Dining Out

The Bingham Hotel

Looking for a restaurant with a 100% ‘wow’ factor? At the top of my list for years has been the Bingham Hotel in Richmond, which magically achieves magnificence with nary a hint of the snooty stuffiness you might once have associated with hotel dining.In fact, friendliness is both the first and the lasting impression of a visit here. All staff, whether on reception, behind the bar or at your table combine the perfect mix of charm and efficiency. That’s the icing on the cake – because I’d probably still love the Bingham even if it were staffed with sociopathic Hell’s Angels. Its location is unrivalled: on a grassy slope overlooking the Thames and Richmond Bridge. The elegance of its Georgian architecture, enhanced with beautifully understated, boutique-style décor taking a nod to Art Deco, simply breathes class. Both the drawing room bar and the intimate restaurant overlook the river, the latter featuring a heated, canopied terrace for al fresco dining. Daytime views are superb; at night, with lights twinkling on the water, you feel a million miles away from city bustle.

The frequently-changing menu, now in the hands of a new head chef, features an inspiring seven starters and mains and five puds (with assorted side dishes) and a 2006 Chilean Chocolau Syrah rosé at £18 the bottle kept good company with all our choices. My roast garlic and potato soup, with girolles, grilled Chabis goat cheese and truffle oil was simply exquisite, served with the cheese solo in the plate and the soup poured over from a miniature jug. The other half’s corn-fed chicken, ham hock and foie gras terrine with caramelised fig was a rich indulgence but he still coped admirably with his following loin of pork with butternut squash purée and crisp pork belly, the crackling termed ‘the perfect blend of crunch and tenderness’. Though the flesh and fowl dishes tempted me, I test-drove the veggie option: a textbook al dente butternut squash tortellini with pak choi, pumpkin and ginger velouté. Who needs meat? Wonderful.

If I hadn’t tried the puds I’d have to claim the soup as my most blissful gastronomic experience in recent years, but the poached pear with mascarpone mousse and caramel ice cream had my loyalties truly torn. Warm apple pie and custard completed the companion’s feast; at £30 for three courses per person, cracking value in one of the most stylish restaurants for miles.
(Davina Dewar)

The Bingham Hotel
61-63, Petersham Road, Richmond, TW10
Tel: 020 8940 0902