When I see a pub specialising in non-pub food, I start to panic. I picture Roger the publican directing his underpaid kitchen staff to produce a sweeping array of anglicised pan-Asian dishes they’ve never cooked before and only now do because Roger loves a curry on the weekend. After ordering and waiting for two-to-four minutes, you’d then be presented with a Thai green curry that’s not green nor Thai and is, in essence, warm milk with bits of chicken and green beans floating next to overcooked rice.
The Duke of Cornwall in Hammersmith, however, surprised me. The menus were sodden with beer, the locals were in full flow, and the pub was crowding up with fellow attendees of Brian Butterfield’s show at the Hammersmith Apollo, just across the road. You could tell who the fans were, because, like my friend and me, they were in their late twenties to late thirties, a bit preppy, could be civil servants, and all laden with nostalgia for the early 2000s and a Butterfield diet plan.
I tried to de-risk the order by getting a few side plates - satay chicken - fried squid - Thai fish cakes - as they sounded the hardest to ruin, and my first surprise came when a zapped microwave meal did not present itself, instead taking twenty minutes for the first small plate to arrive. Cooked to order? Impressive. The kitchen staff who served us was also Thai, the second surprise.
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The third surprise was the actual food. The chicken was tender, the satay sauce delicate on the chicken, thick in the dip, the fried squid crispy and fresh with salt and chilli neatly sprinkled around, and the Thai fish cakes well presented and full of flavour with sweet chilli sauce and a ring of fresh cucumber and crushed peanuts surrounding it.
I couldn’t quite believe this had all come from a pub next to a live events venue, that should by all rights be chucking out pies and pints with pace and forgotten carelessness. Instead, a well-crafted menu with well-presented food emerged out of the gloom and onto the sticky pub table. Within minutes the satay chicken was gone, the fish cake tower cut in half, and I was trying to savour the last of the fried squid and garlic-chilli aioli. I looked up from the food, glanced around and saw a normal pub vibe: punters with an elbow on the bar, enjoying lagers, others at tables watching the footy, and the confused Butterbeans crowding around their fruity IPAs. What a contrast.
With full tummies, we waddled off in the evening summer sun to see Brian Butterfield’s show for the second time in 12 months, soaking up the noughties nostalgia and hoping it’d be as good as last years’ - it wasn’t, but we didn’t regret it. If you go to the Apollo for any reason, I’d highly recommend Thai at the Duke of Cornwall for an elevated pub-grub meal beforehand - it’ll surprise you.
Food 7/10
Service 6/10
Vibe 8/10
Overall 7/10