Chapter One

With its mock-Tudor appearance, Chapter One is handily located on the A21 and is home to Andrew McLeish's much-acclaimed cooking. The front door opens into a world of refinement, from the spacious dining room with its new metropolitan styling and serene pastel tones, to the suave, professional and welcoming service. Dark wooden floors, elegant tan-coloured seating, stylish food-related photographs, bevelled-mirror wall and crisp white linen continue the sophisticated theme, while a separate brasserie and stylish bar - also refurbished and with a louder buzz and more informal edge - attracts a wised-up crowd looking for culinary thrills at reasonable prices. McLeish's confident and accomplished cooking aptly suits the surroundings and takes a modern European approach based on classical techniques, with dishes displaying plenty of innovation alongside distinct flavours, balanced combinations and high skill. Tip-top seasonal ingredients are handled with consummate integrity here, and perfectly illustrate the maxim 'less is more'. Take pan-fried line-caught sea bass served with Puy lentils, pancetta, salsa verde and a red wine fish sauce, or perhaps roast rump of Kentish lamb with braised navarin, purple artichokes, tomato jus and bagna cauda, and to finish, maybe an organic lemon tart with crème fraîche sorbet and a millefeuille of passionfruit. The appealing repertoire is a fixed-price affair and reads like central London luxury with suburban prices - lunch offering fantastic value at this level. The wine list shows admirable pedigree, too, while its sister restaurant over in Blackheath, Chapters (see entry)is also well-worth checking out.

On A21, 3m from Bromley. From M25 junct 4 onto A21 for 5m
Nearest station: Orpington

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