The Ivy Chelsea Garden - Restaurant Review

Cuisine: International
Style Point: 5/5
Overall: 5/5

Covid-19 Safety Measures:

Thermal cameras for temperature checks of both staff and diners as they enter
Well-spaced tables with plastic barriers between them when required
Out-door tables available
Restaurant is deep cleaned and disinfected on a daily basis

The Ivy Chelsea Garden recently opened its doors again to an eager crowd. I dined there for a mid-week lunch and it was nice to see a healthy buzz in the restaurant - quite reminiscent to pre-Covid times in fact!

It’s safe to say that like the restaurant, the decor was flourishing too. The Ivy Chelsea Garden never fails to impress when it comes to its interiors and this most certainly hasn’t changed. The exterior of the restaurant is flush with beautiful flowers and plants, as is the terrace area towards the back of the restaurant. Beyond this is the magnificent garden area with the most coveted tables in the restaurants, as they are surrounded by spectacular foliage, fountains and, on the Summer’s day, bathed in sunshine too.

Covid Safety Measures:

Although many of the tables were full when we dined there, the tables were well spaced out with discreet plastic barriers between them where required. Additionally the whole restaurant is professionally deep cleaned and disinfected on a daily basis.

The Ivy Chelsea Garden has even gone the extra mile by installing thermal cameras for temperature checks of both staff and diners as they enter.

The Food?

I dined from the a la carte menu, which I’ve tried variations of in the other Ivy Restaurants, so we decided to be more adventurous with our choices this time round. The restaurant also has a specials menu for those who have also tried a few of the dishes already.

To start, we tried the Laverstoke Park Farm buffalo mozzarella, which was served with grapes, mint, parsley and crunchy hazelnuts for the added texture. We also tried the crab and apple salad which was served with cucumber, watermelon, radish and edamame.

For my main course I sampled the blackened cod fillet, which is baked in a banana leaf with a soy and sesame marinade, and is served with citrus pickled fennel, grilled broccoli, chilli and yuzu mayonnaise. This dish was full of delicious asian flavours which complemented the subtleties of the cod very well. We also tried, from the specials menu, the haddock with a velvety lemon butter sauce.

Desserts at The Ivy are always a joy and I couldn’t wait to give it try. Considering the warm weather we decided to cool down with a delightful strawberry ice cream sundae which included vanilla ice cream with meringue, shortbread and a warm strawberry sauce. This was a gorgeous, light, dessert full of fresh Summer flavours.

We also tried vanilla cheesecake which was highly recommended by the staff. It arrived with mango, passion fruit and a tropical sorbet which made it creamy, sharp and sweet all in one delicious bite!

We ended our meal with a cappuccino and a vanilla shakerato, which is made up of espresso shaken with ice, served in a martini glass - a delightful non-alcoholic alternative to espresso martini.

Price?

Our meal without drinks came up to £80 for two people. However The Ivy Chelsea Garden is taking part in the Eat Out to Help Out Campaign with a set menu which would normally be £30 for 2 courses of £35 for 3 courses which is immensely great value for money.

Overall?

I was impressed with the beauty of The Ivy Chelsea Gardens, as the exterior and the interiors are designed, and landscaped, to a superior level. Each dish we tried was full of flavour and presented impeccably. Add to that the friendly nature of the staff and it makes The Ivy Chelsea Gardens a very enjoyable lunch or dinner destination - definitely worth the risk of stepping onto the London underground to get there!