Sitting in a quiet cut-through to Shepherd’s Bush Tube and Westfield, commuters and shoppers tend to walk right past K West.
The out of the way location is compounded by its curious white metallic structure – with discreet white curtains in the front windows, saucily lit with neon blues, pinks and purples, it is uncertain what is contained within this ivory box surrounded by Georgian town houses.
Stepping in from the cold, we were greeted by a sumptuous hotel lobby, with modern low bar couches and an edgy cocktail list hinting at its four star hotel guests.
Will and I headed upstairs to the Kanteen restaurant, a cosy, bijou dining area with the hubbub of the bar downstairs echoing between the mezzanine floor and quirky art pieces – for sale – of Oriental women hanging beside the tables.
Our waiter greeted us warmly and was attentive throughout, reflecting the top class service. Will tucked into the goat’s cheese salad with walnut dressing and beetroot (£6) with hardly a second thought for the pear and stilton – no longer on the menu – he had hoped for.
The cheese was warm and its salty, creamy scent tickled my senses across the table.
Opting for a warm salad of haloumi, butternut squash and rocket (£11) for my main, I begrudgingly decided against an overload of cheese and chose the Parma ham and figs drizzled with a thick balsamic dressing (£8) to start. The balance of the soft seedy innards and the softened peel gave just enough bite and watery sweetness to accompany the generous slices of salty ham.
Wanting a lighter main than the spaghetti and chilli prawn suggested by our waiter, he persuaded me to have some prawns in my main salad. Large and fleshy, they added a meaty dose to an already surprisingly filling salad, and were a delightful addition to the soft and crispy haloumi bites. Pomegranate seeds added a refreshing burst of sweetness to each salty bite for an exciting beefed-up salad.
Will scoffed down his beer-battered fish and chips (£13) which came with an elegant take on mushy peas in the form of a minty puree.
We washed it down with a robust bottle of Merlot before enjoying a cheeky cocktail in the bar on our departure – an exotic mango caipirinha (£10.50) for me and an sophisticated white Russian (£10.50) for my man.
The food was elegant without being pretentious and the buzzy bar means Kanteen offers more than an average stuffy hotel diner. And if you can make a night of it, book a room and enjoy the luxury spa with hydrotherapy pool, sauna and sanarium.
