Tower House restaurant and bar in Richmond has been open for a year now and has really taken off. Situated in a 19th century clock tower that used to be home to The Pitcher and Piano pub it’s been vastly improved. When we used to go there, I always thought that with their spectacular location, the space could be made more appealing. Well, now the sister restaurant to Gold in Notting hill has done just that and more. They’ve taken what is an almost unbeatable location, with gorgeous river views and turned it into a cosy, plant filled, low lit, casually chilled destination. We turned up on the off chance of a table in the riverside garden and got lucky – they encourage walk-ins and keep good tables and bar counter seats especially, but the outside space is entirely for walk-ins and it’s pretty big. I hope they bring out the heaters and keep it going through the winter as it would be a waste not to be able to sit outside and enjoy the sweeping views of the River Thames at it’s best, even when it’s cold.
The food was delicious and the service was excellent. All very relaxed. They offer a wonderful choice of Mediterranean sharing dishes, as well as a great selection of classic cocktails and a great wine list. It’s not cheap, but for a special occasion, it’s well worth it.
We had a feta, grape, radicchio, shallot salad (£16) which was sublime:-
We also had the Burrata, peach and parma ham dish:-
Chargrilled squid, rocket, lemon and chilli (£27)
Wood roasted half free range chicken, ‘nduja, Parma ham and sourdough (£29.50) – enough to share:-
And for “pudding” we went for Espresso Martini’s which were excellent:-
You can see from the view taken from above the size of the outside space and to the left, the other restaurants along the river, including Scott’s further down the road, much loved by the Ted Lasso crowd and more formal:-
This restaurant, above all else, has an exceptionally soulful vibe which makes you feel like you’re on holiday. I would say that the downstairs space inside and out, definitely has the better atmosphere than upstairs. Behind us on the terrace there was a 30th birthday party going on with chilled music and flowing champagne. It’s a real jewel along the river and I’m now worried because my daughter wants to go there for her birthday — which will mean a much larger group of us and an inevitably hefty bill. If only I could stop them all drinking wine so quickly!
