The Eel Pie in Twickenham manages to blend traditional pub grub and its own unique recipes to serve up a satisfying meal.
Anyone who lives in or around Twickenham will tell you that the selection of good pubs is one of its selling points.
So it’s impressive then that the Eel Pie, located on the idyllic Church Street only a two minute walk from the River Thames, manages to stand out.
But stand out it did, with excellent food, good service and a very solid selection of non-alcoholic drinks.
While the heaving rain attempt to dampen the experience, when looking out the window and thinking about the walk back to the office is the biggest problem with your lunch, you know the pub is doing something right.
The front of the Eel Pie is usually bustling, but we were coming in both at midday and midweek, so it was a rare opportunity to check it out when it was a bit quieter.
And the restaurant section in the back, which I’ve only ever sat in once before, was very cosy and welcoming.
We started with our drinks and my colleague had a non-alcoholic rosé which was as fruity as described, while I had a mocktail with 0% gin, elderflower and apple, which was deliciously summer-y, even as June refused to be.
To start, we had the beef croquettes and the chicken and apricot terrine.
The croquettes were rich and fully of gravy – I wasn’t sure what to expect but they were the best version of what I was hoping for – while the terrine came with bagel bites rather than the traditional toast, which was an addition we appreciated.
The other thing we’d been eyeing since the moment we arrived and saw the menu was the hash brown bites, so it was only right that one of us ordered the chicken parmigiana, which came with them.
They lived up to the expected hype, as did the chicken, which definitely hit the spot.
But while my colleague got in there first, I definitely didn’t feel like I’d drawn the short straw either, as the blackened harissa flat-iron chicken was equally delicious.
We also definitely didn’t feel short-changed in terms of portion sizes, as a starter and main each was more than enough to fill us up, which isn’t always the case with pubs.
Before we left, it would be wrong not to have sampled one of their excellent and wide-ranging beer selection and again, we were impressed by the variety of alcohol free beer available.
We settled for the 0% horizon lager, a relatively new addition as it was only launched this year, and it was superb.
Overall, our lunch time trip to the Eel Pie was excellent and I’d thoroughly recommend.
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