The wharf
Last October, 43-year-old Ray Neve set up shop at the Wharf, a two-tiered, 180-seat restaurant overlooking the Thames, right on London's Teddington Lock. The menu, according to Neve, "is a little bit of my eclectic past". With stints during the 1980s in France (including time at the celebrated Troisgros in Roanne) as well as two years between 1996 and 1998 at the Bankers' Club in Kuala Lumpur, it will come as no surprise that this means modern European with various Asian splashes.
One of Neve's favourite starters is the flaked snapper and coconut salad with Szechwan pickled vegetables (£8), which uses pink ginger and coriander to give a sweet heat, balanced by shredded lime leaves. Though the Asian influence is popular - "Yellow pumpkin and seafood curry flies out of the kitchen" - Neve confesses he had to hold back after a dish of tuna sashimi remained largely unordered.
Other, safer starters from the lengthy 10-strong dinner choice (there are seven choices at lunch) include grilled sardines with a simple balsamic, lemon and olive oil dressing (£6.50) or moules marinières (£5.50/£9.50). Both sell a "phenomenal amount", says Neve.
He defends the menu's broad reach on the grounds of his clientele. "We are a neighbourhood restaurant. We're not aspiring to be a Michelin-starred restaurant with 40 people in the kitchen," he says. "I wouldn't want to do that."
Being next to the river, the kitchen plates up plenty of fish. Among the choice of 10 main dishes is one that particularly pleases Neve: an ossobuco of monkfish (£15.50), topped with crispy mange-tout and sitting on a saffron risotto. Although this particular serving received rather a pasting from the Daily Telegraph's food critic, Jan Moir, recently, who described it as "manhandled, rather than cooked", Neve defends the dish. He argues that, as a dense-fleshed swimmer, the monkfish roasts well on the bone in ossobuco style and is able to stand up to the sticky-textured risotto. A zesty lift is added with a traditional dash of lemony gremolata.
In general, main courses are European, though the globetrotting is still evident: a crispy-skinned sea bass (£15.50) topped with a very strong and tangy chermoula - a garlic, coriander, cumin and lemon paste from Morocco - for example. For customers wanting a pasta fix, there are always two dishes, such as gnocchi with young spinach, tomatoes, basil and chilli (£7 as a starter, £9.50 as a main).
Among the puddings, a tasting plate ("not an ‘assiette'," emphasises Neve) of three desserts is proving popular: it combines crème brûleée, panettone bread and butter pudding with toffee, and lemon tart (£11).
Despite being chef-proprietor, Neve prefers not to take the title of head chef. At most services, he has a kitchen brigade of three, which occasionally goes up to six at weekends when the kitchen might do well over 100 covers. The brigade, all of whom worked at the Wharf before Neve took over, operate under head chef Nick Marfe.
At weekends the bar area livens up, and diners are moved on to the heated and covered terrace. This makes for a great dining location in the summer or for brunch on Sundays. "We want a bit of hustle and bustle," says Neve. "We don't want to be pretentious. So maybe the music gets a bit noisy, but it's a nice atmosphere." n
The Wharf Restaurant, Bar and Grill, 22 Manor Road, Teddington, Middlesex TW11 8BG.
Tel: 020 8977 6333
Web:www.walk-on-water.co.uk
By Dan Bignold
What's on the menu
* Beetroot-cured salmon, Cornish crab, pink ginger and lemon vinaigrette (£8)
* Honey-roasted winter vegetable soup, Parmesan crostini (£5)
* Roasted artichokes, portobello mushrooms with asparagus, red peppers, Parmesan and truffle oil (£7.50)
* Seafood, saffron and Champagne risotto, Parmesan crisp (£12)
* Roasted breast of young pheasant à la bourguignonne, braised red cabbage (£12.50)
* The Wharf steak burger, bacon, melted cheese with fries, dill pickle and relish (£9)
* Selection of cheeses (£11)
Chef's cheat
To lighten a savoury or white wine-based cream sauce, or a café au lait-coloured sauce, finish with a spoonful of whipped cream and whisk it back to the boil. Also, use cayenne pepper, as it blends well with the sauce.
