BISTRO BY SHOT, PARSON'S GREEN

I love having beauty treatments and my all time favourite is a 90 minute rose facial at The Organic Pharmacy - it is amazing and a real treat. Although after a facial I never look my best as my hair is super greasy from the oil and my face is blotchy from the extractions. So when I arranged to go for supper with my lovely friend Ceri on Saturday night after my treatment, I requested that we go somewhere low key as I wasn't looking particularly glam!

We decided on Bistro By Shot, a petite, cosy French-Italian all day dining venue in Parson's Green. It is relatively new and I had read good reviews in local magazines. It also has two very popular sister restaurants/cafes in Fulham Broadway.

We perused the menu - it was different than the one online which confused me as obviously I had already chosen what I wanted to eat!

Anyway I easily chose again - the seared foie gras with red onion jam and toast followed by the saddle of lamb, olive mash, confit shallots, curly kale and garlic puree. Ceri also chose the foie gras and then she decided on the duck breast, polenta croquette, broccoli puree and honey sauce.

Unfortunately there was only one portion of foie gras left and so we decided to share the one dish as well as having a cheese and charcuterie platter.

While we waited for the starter to arrive, we were given some asparagus tempura which were great, very light, and I always believe a complimentary extra course is a very nice touch.

The cheese and charcuterie platter was a delight - plenty of cured meats and saucisson, cornichons and 4 different cheeses….I am not sure what they exactly were but they were all delicious, especially the soft blue cheese. There was more than enough for two of us and I expect I will be back very soon to share this with my husband Pascal - he would love it.

The seared foie gras was very good, it melted in your mouth, however the portion was minuscule and after we mentioned this to the waiter, he immediately offered to take it off our bill. Unfortunately they were seriously running low on foie gras that night!

I adored my main - the lamb was cooked pink and was so tender, the mash was soft and flavoursome with lots of olives, and the kale with garlic puree was out of this world.

Ceri's duck breast with broccoli puree and honey sauce was also delicious however the croquettes had a funny flavour to them - we couldn't work out what spice had been added but neither of us were keen on it (obviously I had to taste it too)!

The pudding menu looked good especially the macaroons and the chocolate fondant but we were stuffed. We did however finish off with a couple of chocolate truffles which were the perfect way to round off the meal.

All is all the food was excellent, we really enjoyed it. The service was extremely friendly and polite but it was also very, very slow - there weren't enough staff working. Hopefully this was just a one off occurrence. The restaurant is reasonably priced and I expect it is also a good venue for breakfast and lunch (they also do a set menu). I am also keen to join them on a Friday night (6pm-8pm) for "aperitivo" where you can eat as many canapés as you like for £4…..I will be there in elasticated trousers so I can really get involved!!

Bistro By Shot

28 Parson's Green Lane,
London
SW6 4HS
Tel: 020 7371 7533
Email: info@bistrobyshot.com