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Fallow is a vibrant venue that checks all the boxes for a fantastic dining experience - fresh, creative cuisine, a vibey atmosphere, stunning design, and a prime location. But what sets Fallow apart is its commitment to responsible dining, merging sustainability with culinary artistry for a genuinely delightful experience. From the thoughtful menu to the eco-friendly interiors, Fallow shines as a beacon of conscious creativity.
Chefs Jack Croft and Will Murray first crossed paths at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, where their shared commitment to sustainability sparked a lasting friendship. This passion ignited a series of sold-out residencies, firmly establishing Fallow as one of the UK's most exciting restaurant concepts, which culminated in a permanent home at St James's Market in November 2021, backed by hospitality legend and entrepreneur James Robson.
Designed by Christina Leung and Timothy Tan of Studio Gossamer, the interior has a super-stylish, moody aesthetic featuring green marble, red leather, and ethereal, amorphous Tom Dixon lighting. It adopts a waste-not-want-not approach, incorporating repurposed and reimagined materials in an engaging, theatrically designed space. A large, open kitchen features a seven-seat chef's counter that immerses you in the action, while a satellite bar positioned diagonally adds to the dynamic aesthetic. Above, a stunning seaweed installation lights up the space with filament bulbs, featuring a variety of sea plants including Irish moss, spiral wrack, bladderwrack and sea kelp. The flooring mimics terrazzo but is crafted from shells saved from a previous project by the chefs.
Even the menus that look like paper are made from harvested algae, while the bar has replaced plastic entirely, opting to use glass for storage and preparation. Fallow's menu offers a selection of snacks and sharing plates, with a discernible nose-to-tail ethos and a dedication to sustainability. It features often-overlooked ingredients sourced from the British Isles, while growing its own mushrooms on-site from spent coffee grounds, showcasing a true farm-to-table philosophy. They use interesting cuts; everything is seasonal and focuses mainly on British and Irish produce. The time-consuming processes are truly impressive (all fascinatingly shared on their Fallow Instagram page. The pair recently launched an online foodie platform (@fallowchefs) that documents new recipes, tips, and tricks in the kitchen - and has amassed more than 1.3 million followers. All the dishes at Fallow spend time over flames, from the seriously dry aged cow cuts to charring the chilli peppers, roasting the cauliflower, and smoking the shiitake mushrooms.
Each dish imbues an incredible depth of flavour - but first, an Oyster Shell Martini, Fallow's take on a vodka martini has much more going on than your typical dirty martini. It has a bracing acidity, rather than a briny saltiness. It has the cleanness of a classic martini, but with a much more savoury, slightly saline aftertaste — it's not "fishy" but bite into the oyster leaf and tastes just like an oyster! The best news — not only does this sensational twist elevate your taste buds to new heights, it's medicinal. Fallow gives new life to oyster shells post-service by hammering them into bits and soaking them in Belvedere vodka. Once strained, the vibrant vodka is blended with vermouth and jalapeño brine, then topped with an oyster leaf from the native Oyster leaf plant, Mertensia maritima, also known as Sea Bluebells. These wild beauties thrive along the coasts of Scotland and Shetland, boasting crisp leaves that exude a fresh, oceanic flavour reminiscent of oysters! And far from the ordinary dirty martini, it's bursting with bracing acidity rather than mere brininess. It retains the classic martini's clean essence but adds a savoury, slightly saline kick. A bite of the oyster leaf brings that authentic oyster taste.
Next, Sweetcorn ribs are liberally seasoned with kombu, are sticky, sweet, and chewy. The creamiest Burrata comes to life with the delightful sweetness of caramelised onions and a zesty, crispy chilli dressing, topped with aromatic herbs. Fallow's Beef Ribs, are a taste explosion, their flavour infusion begins with a four hour immersion in brine, followed by a generous coating with a signature barbecue seasoning and braised to perfection for another eight hours (the braising liquid goes on to create their flavorful master stock), they are then blast chilled and portioned for serving, and when it's time to delight our taste buds, they are grilled for a smoky finish, placed on a tray lined with kombu, and heated to order. A quick blowtorch on the top breaks down the sinew, and they finish them with a luscious glaze of red wine sauce, topped off with more kombu and a hearty drizzle of their delicious red wine sauce! They melt in your mouth!
Our fillet has a sublime, melt-in-your-mouth tenderness, comes with a harissa dressing and a harissa pesto, with a real pungent kick! OMG! How they do it: They remove the chill seeds and cook them down until slightly blackened. Next, they roast the walnuts until they are slightly blackened, and then crush them lightly. They microplane the garlic until it forms a smooth paste, then add sherry vinegar, pomegranate molasses, white miso, and harissa. Mix smoothly, add walnuts to their own oil, and blend them with charred peppers. Then, mix this into the harissa and miso base. For the harissa sauce, they confit the shallots until soft, then add the capers, green peppercorns, jalapeño pepper flakes, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, harissa, and finish with lemon zest and sherry vinegar. They then use a steak sauce, split it with the dressing, and garnish with some Gwendia pepper - pepper—Ah-mazing!!
While Fallow's cult favourite, sriracha cod's head, spotlights a kitchen by-product which, in turn, saves 400 cod's heads a week from being wasted, it is, they say, a relatively simple recipe, once you've waited for the sriracha to ferment (4–6 weeks). *Fallow sriracha is a British, vegan, handcrafted hot sauce of fermented British chillies and garlic, blended with soy sauce and Chardonnay vinegar, offering a hot, tangy, and slightly sweet flavour profile. It doesn't stop here; the desserts are equally scrumptious. Again, the menu is subject to seasonal changes. The soft-serve ice cream is sublime, and the pastry is crisp. Plus, the service is excellent. Fallow's staff is only too happy to offer their advice and guidance.
Fallow stands out as a culinary destination, offering a truly distinctive experience that reflects the thoughtful care put into every aspect of the venue. The consciously and creatively prepared dishes are packed with flavour and totally addictive, especially the Seaweed Martini!
Fallow
52 Haymarket
London
SW1Y 4RP