If you find yourself in Chelsea and in need of some food, then seek out The Pig’s Ear, an award-winning gastro pub and restaurant just minutes from the King’s Road.
The kitchen is headed up by Gavin Barbour, whose training included time at the Canteen Restaurant run by Marco Pierre White, and the menu is focused on seasonal, quality produce. Changing frequently, it aims to showcase modern British dishes. The pub itself is welcoming with a smaller dining area to the side and on busier evenings or weekends, an upstairs dining room. The decorations are somewhat eclectic, look out for the variety of stuffed animals and butterflies scattered around!
To begin we chose the grilled goats cheese and beetroot salad with pecan dressing and the pan fried squid, chorizo, feta, baby spinach and crispy capers. Placed on top of the beetroot to let the flavour drip down, the goat’s cheese was creamy and full of flavour but not overwhelmingly strong. A selection of beetroot was mixed with rocket and went well with the nutty dressing. Always a fan of squid and chorizo, the squid was cooked perfectly, none of the dreaded rubber rings here. Chorizo makes everything taste delicious in our opinion but pairs particularly well with squid and the crispy capers and feta added a saltiness to the dish.
For our mains we opted for 28-day aged Hereford Ribeye, baby watercress, fries and peppercorn sauce. A pub always seems like an appropriate time to have a steak and this was certainly a good one. Tender, cooked to perfection and served with a light and creamy peppercorn sauce, the quality of the meat really shone through. You can’t go wrong with a good steak!
We also sampled the slow roasted pork belly, carrot puree, Bromley apple and black pudding croquettes and red wine sauce. Always a touch wary about pork belly after a bad experience of all fat and no meat, we needn’t have worried. The cut had enough fat to add flavour but not so much you’re picking it apart. The crackling (the best part of any pork surely?!) was crispy, the croquettes added saltiness and the carrot puree something sweet. It was truly delicious.
With the ever-changing menu this is a pub to remember – we can see how a quick pint could turn into a three course meal. Whoops!
For more information, visit: thepigsear.info
