Duchy is a wonderfully convivial restaurant in East London’s trendy Shoreditch, set on a corner plot on Phipp Street. It’s a place where they still play vinyl records on an age-old record player. There’s an eclectic collection on show from Ella Fitzgerald to Bruce Springsteen by the front door, behind the long bar propped up by green stools where regulars just hang and drink wine for a couple of hours. At the end is an open kitchen where I loitered a bit to watch my food being made.
It’s a pleasing visual that contrasts with the wood floors and chairs, marble or green tabletops and matching green banquettes and walls with simple artworks. It’s decor of the cafeteria ilk but way more plush. The old-fashioned rotating fans overhead gave off a bit of a French flourish, I thought.
Christian brought the menu; he was full of smiles and banter, which he took to other tables and I could hear plenty of chuckles and laughter throughout the evening.
It’s a sharing menu that draws inspiration from the historic Duchy of Savoy – hence the name. This region once stretched from the Alpine foothills to the Mediterranean coast (Lyon across to Milan, Geneva down to Nice), uniting parts of modern-day France and Italy through a shared culinary, agricultural and wine-making heritage.
I was keen to see what this looked like on my plate. A generous wedge of house bread with Nethernd farm butter arrived, followed by two crispy crostinis topped with highly flavoursome anchovies and marjoram leaves. Then a plate of fried polenta (a staple of Piedmont) with roasted pepper and hazelnut pesto arrived. These were pleasingly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, and worked so well with the crunchy hazelnuts- a perfect combination.
Then came the buffalo mozzarella, topped with roasted Coll de Dama figs served on chargrilled bread. This was a truly delicious combo where the warmth and sweetness of the fig elevated the texture and general blandness of the cheese.
Buffalo mozzarella and roasted Coll de Dama figs
A fillet of meaty yet flaky Cornish stone bass served with peas, smoked bacon, and more than a hint of mint passed me by, but I’ll get to it next time.
Instead, I got to try the barbecued flat iron, very juicy thick slices of steak, that tickled my palate before I even tasted it thanks to a gorgeously aromatic Café de Paris butter (a Swiss invention). This came with seasoned hand-cut fries.
Barbecue flat iron steak, cafe de Paris butter and hand-cut fries
If you are thinking that I devoured a lot of food that night, you are right. Yet when it comes to dessert, I couldn’t say no. I took a few bites from a pannacotta topped with Italian cherries and Piedmontese hazelnuts, and also a raspberry and lemon verbena ice cream sandwich. My taste buds were placated.
Pannacotta with Italian cherries and Piedmontese hazelnuts
I really enjoyed my time here, the music, atmosphere and everything that was put in front of me – I even had a doggie bag of leftover steak (it was only right).
Verdict: By the time you visit, the menu will have evolved with the seasons and daily availability of ingredients from their list of farms and producers. Though I am pretty sure the staples of anchovies and polenta will be available; if so, give them a try. In any case, you can expect delicious food, great service and a really charmingly casual environment.
Duchy Restaurant 18 Phipp Street, London, England, EC2A 4NU