with the pistachio & honey kataifi, which rounds out a meal full of thoughtful, flavour-packed dishes.
The bad: My gripe is that the shrimp burger deserves a better bun, something softer, less parched – brioche sucks, most of the time.
Rating: 3.75/5
Would I go again? Yes
Address: 146 Upper Richmond Rd, Putney, London SW15 2SW
Web: https://www.homesw15.com
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