Forbes contributor, Kissa Castenada, has interviewed The Laslett’s, Tracy Lowy, and produced an article that makes us all smile …

“This is the London I came here for,” says Jessica in ‘Too Much‘, Lena Dunham’s new Netflix series that follows an American transplant to The Big Smoke. After taking a photo in front of the famous blue door—the entrance to Hugh Grant’s character’s home in the blockbuster romcom, Notting Hill— her character strolls around the area wistfully exclaiming what most of us think when we visit this incredibly pretty slice of London …[read the full article here, and take note of where to eat!] …

Sally Clarke’s

A Notting Hill institution, chef-proprietor Sally Clarke has welcomed more VIPs than you can list over the last 40 years, who come to enjoy simple, seasonal plates served in an unpretentious atmosphere. “Lucien Freud ate lunch here every day and Sally herself sat for him twice a week for two years,” says Lowy. “The private dining room features etchings that he gifted her.” It’s one of those spots that’s universally loved, thanks to genuine hospitality led by Clarke herself who’s nicknamed ‘the Queen of Seasonal Eating’, according to a profile on AirMail.

sallyclarke.com, 122–124 Kensington Church Street, Notting Hill, London W8 4BH

Sally Clarke, 5 July 2024 … ‘I start with another exciting page in our (nearly) 40-year history. My 4th book is making its way to West Wales, where it will be printed, bound, ribboned, and wrapped later this month. A sneak preview of its cover is revealed above – and more will be revealed soon. I am thrilled it has finally made it to this stage and will be officially launched in late October.

It is worth noting, this book is not a ‘recipe book’, per se, but more a ‘scrapbook’ of collected Clarke’s restaurant memories and stories, featuring staff, past and present, customers, suppliers, and more from the wider Clarke’s brood. There will be a recipe or two, of course, punctuating the prose for sustenance while you read.

If you would like to pre-order a copy, please click through to our online shop and let me know if you would like it especially inscribed (10 words max, please – last time I almost lost the will to live with some of the dedications requested!). See the full newsletter, here …

Sally recently visited Berkeley, in California, and found time to write a late autumn newsletter, too. It’s full of beautiful images fitting for Halloween and with beautiful autumnal produce, updates on the latest news at Clarke’s, and, as always, invites you to visit us in person at the restaurant or shops, or browse online for Halloween and Thanksgiving.

Amazing produce – At Clarke’s, we have always been keen on celebrating autumnal produce, and already October has kick-started this in fine style. Pumpkins and squash of all shapes and sizes, wild and cultivated mushrooms, the delicious bitter broccoli called cime di rapa, artichokes (both leafy and Jerusalem), bitter salad leaves, the green-skinned clementines call miyagawa, which have a sharp, perfumed flavour, plus this year’s bounty of apples, pears, and quince … click here to read and see the whole newsletter and stay tuned for our Thanksgiving mailshot, which will invite you to check our incredible live Thanksgiving product list.