"While Townsend isn’t necessarily as hidden as some of its fellow listees, the fact that it’s an outstanding restaurant situated in an art gallery may come as a surprise. Replacing the also lauded Whitechapel Refectory in 2020, Nick Gilkinson — formerly of the Garden Museum Cafe — and Joe Fox — formerly of Petersham Nurseries — have taken the restaurant from strength to strength in its short, pandemic-clipped life. Dishes like Red Leicester croquettes with pickled walnut ketchup; potato and crab dumplings blackened with squid ink, rife with garlic and chilli; and roast mallard with braised radicchio, spiced carrot and prunes betray the fact that this is a modern British restaurant, meaning it’s really old European with an accent." - Jonathan Hatchman
