Poppies’ fourth London venue opened this week with reports of a steady flow of both tourists and local residents.
The restaurant in Portobello Road, West London, follows the success of its branches in Spitalfields, Soho and Camden. As well as the same cosy and nostalgic ambience that customers have come to expect from Poppies, the new site incorporates a host of unique design features from its days as a bank and a butchers.
These include a replica bank checkerboard floor, wooden panelling and incorporation of the original Bank’s vault and money drop chute. Meanwhile a quirky ‘Ketchup Corner’ painted in Lick Paint’s limited edition RED HTK 57 is said to capture the perfect shade of ‘ketchup red’. This is all overseen by a portrait of the late Pat ‘Pop’ Newland, the original founder of Poppies.
Open from 11am to 11pm, Poppies Portobello Road serves fresh cod and haddock sourced from the North Sea coated in Pop’s original batter recipe and served with chunky chips from potatoes grown and harvested in Cambridgeshire.
Pop’s son Danny Newland comments: ”Poppies, like Portobello Road, is dedicated to preserving London’s rich traditions and history which makes it the perfect fit but even so we have been overwhelmed by the warm welcome from the local community. So many people have come by to say hello and one lovely stallholder even brought us flowers!
“We’ve established some great partnerships already, for example sourcing fresh lemons from Devllin’s greengrocers who are legends around the market having worked there across three generations now.
“We’ve seen a steady flow of customers throughout the day – predominantly tourists in the daytime taking the opportunity to refuel with some fish and chips while browsing the market. In the evening, it’s local residents stopping by for a bite to eat after work.”
“As far as openings go, we couldn’t be happier and already feel like one of the gang.”
