As far as London neighborhood’s go, Battersea gets a bad rep on the food scene. Anyone living north, west or east would probably associate it with prams and Lycra-clad couples rather than a place to eat out – and to be honest, I thought the same until I opened my restaurant Archway here last year.

The impressive renovation of Battersea Power Station has attracted some well-known names to the area, including Dishoom, Le Bab, El Pastor and Thomas Straker’s flatbread concept inside the new Arcade Food Hall. It is, however, the independent, local restaurants that are really worth visiting.

In March 2023, I opened the doors to Archway – a seasonal, 55-cover Italian restaurant that is hidden down an alleyway under the railway arches of Battersea Park Station. Some say it’s hard to find, but I think the name offers something of a clue.
I’ve long had an idea to open a neighbourhood restaurant alongside the commercial kitchen that feeds the catering arm of my business, Spook, but it wasn’t until I moved our premises from Bermondsey to Battersea in 2021 that I felt it could be a success. There was a clear market in Battersea that wasn’t being tapped into, meaning the area was (and still is!) screaming out for the small, informal restaurants that have been so prominent in east London for the last 10 years.

The beauty of Battersea is the sense of community and loyalty among the people living here. We have customers who visit the restaurant four or five times a month and our team know many by name – and vice versa. We want to provide them with high-quality food and drink at a reasonable price in the hope that they’re just as likely to pop down on a Friday night for a glass of Tuscan red and a bowl of wild boar cavatelli as they are to push the boat out on birthdays with a table of celebratory cocktails, starters and a tomahawk steak.

We aren’t the only people doing this in the area. I hear great things about Ploussard, which serves natural wines and seasonal small plates near Clapham Junction. Closer to Vauxhall is Jackson Boxer’s Brunswick House – the food, setting and wine at which is all excellent. For something a bit more special, Evernight is an exceptional modern Japanese restaurant by the team behind The Clove Club.
These hard-working independents offer an authenticity that I love; you can feel the passion both on the plate and throughout every element of the restaurant – resulting in a fulfilling experience as a diner and a fondness for a business that I am happy to support and keen to return to. Here’s hoping our diners at Archway feel a sense of this when they put down their knife and fork too.