Fallow Restaurant initially launched as a three-month pop-up on Heddon Street and managed to remain open during pandemic lockdowns before finding permanent lodging on St James’s Market, continuing their emphasis on nose-to-tail, root-to-stem dining.
Will Murray and Jack Croft of former Dinner by Heston Blumenthal fame are responsible for the kitchen at Mayfair. With a focus on innovative food preparation with sustainable thinking principles in mind, their menu emphasizes creative cooking using only retired dairy cows for beef that has been aged well to bring out its umami taste.
Corn ribs
Fallow Restaurant has opened in St James’s in London and offers sustainable creativity from two Dinner by Heston alumni behind it. Their menu aims to celebrate sustainable thinking and conscious creativity as evidenced in its name (‘dormant’)!
Fans of the original Heddon Street residency will be happy to know that many of their favourite dishes from that restaurant can now be enjoyed here, with some new offerings as well. The menu has small and large plates as well as a grill section and raw bar; all designed to be shared.
As part of our visit, we sampled delicious dishes like the creamy and smoky stracciatella with lovage; corn ribs (not actually ribs!) which come seasoned with an irresistibly flavorful kombu seasoning; as well as their ethically sourced menu of dairy cow cuts and cabbage dishes.
Ben, the head sommelier, offered us helpful recommendations from an impressive wine list. While we were drawn to try their unique rhubarb and custard cocktail (it tasted similar to our favourite treat!), we ultimately went for Malagouzia with our grilled smoked cheese dish instead, which went beautifully together. And to top it all off for dessert: pumpkin souffle with ginger ice-cream was divine!
Mushroom parfait
Fallow Restaurant opened in St James’s less than two years ago and quickly established an outstanding reputation, often reserved for much more established eateries. People frequently refer to it with reverence, with certain dishes quickly becoming celebrity status. No wonder; their front of house team are kind and helpful; the atmosphere luxurious without feeling stuffy; and most importantly – their food interesting without comprising deliciousness.
Jack Croft and William Murray, two chefs who gained their start at household names such as Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, possess an eye for innovation. The dining room looks like a quasi-food lab with its drippy seaweed installation and floating shelves filled with strange contraptions sprouting giant mushrooms (the chefs even boast their own mushroom growing “treehouse”!).
The menu was thoughtfully constructed to highlight lesser-used ingredients and reduce waste in the kitchen, and to highlight lesser-used produce that often gets overlooked. Not only is this noble, but clever chefs use their admirable principles as inspiration to come up with combinations that take humble produce to new heights of excellence.
Fallow has made waves with its mushroom parfait – an irresistibly velvety treat made of mushrooms from both their temperature-controlled DIY treehouse as well as those left by Dinner by Heston Blumenthal’s veg section, it delivers unmistakable umami and meaty richness in every bite!
Cod’s head
After several months as a pop-up and two brief lockdowns, Fallow has returned to St James’s as an inviting space designed to showcase Will Murray and Jack Croft’s creative cooking and sustainable thinking philosophy. Both former flying chefs met and worked at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal before meeting again here and sharing this philosophy; hence their menu which offers snacks, small plates and larger dishes from the raw bar and grill.
Food at This Place Is Amazing is impressively good, even when pushing the boundaries of sustainability (like cod’s head – usually reserved for stocks but instead served in an irresistibly tasty Sriracha butter sauce) while their mushroom dishes were truly phenomenal; we tried pureed Shiitake mushroom with caramelised grey oyster mushrooms and flatbread drizzled with fragrant Kombu oil – delicious!
As a finale, don’t miss the pumpkin souffle with ginger ice-cream. A perfect autumnal dessert and way to ease yourself into the festive season! As for beverages, Ben the head sommelier (along with co-owner Kelvin McCabe from Hackney Coterie) offers suggestions from their selection of European wines (but you may find an occasional New World bottle), such as Malagouzia and Assyrtiko that went perfectly with our meal.
Cabbage with chestnuts
Fallow may be small on Heddon Street, but its impact in St James’s restaurant scene is hugely significant. Star chefs Will Murray and Jack Croft from Dinner by Heston’s alumni Will Murray deliver on their promise of creative cooking with sustainable thinking – elevating lesser-used ingredients with flair such as cabbage being given new life with charred and confited sections served alongside umami-rich black garlic puree and miso butter for an incredible meal experience!
Stir-frying cabbage elevates it from soggy cabbage territory and keeps its texture crunchy (though vacuum-packed cabbage works just as well). For this recipe, chop and saute shallots and bacon until golden before stirring in cabbage for three minutes of stir frying until it just wilts but remains slightly crunchy. Remove from heat, mix flour, softened butter, mustard to form a paste before whisking it back into cabbage to bring to simmer and season to taste before scattering with roasted chestnuts before serving alongside homemade bread from home-baked bread from home-baked bread from home-baked bread made from home-baked bread made from scratch by house-baked bread-makers!
Seaweed installations resembling stalactites and bars strewn with strange cubic contraptions sprouting mushrooms add an air of curiosity to this space, which features lofty heights and deep wood and dark marble floors. Their wine list offers exclusively European wines at reasonable prices; most bottles fall between PS70-75 per bottle – we enjoyed Malagouzia and Assyrtiko blends for PS45.