108 Garage: From Gumtree to gastronomic master

Chef Chris Denney makes sure his food never stops getting better
Ailis Brennan31 January 2018

The Notting Hill restaurant is the brainchild of Denney and his business partner Luca Longobardi. They have a few interesting stories between them: Longobardi found Denney after placing a job ad on Gumtree, and Longobardi is a former merchant banker who once spent 30 days in a maximum security prison in Brazil.

When the bread is served with lardo butter, you know you’re in for a wild ride (but one with heated seats). The dishes change daily according to Denney’s impulse – this chef never stops learning how to cook. 108 Garage has recently gone full set-menu, saying adieu to the a la carte, allowing Denney to chop and change at greater whim.

In the earlier stages of the six course lunch is a carpaccio of scallop and Spartan apple, sweet and celestial, fragranced with lovage and the gentle buzz of horseradish. The star dish of this particular day is the squab pigeon in all its parts. The legs come first, confit overnight and appear upended, curled toes and all, ready for a handshake. They are glazed in glorious homemade black garlic, akin to a fine-dining BBQ sauce, picante and delicious. It also joins the breast and the thigh on the plate, along with fermented cabbage, a fluffy dollop of emulsified smoked pinenut and more alluring lardo.

One thing that rarely changes on the 108 Garage menu is the superb chocolate cremeux – a dessert to delight sweet fiends and foes, served with a delicately perfumed artichoke ice cream (trust us, you want this) and puffed rice.

108 Garage was the first place everyone thought was going to get a Michelin star this year. For some peculiar reason it doesn’t have one, and everyone’s a little confused. They’re confused because the food that chef Chris Denney serves over the pass at 108 Garage is utterly sublime.

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