108 Fetter Lane,
City,
London,
EC4A 1ES
(020) 7242 9696
The ViewLondon Review
One of eight ETM venues in the capital, The White Swan possesses all the characteristics that make their sites such a pleasure to visit – great food, impeccable service and a hugely impressive wine list.
The Venue
Ed and Tom Martin, or ETM for short, are hands-on kind of guys: they go to Billingsgate Market every morning to select the seafood for their foodie pubs and restaurants. The White Swan - one of three of their pubs in the City - sits just off High Holborn and it’s a traditional double-level British pub that’s been tweaked in order to perfect the formula of pairing a bustling bar on the ground floor with a separate and more sedate dining room upstairs.
The ground floor has the now ubiquitous sight of stag antlers and stuffed animals, but the rare sight of a swan in a presentation glass cabinet particularly catches the eye. Head upwards and you will find a mezzanine level overlooking the bar, and this is evidently popular with groups looking to reserve an area in what’s a compact, busy pub. Further up, you enter the dining room, a room fashioned out of creaky wood, with an unusual mirrored ceiling, and an intimate amber glow provided by candles and the light that seeps in from the street after dark.
The Atmosphere
Due to its position close to Chancery Lane and Fleet Street, at lunch and after-work it's absolutely heaving as people throw pints and glasses of vino down their necks like there’s no tomorrow. Upstairs is much more relaxed but it’s running at close to top capacity by 8pm as international business types, upwardly mobile girlfriends and local workers migrate from the bar for a bite to eat.
The Food
Other ETM venues, like The Cadogan Arms and The Gun, have a deservedly great reputation for their menus - and The White Swan is up there with the best of ‘em. Prices reflect the restaurant-standard food and the quality of the ingredients. Expect starters to cost around £7-£10; mains £12-£20; and desserts £7-£8.
Fish and game abound and you will find sea bass, cod, pheasant and partridge among the mainstays. Starters include a delicate, rotund piece of ravioli containing a meaty oxtail filling, perched in an oniony thin and shallow soup of sorts. Alternatively, the grilled Yorkshire quail is served with a slice of mottled, salty foie gras, wafer-thin slices of beetroot and a chickpea-esque garlicky lentil mix, a combination that leaves you savouring the contrasting flavours.
For mains, a chunky piece of cod with a blackened crust is sensational and it’s no wonder it runs out later on. Across the table, a small fillet of sea bass paired with tart caramelised chunks of pear and a red wine-based sauce is an inventive combination but one that leaves you with food envy in comparison to the cod.
British puddings are present to tempt those with voracious appetites but the chocolate and hazelnut petits fours are more than sufficient.
The Drink
In line with other ETM venues, The White Swan has a wine list any leading restaurant would be proud of. The brothers dedication to the cause is again demonstrated with the house red – their own ETM blend which sees them decamp to the south of France for days on end to tread grapes and oversee the process, all in the name of work, naturally. At £16 per bottle, the merlot-grenache-syrah blend is great value and it’s a smooth red with plenty of lingering smoky flavours.
The Last Word
Undoubtedly one of the best operators in the capital, it’s hard to find anything to fault about the ETM group. And particularly if you’re paying a visit to the dining room at The White Swan, the quality of the ingredients, the extensive wine list and the first-rate service only serve to hammer the point home.
The White Swan has been reviewed by 17 users