Through the Woods

The story

Through the Woods London – Modern British Tasting Menu, Crouch End

Through the Woods

In Crouch End, at 212 Middle Lane, Through the Woods describes itself as a cosy neighbourhood restaurant with one sitting. The approach is straightforward: seasonal Modern British cooking with a hefty nod to Europe, served in a single evening service that begins at 8pm.

The menu changes regularly and is built around a series of vegetarian dishes, complemented by one high-welfare meat option. The aim, as the team states, is to inspire guests to eat more vegetables, reduce meat consumption, and cut down on excessive restaurant food waste. A sample menu might begin with spelt sourdough and sour cream butter, move through cauliflower broth with Comté, and smoked beets with apple and walnut, then offer a choice between sea brill with hazelnut brown butter or wild guinea fowl with girolles. For vegetarian guests, a plant-based main such as hispi cabbage, miso, and girolles is available. Hasselback potatoes, a rhubarb cheesecake, and Baron Bigod with warm rye bread round out the evening.

The restaurant holds a Michelin Recommended award, a recognition that aligns with its focused, ingredient-led cooking and intimate setting. Through the Woods operates on a limited schedule: from July onward, it is open only the last weekend of each month. A new venture, Pompette, is set to open nearby in early August, with a new chef and a five-course set menu.