Much anticipated Sky Garden has opened at the top of soaring 20 Fenchurch Street.
Spread across floors 35, 36 and 37, the destination restaurants – comprising Sky Pod, Darwin Brasserie and Fenchurch Seafood Bar & Grill – offer all-day dining and drinking in the sky together with the highest rooftop gardens in London.
Overseeing the menu is culinary director Stephen Templeton and head chef Zac Whittle, together forming a power team at the top – from grab-and-go at Sky Pod to sit-down breakfast meets in Darwin, power lunches in the private dining room to gourmet dinner dates at Fenchurch Seafood Bar & Grill.
Add to that gorgeous green gardens by renowned landscape architect Gillespies, which elegantly envelope the restaurants on either side, and Sky Garden takes London dining to the next level, complete with sweeping panoramas across the city.
Sky Pod – seasons in the sky
Whisked up from the lobby to Level 35, guests are swept into stylish Sky Pod with views directly over the Thames.
The bright, beautiful café and cocktail bar takes “bringing the outdoors in” one step further by being London’s first truly seasonally-changing bar. Inspired by the four seasons, in autumn and winter months guests can enjoy delicious hot cocktails on sofas adorned with faux furs and cashmere blankets. Come spring and summer, drinkers can soak up sunshine style and tropical environs in the heart of the City with stylish deck chairs, boozy ice-cream shakes, and light bites at the bar.
At dusk, Sky Pod transforms from casual to chic: served in stunning glassware, creative concoctions include the likes of the Autumn Breeze, Bitter Truth and Thyme For Tea alongside classic and champagne cocktails. The British charcuterie sharing board can be accompanied by a High In The Sky – mandarin vodka, peach liqueur, fresh passionfruit, lime juice and champagne – as day turns to dark.
Darwin Brasserie – all-day, any occasion
Darwin Brasserie on Level 36 is where showstopping views and an all-day, any-occasion menu rule the roost. Soft lighting, light wood and buttery leather make it a comfortable place to relax for business or leisure, breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Starters include plump prawn cocktail with Bloody Mary dressing, razor-thin carpaccio of Scottish beef with truffled mascarpone and beetroot-cured smoked salmon with horseradish crème fraîche. Salads – Caesar, Niçoise – are accompanied by familiar classics like fish and chips and Goodwood estate pork belly while heartier mains run the gamut from braised ox cheeks to Cornish cod. The undisputed star of the show: the venison pie with glossy, slow-cooked game tucked beneath gorgeous golden puffed pastry.
Fenchurch Bar & Grill – power-lunching, fine-dining
Fine dining can be found at Fenchurch Bar & Grill on Level 37. Secreted away at the top, it features only west-facing views, putting the focus entirely on the food. With striking leather banquettes, sit-at seafood bar and private dining for 12 – perfect for exclusive events with 180-degree views – it’s a stylish space for lunch or dinner. A cocktail terrace, decked with tables and chairs, overlooks Sky Pod below and is the perfect people-watching perch.
Starters set things off with truffled Jerusalem artichoke soup with thyme brioche and smoked bacon butter; roast day boat scallops on glazed pork cheek with butternut squash purée; and salt-baked heritage beetroot with whipped goat’s cheese and toasted seeds. Signature seafood includes Duchy Native oysters and Cherrystone clams, Oscietra caviar and dressed crab, though the seafood platter allows a taster of everything. Serious meat-lovers will enjoy the Goodwood Estate lamb cutlets, grilled prawns and steaks every which way – including a 10oz fillet served on the bone.
Alternatively, there’s seating at the bar where bar bites include pig’s head croquettes with piccalilli and Welsh rarebit are the perfect accompaniments to the extensive cocktail list.
Elegant events
All three restaurants together with a separate events space and private dining room are available for private parties: from intimate groups of 20 through to glamorous gatherings of 450, Sky Garden is set to becomeone of 2015’splaces to party.
Sky Garden, 20 Fenchurch Street (via Philpot Lane), City of London, London, EC3M 3BY
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