A Modern Classic: Dining at Kentish Town’s Parakeet

The Parakeet is an open-fire fuelled beauty of a pub in Kentish Town with ex-Brat chef Ben Allen at the coals.

Kentish Town is food critic Giles Coren’s local ‘hood, so you need to be on your game to succeed here.

The Parakeet opened a couple of years ago and it became something of an instant classic.

The building is split into two very distinct sections - the pub for drinks and the dining room for food. I loved the art in the dining room and the use of greens and moody dark colours to create an inviting atmosphere. Right away you sense that this is a pretty special place - it looks fantastic and it wears its influences from Brat with pride but also a distinct sense of forging its own path.

Creamy oysters spiked with jalapeno were just perfect – and I loved discovering the fish collar with Singapore pepper sauce. We eat fish collar all the time in Greece on holiday but in Britain it gets thrown away, which is so sad as it’s delicious! The whole grilled sea bream with potatoes and leaves was to die for – perfectly cooked, tender and tasty.

For wines, sommelier Adam Lee expertly guided us through an extensive by the glass list, from which we took English Danbury Ridge, Pieropan from Soave and a lovely Aussie pinot from Yering Valley.

The Parakeet is a winner whether you want a pub, a restaurant or a little bit of both – well worth making the trip to Kentish Town for!

Elizabeth x