Review on Daphne's
A fixture of the fashionable Chelsea restaurant scene for many years, Daphne's on Draycott Avenue is now part of Caprice Holdings who also own Le Caprice, The Ivy and other big-name London venues. It plies its trade as a modern Italian restaurant that resonates with rustic Tuscan charm, complete with a glass-roofed suntrap garden scattered with citrus trees and olive bushes – as if to complete the illusion of Mediterranean escapism.
The kitchen works hard to conjure up the spirit and flavours of Italian regional cuisine and menus are laid out in traditional fashion – although a handful of salads have been slipped in before the expected pasta. Otherwise, expect to open with thinly sliced smoked tuna with shaved fennel, a selection of Sardinian cured meats or rosemary-roasted Sicilian artichokes with goats' cheese, black olives and tomatoes.
Pasta could include buttered spaghetti with grey mullet roe or pappardelle with wild boar ragù, while main courses call into play such things as slow-baked shoulder of lamb with seasonal beans and garlic shoots. Italian cheeses come with 'mostarda di limone' (lemon preserve), while desserts are in the tiramisù and pannetone pudding mould. A clutch of decent Italian wines promises satisfying drinking.
Daphne's is also featured in: Michelin Guide, Hardens, AA Guide
Rate this RestaurantCuisine
Italian
Chef
Michael Brown
Restaurant Opening Times
Lunch: 12.00 through until
Dinner: 11.30pm (10.30pm Sun)
Accepted credit cards
Visa, Master Card, American Express
