W4 1PD
020 8994 2923
According to the "story" on the website, Bill started out as a greengrocer in Lewes. Overcoming floods, a plague of locusts and a world halloumi shortage, he's turned that little shed into a chain of restaurants with outposts as far afield as Berkhamsted, Bluewater and Bishop's Stortford. Yet despite the charming back-story, the truth is there's something a bit soulless about Bill's, it feels like the contrived lovechild of an interior designer and a suburban marketing consultant.
The Chiswick branch opened on the High Road in 2013, knocking together Giraffe and Gelato Mio to form a big space that proved hard to fill at Sunday lunchtime.
We started with an eclectic drinks order: an apple, carrot & ginger juice; a cappuccino; and a glass of tap water. The drinks arrived in descending margin order. They've got this down to such a fine art that the (zero margin) tap water didn't arrive until after the other drinks were already drunk.
The menu features all the on-trend ingredients you expect on a modern mass-market menu: puy lentils, red pepper tapenade, chipotle mayo and piadina bread.
But enough cynicism. The food was surprisingly good. I had the mojo chicken skewers with tomato & parsley cous cous salad, cucumber, watercress and red onion, tzatziki and the aforementioned piadina bread. The chicken was chargrilled and a rather more natural colour than the saffron-infused yellow equivalent I'd had at Rice earlier in the week. But the bread was cold and limp and not a patch on the fresh and warm offering from the West end of the High Road.
Mrs W4 had the Superfood Kale Salad (V/VE/GF) because she just doesn't get enough quinoa and chick peas at home. And Number One Son went for the Rarebit Mac'n'Cheese with leeks, truffle, mustard & cheddar cheese sauce and some (he felt unnecessary) mushrooms.
It's always struck me as a bit odd to name your restaurant after the most painful part of the meal. It would be like calling an estate agent 'Commission' or an accountant 'Invoice'. Living up to its name Bill's helpfully add the 12.5% service charge to the bill even for small groups to save you having to work it out yourself. The tip may or may not end up with your waiter.
Food (for 3): £30.85
Drink: £5.75
Total: £41.18
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