Selected Restaurant

Porters English Restaurant

17 Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, London, WC2E 8QH

In 1979, Porters English Restaurant was opened by The 7 th Earl of Bradford, for those times, a restaurateur extraordinaire; not every day does an English Earl, either then or now, expand his interests beyond the ancestral acres to set up shop within the highly competitive London restaurant market. Lord Bradford, who wears his title lightly, said at the launch, "Porters English Restaurant will give a lot of people good, simple, traditional English dishes in comfortable surroundings, at very reasonable prices!" If every politician kept their word as well as he has done the world might be a better place. Porters does not set out to be a classy restaurant. Instead, in homely surroundings that smack of bistro turned brasserie, they serve food and drink that is easily recognisable as genuinely comfortable grub, relished by far more people than might be supposed if you paid too much attention to the culinary media.

In 1979, Porters English Restaurant was opened by The 7th Earl of Bradford, for those times, a restaurateur extraordinaire; not every day does an English Earl, either then or now, expand his interests beyond the ancestral acres to set up shop within the highly competitive London restaurant market. Lord Bradford, who wears his title lightly, said at the launch, "Porters English Restaurant will give a lot of people good, simple, traditional English dishes in comfortable surroundings, at very reasonable prices!" If every politician kept their word as well as he has done the world might be a better place.

Porters does not set out to be a classy restaurant. Instead, in homely surroundings that smack of bistro turned brasserie, they serve food and drink that is easily recognisable as genuinely comfortable grub, relished by far more people than might be supposed if you paid too much attention to the culinary media.

So for starters keep an eye lifted for Norfolk dressed crab, the ever popular roast tomato and basil soup, creamy and with that tell-tale colour which proclaims the real thing, and chicken liver pâté with brandy and garlic, with homade red onion marmalade.

At the outset Porters was mainly about pies, and whilst the balance has shifted, they remain a staple dish. Little wonder then that steak, Guinness and mushroom pie stands still as Porters's perennial bestseller. No fancy recipe, you get what it says, and like all other main courses it is served with one of a number of traditional accompaniments, of which chips and baked potatoes are well up the list.

Loyalty is suitably expressed by Buckingham pie, venison for the Scots, beef for the English, leeks for the Welsh, and redcurrants or puff pastry, depending on your point of view but just as welcome, for the Irish. The wild boar and sage sausages are a real treat for the connoisseur of such delicacies, in the same ranking as the braised beef and herb faggots, with onion and ale gravy.

Grills at Porters are chargrilled over hot coals for full flavour retention, and include a 16oz Aberdeen Angus T-Bone steak, 28 day hung and cooked to your preference and served peppered, plain or with a Béarnaise sauce and caramelised onions. Puddings follow the same traditional course and include steamed syrup sponge, dark chocolate chip pudding, burnt Trinity cream with a tangy damson base, and wonderful homemade ice cream.

As with so many things English, afternoon tea is an event at Porters, complete with bottomless cups, traditional fruit scones, clotted cream and strawberry jam, and other more weighty confections such as summer pudding with whipped cream for those who missed out on lunch.

A practical, down to earth wine list offers excellent value interesting drinking from around the world, including England - of course. And if you like the food that much a copy of Porters English Cookery Bible can be yours for a modest sum.

Read more

British, English, Modern British

: 12:00 - 22:30
: 12:00 - 23:00
: 12:00 - 23:30

General: 020 7836 6466

Click here to visit

17 Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, London, WC2E 8QH [Map]

£15.00    £24.00

(Avg Price is the average cost per person for two courses, coffee, half a bottle of house wine and tip/service)

REVIEWS OF Porters English Restaurant

Graham Ridgeon (28 June 2010)

We had a meal at Porters on a Sunday, a couple of weeks back. The pies are to die for! And desserts are scrumptious! Service was very good and we will return back.

R A (23 June 2010)

Dinner at Porters on last Saturday evening was a great success. The meal and service was top notch. Nothing was too much trouble for our waiter and he looked after us very well.

See more reviews of Porters English Restaurant

Write a Review for Porters English Restaurant

Have you eaten at Porters English Restaurant? Then why not write a review for Porters English Restaurant! It only takes a few moments, no registration is required.

Not sure what to write? Have a look through all of our restaurant reviews for inspiration!

More Info for Porters English Restaurant

£13.95

£13.95

Not included, 10% (optional) for five or more




Other Restaurants You May Like

Champagne Charlies

British in Covent Garden & Theatreland

Crusting Pipe

Bar, British in Covent Garden & Theatreland

Bougie

British, Café, French, Patisserie in Covent Garden & Theatreland

The Sun Tavern

British, Pub in Covent Garden & Theatreland

The Marquess of Anglesey

Fish & Chip, Modern British in Covent Garden & Theatreland

The Savoy Grill

British, French in Covent Garden & Theatreland

Reservations

24 hours, 7 days a week.
Local rates apply.

Cancel your booking.

Porters English Restaurant

%

Book Valentine's Menu Love Pie! Porters Valentine's Dinner Menu for £25 This offer is available from February 10, 2012 until February 14, 2012, subject to availability as displayed in the booking interface. Offer excludes service and includes VAT. Not available in conjunction with other offers. This promotion has additional information available. Click on the link(s) to view.
Offer valid to 14 February 2012

Special Offers

Fire & Stone - Covent Garden

Covent Garden & Theatreland

VALENTINES SPECIAL 3 courses and a drink for £20.95

Tuttons

Covent Garden & Theatreland

Valentines Weekend Menu 2 courses for £38 or 3 courses for £45

Roadhouse

Covent Garden & Theatreland

50% off from the a la carte menu - 50% off is based on ordering 1 main course per person. Includes Vat, excludes service

Covent Garden Grill

Covent Garden & Theatreland

Valentine's Menu Dinner FIVE COURSES and FIZZ £30.00

Selected Restaurant

Covent Garden Grill

Covent Garden & Theatreland

Amidst the high prices of Covent Garden's bars and restaurants you will find that there is a welcome difference when you visit the new Covent Garden Grill on Henrietta Street, with its stunning, original ...