All-weather racing makes for a great afternoon or evening out, and if you can throw in some top-class cuisine at the Kempton’s Panoramic restaurant, then so much the better, says Fiona Adams
We all love a bit of racing: getting dressed up, having a flutter, winning some money (fingers crossed!). But good race meetings with a bit of lunch and some fizz thrown in only happen in the summer, right?
Wrong! At Kempton Park you can race all year round, thanks to its flood-lit, all-weather track and what’s more, if it’s raining or howling a gale, or even just a tiddly bit chilly outside you can book yourself into the Panoramic Bar and Restaurant and enjoy the action in the warmth with a great dinner and a lovely glass of red (or white or Champagne, depending how the evening pans out).
And this is exactly what I did a few weeks ago. On a gloomy autumnal evening, I discovered that the Panoramic does exactly what it says on the tin. This beautiful venue can seat up to 400 diners over three levels, with all tables enjoying a view of the course and many with an unrivalled, elevated view of the finish post. Add to this the TVs at the end of each table, with a number of racing channels available, and you definitely don’t miss anything. You don’t even have to step outside to place a bet as staff from the Tote come to your table.
The 2017 menu is full of foodie favourites, made with locally sourced produce where possible. The food itself is good and ideal for this time of year. For starters you can choose from chicken Caesar salad, pork and apple terrine, soup, asparagus pearl barley risotto or a Thai fish cake. I had the latter, which though a tad on the small side, had all those essential Thai components – hot, sour, spicy and sweet flavours – bursting through. My husband’s Caesar salad, was by comparison enormous.
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For our main courses, we went for the homemade lemon and thyme chicken Kiev and the fillet of sea bass. I am a sucker for a good Kiev, feeling it a greatly underrated dish when done properly and Kempton’s was delicious. It was crispy on the outside, oozing with garlic butter on the inside and perfectly matched by the accompanying parmentier potatoes.
The sea bass was delicately cooked and served with pesto mash, slow roasted peppers, rocket, tomatoes and aged balsamic – a real taste of the Mediterranean in South West London. The sirloin steak, from Heanen’s butchers of Roehampton, with chunky chips looked pretty darned good, too. Of course, a pudding had to be squeezed in (my husband was doing quite well with his betting by this stage and we were a little giddy), and so a cheese board and rich chocolate fondant were duly ordered.
Despite my own attempts at trifectas and tote exactas, and the good old ‘put £5 on the nose’, I’m afraid my winnings were a bit thin on the ground, but my tummy was full and my cheeks rosy from the wine and I had had a brilliant time. I was most reluctant to step out into the wind and the rain but at least the station was close and with race meetings up until Christmas and beyond, I shall definitely be popping back for a return visit.
- Visit Kempton.thejockeyclub.co.uk for information about future events, including race days and nights throughout November. Tickets from £9, which can be bought on the gate, but booking for the Panoramic Bar and Restaurant is advised, though some tables may be available on the day. Starters begin at £5 with main courses starting at £15.50. Packages are available
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