Aubergine at the Compleat Angler

Sunday, July 19, 2009 - J had the smoked-salmon blini, which was a beautiful great blousy pancake, flouncy like a garden rose, and very springy and toothsome. The fish had a deep, complex flavour, and the dill and onion melange dotted round the outside kept the richness in check. I had the lobster tortellini on a cauliflower puree with a lobster butter sauce. It was indeed buttery, but I wondered about the balance - everything in it was as rich as it could possibly be...My niggles are tiny, really: one or two of these plates would be marginally improved by a slightly less-is-more approach. Otherwise, it could not be more charming.

Saturday, November 01, 2008 - The Compleat Angler is…400 years old and sits perched on the riverside where, in summer, white cabin-cruisers disgorge well-heeled Home Counties couples to sit at the front lawn's white tables and chat the afternoon away. It's here that William Drabble has brought the décor and kitchen skills from Aubergine, the Fulham restaurant where Gordon Ramsay first made his name, and which won Drabble a Michelin star in 1998.