LDNReview
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
Maggie Jones's
This spot is Temporarily Closed.
Included In
What do you stare at 800 times a day, feel entirely lost without, and check for before you leave the house? No, not your partner. Or your child. Okay, maybe your child. But we’re talking about your phone. Your little omniscient pal that once prevented you from having to ask a passing fox for the best route to Old Street roundabout at 6am. Where would you be without it?
At Maggie Jones’s, that’s where. And you won’t even miss it.
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
This old school Kensington restaurant is the kind of place where you’re too busy leaning over a candle, chatting, and shovelling fish pie in your mouth, to even think about your phone. It serves simple, British classics that could easily be dismissed as tasting home-made. So, the roast rump of lamb comes with a choice of peas and bacon or cauliflower and cheese, and your mate might inexplicably have a couple more potatoes on their plate. It’s you, cooking at home, being bold with the saffron. Only better. Much better.
Take the stilton mousse starter. It’s a fluffy ball of tangy cheese with little triangles of toast. If you tried to make it at home you’d probably end up weeping, with a microwave that forever smells of wensleydale. Here it’s an absolute banger. Will you want to pick up old faithful and tell all 338 of your closest friends about it? Nope. You’ll be too involved in a bit of IRL messaging that we think used to be called ‘conversation’.
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
The food is only a small part of the reason that Maggie Jones’s quickly feels like the kind of place you’re going to have a real problem leaving. When you first walk in you’re not sure if you’ve stumbled upon a hoarder’s wet dream or the set of Poldark. There’s baskets of dried out flowers, saddles, and the odd tin watering can all hanging from the ceiling. And every available surface is covered in candles. You’ll either fear you’ve found the stash house of The Great Rocking Horse Robbery of 1922 and flee in a panic, or be entirely willing to overlook any potential fire hazards, and love it in all of its cosy, twee, home county glory.
Of course, with all that charm and a W8 postcode, this place isn’t cheap. Starters, sides, £20 mains, wine, and the mandatory apple crumble, quickly stack up. But you’re paying for the feeling that Heathcliff might pop around your church pew and have a natter over dessert. You’re paying for your thumbs to get some well-deserved R&R from messaging, swiping, and liking. After dinner at Maggie Jones’s, you might just be willing to give up your phone for good. Even if it means having to ask urban wildlife for directions home.
Food Rundown
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
Stilton Mousse
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
Maggie’s Creamed Fish Pie
Peas And Bacon
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
Roasted Rump Of Lamb With Rosemary And Garlic
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
Cauliflower Cheese
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch
Sea Bream Fillets, Fennel And Saffron Sauce
photo credit: Karolina Wiercigroch