Number 33
Modern British
33 Abbeville Road, SW4 9LA
££
Having lived in Abbeville Village all my life, I've seen this address become many things over the years. The longest standing restaurant from my memory was Newtons - a British grub hub which did famously good Sunday Roasts. Following from Newtons this place was briefly Craft Kitchen, but that didn't last long and I didn't get the opportunity to pay it a visit.
Despite the change of ownership and label, this place has seemed to remain on the same theme the whole time it has been established: British food at mid-range with a modern twist. Number 33 opened recently and the Menu looks great! You can get two courses for £23 or 3 courses for £30, which seems reasonable enough. There is a range of quality fish and meat to be chosen from and some original but recognisable starters - this is all stuff you've seen before but with an ever so subtle twist. Beware - the lunch menu is horribly underwhelming, so avoid it entirely. Unfortunately, I haven't had the chance to eat at Number 33 for dinner yet, but I intend to very soon.
My experience was their almost all-day weekend brunch. Rolling until 4pm for those late risers, No.33 has a range of delicious and nutritious choices to help you start the day right/nurse that hangover back to health (que the hair of the dog cocktails starting the menu off...) From simple beans/eggs/avocado on toast for the boring people out there to french toast and an original spin on eggs benny, there really is plenty of choice. I went for the 'Eggs Abbeville' which was spinach, wild mushroom, poached egg and pancetta, £7.95 for one egg/£9.95 for two. Tom went for the traditional 'Eggs Royale', poached egg and smoked salmon and we both obviously chose two eggs - what's the point of one?!
Both dishes were delicious - honestly some of the best eggs benny/royale/abbeville/whatever I've had! The portion sizes were a dream and both eggs were nested on a thick and fluffy breakfast muffin. The hollandaise was great, and respected as always, as making that stuff is bloody hard work... I must say I did prefer the Eggs Abbeville and rather regretted agreeing to swap one of mine with Tom's. We also got a cappuccino and orange juice each (not freshly squeezed, mind...) bringing the total up to around £15 each.
Whilst some may think £15 is steep for Brunch, at the end of the day it's not all that bad. The food was great, service was good and I'll definitely be back for both more brunch and to try the tasty looking dinner menu.
OVERALL RATING: ****
Since this trip, I have been to eat at Number 33 for dinner. I had the Pan fried Goose Breast, whilst Ciara has the Scallops with Chicken skin, then we both chose the Pork Belly with kimchi and shiitake noodles for main. Now, there wasn't anything wrong with my Goose but it wasn't what I was expecting. It lacked overall flavour and was nowhere near as good as it's close friend, Duck. Ciara's scallops looked decent, however, I did think the pairing of chicken skin and broth was pretty peculiar... maybe even a bit too peculiar.
The main was decent - the pork belly was crisp and not overly fatty. The mushroom and noodle accompaniment went surprisingly well with it, although I think there could have been more oriental flavours involved if this is the approach they were taking. These along with a bottle of Pinot Grigio came to a pretty steep £40 each. The meal wasn't bad but it wasn't particularly noteworthy either - for something pretty average the price wasn't that great and I would therefore only really recommend coming to No.33 for its weekend Brunch.
https://www.33abbevilleroad.co.uk/
