Tucked away on Bruton Place is where you’ll find Bellamy’s, Her Maj’s most visited restaurant, where she has donned her finest co-ords and dined for events including her own 80th birthday and, most recently, an intimate supper with Princess Anne and cousin Princess Alexandra in 2016. Named after the gentlemen’s club in Evelyn Waugh’s Sword of Honour books, its doors were opened in 2004 by long-standing proprietor and master of discretion, Gavin Rankin. Since then, the appearance of the 65-seat French brasserie has barely changed.
The definition of smart-casual, around the bustling room, constantly tinkling with the sound of cutlery, you’ll find diners wearing jeans on one table and dinner jackets on another. The menu, Rankin says, is ‘a classic French brasserie style with small twists for modern tastes. It’s all about the quality of the ingredients. There are no elaborate sauces to hide behind, dishes are naked under the spotlight.’ Chef Stéphane Pacoud’s long-time staples include a smoked eel mouse — rumoured to have been enjoyed by Queenie herself — iced lobster soufflé and sliced entrecote, all designed to be served with the spot’s bold, exclusively French wine list.
