Chiswick's New Arrival The Hound Opens

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The site at 210 Chiswick High Road has had quite a few incarnations over the years. It started off as a police station, then became a probation office before pupating in 2006 and emerging as a restaurant and bar.

Initially it was Carvosso's, then the Crown and now - ta dah! - it's The Hound. Each restaurant was run by different teams with different backgrounds in the catering industry but sadly, until the recent residents, the food was never really all that good. The courtyard was always a glorious place to spend a summer evening over a glass or two of wine. The bar at the front of the building overlooking Chiswick High Road a wonderful place to sit in the winter with the roaring fire and huge array of drinks reassuringly displayed. But I was never wowed by the food there. So while it was a great place to meet for a drink, it wasn't high on the list of places to eat.

But the team who have now taken it over and renamed it The Hound have a solid background in hospitality with this being the third pub in their collection, joining Chelsea's Cadogan Arms and Fitzrovia's The George. So expectation and hopes were raised when we visited this week.

The Hound has been completely redecorated and looked fresh and bright whilst maintaining the gorgeous courtyard area and snug fireplace and brass and wood bar. There are a few tables on the pavement at the front surrounded by flower pots to allow a bit of division between the diners and the pedestrian traffic while allowing plenty of people watching.

The night we visited The Hound had only been open 12 days. It was a hot evening so sitting in the courtyard was perfect. Fellow guests included glamorous young couples, some multi-generational families, a very cute pooch and, if I am right, some TV personalities.

We started off with a Calypso Old Fashioned made with Tidal Rum, Ojo De Dios Cafe,
Cointreau and Bitters and a wonderfully chilly glass of the Hound white. All wines are available by the glass, carafe and bottle. Filtered tap water was rapidly served and very welcome on such a humid evening.

Our starters of Salt Cod Croquettes and Steak Tartare arrived promptly. The 3 croquettes came with a really lemony aioli and combined the trio of saltiness, crispiness and deep fried yumminess perfectly. The steak tartare was topped with the yellowest egg yolk we'd ever seen and the finely chopped beef was nicely seasoned.

With a glass of the Hound red and a pint of Morhoch cornish Pilsner, we started our main courses of beer battered fish and chips and flat iron steak. The flat iron steak is still quite a new cut to me and this one was perfectly tender and cooked pink in the middle. It came with a lovely whisky peppercorn sauce and a bucket of some really divine skinny fries. The fish had a nice crunchy and light batter with some chunky chips as well as some mushy peas and tartare sauce. Both mains were really well executed.

Then we finished off with an excellent sticky toffee pudding and a raspberry, mint and lemon Eton mess. The puddings were deceptively light and gave a good sweet finish to what was a very good meal.

The service was friendly and efficient with our waiter being a fellow Chiswickian. The Hound had a nice busy buzz and clearly word had spread as it was almost full when we left. The Hound has maintained the wonderful atmosphere of 210 Chiswick High Road while adding some really delectable food and seamless hospitality.

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August 1, 2024