Ham
Modern British
238 West End Ln, West Hampstead, NW6 1LG
£££
West Hampsted is a pleasantly sleepy part of town, that still feels quintessentially British. What better place, then, to house a culinary destination like ‘Ham’ – named after the old English for ‘home’.
Modest but clean-cut décor frames the inside: white cushioned chairs, grey leather booths, exposed brickwork. It almost reminded me of an upmarket beauty salon, with a rose-tinted hue and flawless finish. Two casual chaps greeted us and told us we could have the choice of where we sat, seeing as the restaurant only had around 4 tables filled when we arrived at 19:15 on a Wednesday evening. We proceeded to order a bottle of the 2017 Negroamaro del Salento, La Casada, Puglia, Italy for £26 which was served in those gloriously large wine glasses that you could probably fit a whole bottle into, but for some reason it is only socially acceptable to have a mere inch at a time.
Our waiter advised us to order two dishes from each section of the menu – the first being described as snacks, followed by small plates, large plates, cheese and deserts. We went for the Margot Bakery sourdough (£2.5) & Potato dauphine (£6) for snacks, the Burrata (£9.5), Aged raw beef (£10) & Cornish mussels (£12) for small plates, and the Shorthorn beef (£19) as a large plate. Although the prices are seeming low, they do soon add up, and given the small portion sizes I would be wary that you might not actually have to order two from each section – or can easily opt for more small plates than large if they tickle your fancy.
The snacks were an exciting appetiser, with the sourdough having a smoky and crisp outer shell, complimented with rich homemade butter… mmmm… my favourite. The little fried potato snacks were delicate and crisp, which went well with the heavy pink mayo, with plenty of chunks of crab in it. These dishes set us up perfectly for what was to come, in that they were tasty enough to get excited, but allowed for the impact to really build later on in the meal.
To follow were the small plates, which were impossible to pick only two. The Burrata came first and was quite literally the best once I’ve had. At first, I was a little confused, as it was squashed down and looked like a cheese-dump, rather than a finely formed ball of heaven. However, this gave the cheese a different texture, and allowed it to be coated adequately with the perfectly complimenting greengage umeboshi (sour plums) and sunflower seeds. It was creamier and tasted cheesier than most Burrata’s I’ve had in the past, which was very welcomed. The plums gave it an almost oriental undertone, and the sunflower seeds a nutty and crunchy topping. My God, it was special.
The Aged raw beef had a tough act to follow, but after it was confidently placed on the table, there was no doubt in my mind. Basically, a really good Beef Tartare, with ginger, wasabi and crispy shallots – some more oriental flavours that it couldn’t have gone down better. I’m not usually a fan of wasabi (or mustard, or horseradish), but the delicate flavour of this one was enough for me to notice once I had been told, but easy to not discover if I hadn’t. Finally, we were presented with the Cornish mussels, served with razor clams, summer beans, XO sauce and shiso. In keeping with the oriental theme, but tasting decidedly British, these too were a treat, and even better once I realised what I thought were chunks of roughly sliced garlic were actually the diddy razor clams. Delicious.
Out of all the large plates, there was only ever going to be one for me, and that was the Shorthorn beef, served with scorched mushrooms, grelot onions, kombu dashi and basil.
Five perfectly pink slices of beef arrived, swimming in a fragrant dashi which tasted way more thrilling that it looked (so much so, we practically licked the bowl clean). The mushrooms chewy texture further emphasised the tenderness of the meat, and the whole dish caused Tom to sit back in his seat, one of the waiters catching him rolling his eyes back in pure delight.
finger lickin guuuuud
We finished off with some Neal’s Yard cheese (£12), consisting of a Tomme Chambronze, Persile du Beaujolais, and a Comte. The Persile du Beaujolais was by far the most balanced blue I have ever tasted. Nutty, smoky, powerful, but not lingering or too strong (it didn’t make my nose hairs tingle as many others often do). The Tomme Chambronze was creamy and delicious, with a goats-cheese like flavour, and the Comte a good addition too, despite the fact I’m way more of a softy when it comes to my dairy choices. We followed this, lastly, with the Peanut butter parfait, paired with coconut sorbet and peanut honeycomb (£7.5). The crisp honeycomb, fresh sorbet and creamy but biteable parfait were all paired excellently and were simply a perfect way to finish the meal.
Service was top notch throughout, our initial waiter didn’t laugh too hard when I couldn’t say the name of the wine, and our later waitress had a good old natter with us about the pure joy of Burrata. They seemed genuinely happy to serve us and bid us a joyful farewell when we left. This place does get pricey, we had 50% off our food bill, meaning for us it came to a mere £73.41 all in, but I know I would have grumbled slightly at the portion of cheese if I was paying full whack. The quality, atmosphere and overall experience, however, makes Ham a perfect destination restaurant which I genuinely cannot fault.
Does it feel like home? Not quite, this place is better.
OVERALL RATING: *****
https://www.hamwesthampstead.com/
