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Alpine Amour at The Lodge

The Lodge is Clapham’s alpine restaurant brought to us by “London’s pop-up king,” Jimmy Garcia. From the minute you enter you feel like you’ve been transported to the alps, with the comforting aroma of pine, the soft glow of fondeu burners and the festive smell of mulled wine. I am immediately immersed and imagine that I’ve just rested my skis and shaken the snow off my boots. Here it’s easy to forget when you gaze out of the window, that there is no picture-perfect mountainous landscape, just a an urban concrete jungle with the odd high rise.

Katie Ingham review The Lodge, Jimmy Garcia's Alpine Popup

Getting started with Pork Belly and Asian Pickles

The Lodge is a hearty winter warmer, which back for its second year, has proved to be a much loved cheesy success. This year Jimmy Garcia has partnered with Verbier to bring another winter of Swiss cheese, Swiss wines and Morand liquors. It’s an authentic après-ski escape, minus the snow and it certainly gets you in the mood for Christmas.

Onion Fritters with Jalapeno Mayo at The Lodge Clapham. Read the foodie review

We sampled an array of starters. The onion fritters and jalapeño mayonnaise had a moourish, crunchy kick, that left you wanting more. The pork belly on asian pickles was naughty and exotic. The game parfait spread over crisp toast was smooth and not too over powering. With the red wine flowing it was all sliding down the slopes too easily!

Katie Ingham gets lost in a swiss cheese fondue at Thee Lodge, Clapham. Read the review

Katie Ingham gets lost in a swiss cheese fondue at “The Lodge,” Clapham

I loved the side of beetroot, orange and hazlenut and I never knew a rocket salad could taste so good! Both were a refreshing break to the palette.

For our eagerly anticipated main course we had a Swiss cheese fondeu with Charcuterie and your staple pickles, along with sides of new potatoes and bread ready to dip in an indulge. Fondue’s are such a fun and social way to dine. The cheese tasted divine.

“I needed to apply the snowplough stop, but no matter how full my stomach got I couldn’t stop reaching for another dip, dunk and jump!”

After eating an incredibly impressive amount of food I feel slightly ashamed to admit that yes, we did have desert. Paris Brest, which was a festive pastry wreath filled with amarena cherries and chocolate ganache. After this epic feast, I definitely felt like I needed to hit the slopes for a week or two.

Katie Ingham Reviews Desert at the Lodge Clapham

The Paris Brest was the mountain top!

The only disappointment at Jimmy Garcia’s The Lodge was exiting the restaurant. The authentic alpine experience had me fooled. I wanted the snow, the picture perfect alps scenery and longed for the chilly ice cold wind to hit my face. Clapham just didn’t cut it, but the Lodge is definitely a mountain worth climbing.

Private Dining Room at The Lodge. Read the Review

Private Dining Room at The Lodge – Jimmy Garcia Winter Pop-up, Clapham

For bookings and to find out more visit the The Lodge Website o tweet @TheLodgeClapham

Want to visit a market before visiting? Head to Venn Street Food Market in Clapham.

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