52 | FOOD AND DRINK | RestaurantsFood anddrinkThe Lounge at ZumaWhether you’re looking forward to aspecial dinner, you’re meeting friends fordrinks or you’re just feeling a bit peckish,there’s a myriad of restaurants, cafés,pubs and nightlife spots in the areaTop tables<strong>Chelsea</strong> is peppered with some of theworld’s finest restaurants, including thelegendary Michelin-magnet RestaurantGordon Ramsay – but if you don’t fancybreaking the bank, there are plenty ofalternatives on the menuAwana££££A fine-dining Malaysian restaurant andsatay bar, Awana offers an à la cartemenu, specials, vegetarian and veganfood and a couple of set menus (‘Tasteof Malaysia’ and ‘Malaysian Banquet’).The satay bar serves up Malaysianstreet food, particularly dishes from theisland of Penang, while the substantialcocktail list features plenty of exotic fruitsand flavours.Lunch: 12pm-3pm. Dinner: Monday-Wednesday 6pm-11pm, Thursday-Saturday 6pm-11.30pm, Sunday 6pm-10.30pm.85 Sloane Avenue, SW3 3DXT: 020 7584 8880www.awana.co.ukBaity Kitchen££Baity Kitchen serves an interesting mixof Middle Eastern and Mediterraneancuisine – the result of a partnershipbetween Palestinian-born food bloggerand chef Joudie Kalla-Anagnou and herGreek friend Christina Mouratoglou.It’s an all-day dining venture that hasopened relatively recently (December2010), with an emphasis on home-cooking.‘Baity’ means ‘my home’ in Arabic,and the restaurant aims to serve up thesort of home-cooking that isn’t normallyfound on menus in Arabic restaurants.Joudie has worked in RestaurantPrice guide:The following key shows a generalprice guide for the restaurants,based on an average three-coursemeal from the à la carte menu(including VAT but not includingdrinks or service charges). Pleasenote that this is just a guide to pricesand should be treated as such.£: Under £25££: £25-£35£££: £35-£45££££: £45-£55£££££: £55 and overBaity Kitchen Cake Pops
53 | FOOD AND DRINK | RestaurantsGordon Ramsay, Daphne’s and Papillon,so she has the skills to back up herhome-cooking. Best-sellers include theGreek dish gemista (stuffed vegetableswith rice) and the Palestinian sayyadiyeh(seared cod with cumin on cumin onionrice with a tahini sauce, tomatoes,parsley and lemon juice). There is also acatering service.Monday-Saturday 8am-9pm, Sunday9am-8pm.172 Walton Street, SW3 2JLT: 020 7584 6866www.baitykitchen.comBeaufort House£££The brasserie and cocktail bar on theground floor are open to the public, whilethe rest of Beaufort House is a privatemembers’ club. The brasserie has anall-day brunch menu and a dinner menumade up of British and European dishes.It welcomes families with youngchildren in the day and becomes moreof a bar in the evening. For the cocktailBeaufort HouseCocktail Bar andBrasseriebar, see Pubs, Bars and Nightlife.Brasserie and cocktail bar openSunday-Wednesday 10am-12.30pm,Thursday-Saturday 10am-1.30pm.354 King’s Road, SW3 5UZT: 020 7352 2828www.beauforthousechelsea.co.ukBenihana££££Benihana <strong>Chelsea</strong> is part of an internationalchain of Japanese restaurantsfounded in 1964 with a theatrical flair,where food is prepared and cooked atyour table on a Hibachi Grill. The<strong>Chelsea</strong> branch opened in 1993.The menu features mostly steak andfish/shellfish dishes – often a combinationof the two. If you feel in the mood tosplash out, there’s even Wagyu beef.There’s also a selection of hot and coldappetisers, sushi and bento boxes. Thelunchtime dishes are generally cheaper.Lunch: Monday-Saturday 12pm-3pm.Dinner: Monday-Saturday 5.30pm-10.30pm, Sunday and bank holidays5pm-10pm.77 King’s Road, SW3 4NXT: 020 7376 7799www.benihana.co.ukBig Easy Bar.B.Q & Crabshack££A restaurant inspired by Gulf Coastcrabshacks in the US of A, Big Easybrings American barbeque food to<strong>Chelsea</strong>. The ‘theme’ idea might putsome people off, but it’s not just akitschy gimmick – the food has won fans(and some awards) and it’s buzzy, withlive music in the evenings.The menu features steaks, fajitas, lobster,ribs, burgers – and crab, of course.Prices for mains are around the £15-£25mark, unless you’re going for the topsteaks or a steak/lobster combo. Thereare some good deals, too, depending onthe day of the week – whether it’s a200gm 28-day-aged sirloin steak and awhole lobster with fries, house salad anda Jose Cuervo Gold frozen margarita ora beer for £19.50, or all-you-can-eatshrimp with fries, coleslaw and a beer orfrozen margarita for £14.95 per person.There’s a kids’ menu too, if you don’tthink they can handle coming face toface with a whole crab. It’s happy hourat the bar at 12pm and 4pm daily,Tuesday-Friday 4pm-7.30pm and all dayon Monday until 11pm, and the drinkslist is cocktail-heavy.Sunday to Thursday 12pm-11pm,Friday and Saturday 12pm-12am.332-334 King’s Road, SW3 5URT: 020 7352 4071www.bigeasy.co.ukBlack & Blue£££Black & Blue, a restaurant group thatspecialises in steak and hamburgers,has taken over the site of the famousPicasso café on the King’s Road.Picasso was much-loved by locals andBluebird Restaurantwas a hangout for rock stars and celebs,including the Rolling Stones and EricClapton in the 1960s, and Bob Geldofand Gordon Ramsay in later years.The recession took its toll and it closedin 2009.The Black & Blue menu includes aselection of light lunches and more substantialmeals, primarily steaks, burgersand fish. There is an extensive wine list.Sunday-Thursday 8am-11pm, Fridayand Saturday 8am-11.30pm.127 King’s Road, SW3 4PWT: 020 7351 1661www.blackandbluerestaurants.comBluebird <strong>Chelsea</strong>£££Set in a striking 1920s Grade II-listedformer garage, this foodie hub has arestaurant, a bar, a café (see Cafés),an al fresco dining area, a food store anda wine shop (see Shopping).Terence Conran developed thebuilding in the 1990s as the BluebirdGastrodome, and it has since beentaken over by restaurant group D&DLondon. There’s also a shop sellingclothes, accessories, gifts and furnitureand a spa in the same complex (seeShopping and Spas).The restaurant is on the the first-floor –cut between the café and the al frescocourtyard and up the stairs on the lefthandside as you face the main building.The concrete steps lead into a largerestaurant flooded with natural light,with sleek, modern décor and an eyecatchingart deco-style chandelier overthe bar.The à la carte menu is made up ofmodern British dishes and classics witha twist, and the desserts include grownuptakes on childhood favourites. There’salso a lunch menu, a set lunch menuand a Sunday lunch menu, as well asbar snacks.Bluebird has four private dining rooms,
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