Eating and Drinking in Clapham Junction, Battersea

Last week was the St John’s Hill Fabulous Feast, a week long celebration of food and drink. It reminded us that St John’s Hill is a seriously good spot for food and drink.

You’ve got The Plough, Powder Keg Diplomacy, The Birdhouse, The Fish Club, Adulis and more… all of which surely makes it a wee bit more interesting than Northcote Road and probably the most exciting street for bars and restaurants in Battersea, especially as it’s a stone’s throw from Clapham Junction?!

So, what do we here at Ben’s Canteen bring to the street?

Ben's Canteen, St John's Hill, Battersea

Well we see ourselves as an all rounder, we aim to serve you a top notch coffee with brekkie or brunch, something tasty for lunch, a treat for tea and a cracking dinner with drinks being served via our bar all day and night.

Chiefly, we see ourselves as an alternative to the pub. Don’t get us wrong, we love a boozer but we got a bit bored of tap after tap of beer (most of them generic continental lagers) and numerous big screens with Sky Sports News on loop but where do you go to escape that? Whilst keeping everything equally relaxed? That’s what we strive to be.

We want to be that place where you can drop in on your own or grab some friends and catch up over drinks and simple but super tasty food. We love the fact that Clapham Junction is just a short stroll from the Canteen as it means you should be able to persuade your friends who live that little bit further away to drop in and hang out with you.

To help become this place we serve breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner every day. We serve British food, done well. We’re infamous for our All Day Breakfast Scotch Egg and the BC Burger has been named as one of the Top 10 in London.

Ben's Canteen Burger

Obviously to become your alternative to the pub we need plenty of booze, we’ve tried to make it interesting and a little different. So, we work with small independent brewers, such as local boys Sambrook’s. We’ve put together an interesting wine list that features some English wine, not least a sparkling one in the form of Primrose Hill by Chapel Down. We’ve put in a special Gin shelf which features gins from small London distillers such as Sipsmith, SW4 and Portobello Road.

Gin shelf at Ben's Canteen

Remember, that unlike a lot of new trendy hangouts, you can actually book a table at Ben’s Canteen - click here to reserve yours now.

The Fabulous Feast on St John’s Hill

The Fabulous Feast on St John’s Hill – a week of food & drink celebrations.

Dates: Monday 14th – 20th May 2012

During this special week, the restaurants, bars, pubs and cafes invite you to eat out on the Hill and perhaps to try something new. Each of the venues will offer set menus to diners for just £15 per head.
On the Saturday (19th May), the street will play host to an “Open Kitchen” when the Hill will be filled with LIVE food & drink events such as demos, tastings, workshops, talks and classes. Venues will take this opportunity to showcase their food & drink offerings, introducing their cuisine, demonstrating cooking processes, meeting suppliers and producers and much, much more. Plus! there will be a selection of visiting food & drink stalls and a mini farmers market, hosted both inside and outside the food & drink venues.The opening event of this week-long “celebration” of food & drink, will see a celebrity chef visit the Hill to cook a pop-up, evening meal at Ben’s Canteen. The super talented Ben Spalding will delight diners with a delicious 4 course meal, served in a supper club style (everyone will eat at the same time: 7.30pm) – places must be booked in advance for this special event and cost just £50 per head.

Features of the Open Kitchen Saturday 19th May:

FishClub: Attend the “School of Fish” as the owners of the Hill’s award winning fish & chips restaurant will host 4 workshops, running throughout the day. Small groups may learn how to prepare, cook and serve a starter or a main dish. Get your pinny on and learn how to cook and pick their fresh crab starter or the skill of filleting fish, to create one of their popular main dishes: mackerel & beetroot salad. Attendees must book places in advance – there will be a charge to attend these fishy master classes and you can choose to eat your dish at the end of the session, or take it home with you for eating later!

Powder Keg Diplomacy: Workshop with the Chef: How to cook the perfect steak – a cooking demonstration from PKD Head Chef – Warren Beesley
PLUS!
• Victorian Conjurer, Max Somerset, entertains with his bygone era tricks
• Punch Bowl tastings – sample some potent Spring Punch recipes
• Live Jazz by the Dalston Duet 5pm-6pm

The Plough: From Thursday, 17th – Sunday 20th we will be hosting the first ever completely indoor festival! Known as “The Plough Fest”. On Saturday the music starts at 1pm with a mix DJs & LIVE bands running until closing. The Plough team will also offer face-painting and Kopparberg taste testing, for that truly festival feel!

Ben’s Canteen: Mini farmer’s market featuring suppliers and producers who feature on the Canteen’s menu.

Other confirmed events: Bread making classes at Deli Boutique, Indian cuisine tastings at the Curry Leaf, Eritrean pancake making on traditional burners at Adulis, cocktail making master classes at Knights of St John, pizza making sessions at Tutti Tucci and Sri Lankan “high tea” with the team from Experience Travel.

Editors Notes:
Members of the press (online & offline media) are invited to enjoy a complimentary £15 menu place, at any participating restaurant, during The Fabulous Feast week. All we ask is to receive a mention of this project on your blog / website / page / column, including a link to StJohnsHill.co.uk, to appear before the week of the 14th-20th May.  To take up this offer, email emma@stjohnshill.co.uk  with the live link to the mention and the date/time/venue of your choice and your booking will be arranged for you.

Open Kitchen – Saturday 19th. The food & drink stalls will be open from 11am til 5pm. Some of the events, hosted by the venues will be offered free and there are paid ones too – check the details on the street website and book in advance wherever indicated.

This project is kindly sponsored by:
Ben’s Canteen: 140, St John’s Hill. www.BensCanteen.com
FishClub: 189, St John’s Hill. www.FishClub.com
The Plough: 89, St John’s Hill. www.ThePloughStJohnsHill.co.uk
Powder Keg Diplomacy: 147, St John’s Hill. www.PowderKegDiplomacy.co.uk
plus many other fantastic businesses on and off the Hill – see the full list on StJohnsHill.co.uk

Press contact:

Contact: Emma Jane Clark

Tel: 07786 006 304

Email: emma@stjohnshill.co.uk

Twitter @StJohnsHill

Facebook.com/StJohnsHill