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1 A historic pub in Shepherd Market making a name for itself as a restaurant serving British Classics
Early January can be a slightly depressing month for many in the people; however, for me, today I’m very upbeat as I have lunch booked at The Chesterfield Arms, well to be precise upstairs in their restaurant; there is always something uplifting about the thought of a good pub lunch. The Chesterfield Arms is in Shepherd Market; which is another reason I am happy, Shepherd Market remains a lovely little enclave with a great vibe nestled within Mayfair and central London.
We enter Shepherd Market via a little alley off Curzon Street. I’m joined today is my sister Clair, who is back home on an extended Christmas break; she lives in Milwaukee for most of the year. I’m going to digress, but if you find yourself near Milwaukee, make time to visit the Public market in the town.I visited in the summer and it’s one of the best food markets I have ever visited and has become a focal point for the community. People travel in from Chicago which is over an hour away to visit the Market, its that good.
Anyway, back to the business in hand and lunch in the upstairs restaurant at the Chesterfield Arms.
The Chesterfield Arms, named after the Earls of Chesterfield, whose family owned most of Bingham, was constructed as a coaching inn around 1750 under the name ‘The Royal Oak’. With a rich history, this establishment has served as a pub since 1737, operating as the Chesterfield Arms from 1769 to 1938 and reopening in 2021. You can see a portrait of the Earl in the dining room.
2 Menu and Restaurant
You enter the stairs to the restaurant via the pub. Once upstairs, a lovely rectangular room with high ceilings and lots of light from the windows. It is a perfect dining space and one you feel at home in. The decor is traditional, which befits the room. We are shown to our table by the window overlooking the street below. It felt like we had gone back in time.
The menu at the Chesterfield Arms is reassuringly compact, with a couple of sharers, six starters and eight mains. Add to that a few desserts. The menu is seasonal, apart from the signature dish. More about that in a minute. There is also a Sunday menu which is similar to the A la carte menu with the unsurprising addition of Roasts.
3 Starters
Clair went for the Laverstock Buffalo mozzarella, grilled artichokes, and sour cherry harissa. This is a pretty-looking starter, and the dish’s star is the Mozzarella. As the name suggests, Mozzarella comes from Laverstock Farm and is the first Buffalo mozzarella made in the UK. Former World Champion racing driver Jody Schecter owns the farm. The mozzarella is a champion in its own right. We could not believe how creamy it was; it was like the thickest and creamiest Greek yoghurt I had ever tasted. The addition of the Harissa worked well.
I plumped for Seared scallops, toasted fregola, broad beans, and salsa verde. The scallops were perfectly cooked, the fregola had a nutty texture, and the broad beans and salsa verde gave a springtime freshness to the dish.
4 Mains
The signature dish of The Chesterfield is Beef Wellington. How could we resist? Officially, Clair ordered The Wellington, and I ordered Roast hake, garlic mussels, braised leeks, and onion soubise. However, we shared both.
The Hake was perfectly cooked and tasted so fresh, beneath the fish was braised leeks and Soubise sauce, which, like all good sauces, enhanced the dish. The dish was topped off with garlic mussels and crispy onions.
On to the mighty Mr Wellington, firstly, this is a hearty dish; secondly, there is no hiding with a Beef Wellington; the Beef fillet needs to be rare in the middle and no soggy pastry.
5 Dessert
As you will of probably guessed by the amount of food we had already enjoyed, we debated if we could eat a dessert and decided to share Dark chocolate mousse, mulled cherries, and honeycomb. The mousse was light but with enough of a chocolate hit to satisfy the chocoholic sitting opposite me. The mulled cherries provided a fruit relief from the chocolate for me.
It was a lovely dessert, and we both agreed it was the correct decision to share
Before we finish, I must mention Stefana and the team for the excellent service we enjoyed throughout our meal. We both left full but very contented. Shepherd Market is a very busy and competitive area for restaurants and pubs. However, the Chesterfield Arms restaurant can hold its own against the competition, serving well-cooked quality produce in a relaxed atmosphere.
The Chesterfield Arms also offers a bar snacks menu if you fancy popping in for a snack and a pint.
50 Hertford Street
Mayfair
London
W1J 7SS
The Chesterfield Arms menu
Finally another painting showing hanging in the restaurant showing an early scene from Shepherd Market, possibly mid-18th century, with paved alleys, a duck pond, and a two-story market, and he also built a theatre. The theatre was opened in May and attracted a high class of visitors.
If you would like to find out more about the area, take a look at our articles on pubs in the shepherds market and restaurants in the shepherd’s market.
