Kember & Jones
- Food served: Mon–Fri 8am–9pm; Sat 9am–9pm; Sun 9am–6pm
- Number of wines sold by the glass: 5
- Also offers: Vegetarian options (at least 25% of main courses), Children's portions, Children's high chairs, Wheelchair access, Takeaway, Outdoor tables (smokers welcome)
- Capacity: 36
- Largest group: 0
- Open since: 2004
- Average price 2 courses: £11 (lunch)
- House wine: £10.95 per bottle
This review appears in the The List's Eating & Drinking Guide 2008 – in the shops now or buy online.
Everything about Kember & Jones speaks of quality: pale wood cabinets laden with fine continental delicacies, huge terracotta bowls of olives beside organic artisan breads and a table of hip cookbooks that invites browsing while you wait. And wait you probably will at peak times. Kember & Jones' impeccably prepared dishes are proving so popular that guests regularly linger patiently until a table becomes available on the ground floor, outside or up on the mezzanine. The menu of sandwiches, salads, bruschetta and platters features classic European combinations such as ricotta, basil and Parma ham; manchego and chorizo; or goat's cheese, pesto and pine-nuts. A large salad marries slabs of golden roasted pumpkin with crumbly feta, while a palm-sized tartlet – encasing hunks of Toulouse sausage and melting Fontina cheese – is accompanied by olives (green and black) plus a bundle of salad. The home-baking is generally stellar. Dense chocolate cake, toothsome cherry and cheesecake-swirled brownies or zingy lemon tarts are some of the options. On weekends, diners flock in for brunch, the choices for which include a plate of waffles with maple syrup and bacon. Arrive early or wear comfy shoes.
- High point: High quality food
- Low point: Enduring the queue
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