Chelsea Arts Club in Kensington and Chelsea

Now this is a private members' club, so you cannot walk in off the street to eat an incredible meal. I was lucky enough to be invited to lunch by my beloved step-mother, wife of the dear man who took on the role of being my father for many years, himself a painter who mixed his own egg tempera and made my life and hers quite magical. This was our first face-to-face since his death, so apologies to the people sitting next to us, as I did sob quite a bit. I miss him terribly, and am awfully sorry that she is now a widow, as she loved him as much as I did. Counterpoint to such sadness was a sudden full-budget thunderstorm with hail, huge raindrops, and theatrical thunder, which everyone enjoyed, because nobody at Chelsea Arts is scared of lightning. They are all too old, or too brave or too deaf, and in the middle of this amazement, the food arrived. This is the kind of cooking that would tempt a dying child: small torn pieces of salty, milky, buttery Italian mozzarella, sprinkled with tiny cubes of fresh, intense, raw or perfectly cooked vegetables, transparent curls of cucumber and a warm, comforting, sweet-savoury and slightly mustardy dressing; the raising-up of simple stuff to perfect. My main course was river trout. A crispy skin as foil to the fall-apart perfect piece of tender fish bejewelled with a sprinkling of orange roe and other surprises. For a greedy person, these small, perfect portions were surprisingly satisfying, and their beauty on the plate was most painterly. For pudding, a perfect amount of blackberry clafoutis and a spoon-rolled dab of cold-coffee ice cream, but the icing on the cake - assuming I could squeeze any more in - was meeting Bryn and Hannah Terfel - recognised by my stepmother - in the street where my stepfather lived in the 1970s. If only I'd been pushy enough to follow them home for a sing-song. Perhaps next time. Three courses with two glasses of wine for two people, for a very reasonable £100.

This is a member club only (but I got into as a guest) and in my 30 years of living in London I have been lucky to have few member friends so I came here few times! Last month was the last time and the club seems frozen in time but the drinks are lovely and the place is really an institution! I think that everyone know the Chelsea Art Club because of the changing decorations on the outside walls (sometimes…erm…strange…naff…bizzarre!).

A fabulous meal and wonderful evening with an impromptu opera singer giving an amazing performance. An invitation is necessary. Could not recommend it more highly.

Nos invitaron a cenar poco después de que se levantara el bloqueo. Tan pronto como nos sentamos en el jardín y ofrecimos bebidas, el gerente general se acercó para dar la bienvenida a los miembros (nuestros anfitriones). Eso marca el tono de la noche. Servicio atento pero discreto en todo. El entorno es encantador: sentarse en un jardín con una carpa marroquí y velas a primera hora de la tarde. . . y un gran vaso de ros. Comimos muy bien, una sopa deliciosa (un plato tan subestimado y, sin embargo, una buena sopa es pura alegría) seguida de un asado impecable. Éramos invitados, así que no sé exactamente cuánto, pero nuestro anfitrión no se atragantó ni se puso a remolacha en la cara cuando se le presentó la factura, así que supongo que muy buena relación calidad-precio. ¡Encuentra a alguien que te lleve si aún no tienes la suerte de ser miembro!

Un club exclusivo para miembros (a menos que, como yo, esté invitado como miembro invitado) Es un refugio encantador para artistas, autores, etc., en un encantador edificio fortuito, con un excelente restaurante, salón / bar, área de jardín y habitaciones para los miembros. piso de arriba. El personal conoce bien a sus miembros y los trata como amigos mientras ofrece una cocina encantadora y tradicional.