Name: Sartoria
Item: Sartoria
Author: Fiona Jarvis

Well last week was a story of highs and lows. Went to the fantastic Hedone restaurant, my TV broke and I went to a Tech Meets Creative event which was an inaccessible step too far ! On a positive note we had a great response to our call out for people to sit on our Disability Action Panel. We still need more people of all ages to join. So get in touch and help us change the perception of disability & style.

Hedone , in Chiswick had a mention previously and the hype about the cooking was well deserved. It’s received a Michelin Star within 18 months of opening and you can taste the Swedish influences of the Chef, in that the food tasted clean and all the flavours were as you’d expect i.e. without too much added salt, butter or sugar. Lieutenant No.1 was a bit below par (nice to know my personal trainer isn’t in perfect health & can get ill too) and even he said it was some of the best food he’d ever tasted. I had the scallops followed by the duck and he had a deconstructed egg followed by the lamb. The best for me was the dessert of a ‘Floating Island’ which was a white fluffy mousse in a sauce of beetroot. Sounds weird but tasted divine. It’s also very accessible with a fully equipped disabled toilet and a ramp to the entrance. The tables were high enough for the wheelchair to fit under, there was plenty of room to manoeuvre and the staff were extremely helpful. Hedone gets a well deserved, maximum 3 BBS Ticks.

Going to Hedone reminded me of two restaurants I’ve been to many times but never reviewed – Sartoria and The Ledbury, both in London and restaurants that are amongst my Global Top Ten. Sartoria is in Savile row and gets its fair share of ‘fasionistas’. There’s a great bar serving cocktails as good as any I’ve tried. Its a DandD restaurant and Italian in flavour. The access is fine but if it’s wet the glass ramp can be slippy but the staff (usually good looking Italians) are always happy to assist (in a non-intrusive way). It’s reportedly one of Terence Conran’s favourites and I have seen him there. The disabled toilet has room to move but the door is a bit heavy. I’ve been going there for years and always have the Lobster Linguine with Lugana, Ca dei Frati wine as recommended by their brilliant Sommelier, Michael Simms. Its a calm environment without being boring or too quiet. The decor is great too with plenty of Armani ‘greige’. The carpet is a bit plush for walking/wheeling on but get a table near the tiled floor for ease of getting around. They also have 3 BBS Ticks.

The Ledbury I’ve also been to many times over the years and love the relaxed atmosphere along with the superb food. This is where I first had a chocolate souffle dunked with honeycomb. God I feel hungry! It’s a 2 Michelin Star restaurant with the well known Australian chef Brett Graham who also collaborates at The Harwood Arms, reviewed here.

Apparently during the 2011 riots, they were attacked by about fifteen youths and myth has it that the kitchen staff came out wielding knives to protect their customers. Always a good thing in my book and only endears me more to The Ledbury. The access is via a ramp and the disabled toilet is behind reception. The Ledbury also gets 3 BBS Ticks.

So onto my technology challenges of the week . I’m not going to dwell on the negative but please don’t invite me to events where accessibility is a ‘secondary thought’. This was an event in politically correct Camden where I was invited to network with Tech & Creatives in a warehouse up 2 flights of stairs – for once I just gave up! I also had a day long chat with Sky when my TV had to be replaced and my Sky + Box didn’t like it. I had to rebuild the ‘planner’ and connect and reconnect many times. Shame they don’t realise this is difficult in a wheelchair – please Sky Support give us some special attention (oh but they do and I’ve just found it hidden on their website here )! Maybe reduced call out charges for Engineers to visit would help – anyone agree let us know. In the end I resolved the issue but I now feel I deserve a treat at Sartoria or The Ledbury, but wait a minute I’ve got the BBS ‘Wheeled in Chelsea’ event to look forward to …. more of that to come, see you next week.

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Sartoria

Sartoria

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