Tucked away in a quiet corner of Kensington, Kitchen W8 is quite a find. Its unassuming name belies its accolades – it's had a Michelin star uninterruptedly since 2011 – and its style is calm and understated. They see themselves as a neighbourhood restaurant and they have plenty of regular customers. That is not surprising. As you would expect from this star chef – Mark Kempson, previously at The Square and The Vineyard – the food is not just exciting, it's approachable. His tendency is, thankfully, not to go in for culinary pyrotechnics but for a menu that is elegant, perfectly cooked and seasonal. And seasonal here is absolutely key. While there is the a la carte menu that you would expect as well as a tasting menu, Kempson also regularly produces a focused speciality menu. Recently, there have been veggie and game menus. Right now, though, it's truffles. So, while there were some real temptations on the a la carte – Warm Salad of Celeriac, Cauliflower Mushro
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The 25-year-old chef cooked her way to the top and beat off stiff competition from 31 other professionals, impressing judges Marcus Wareing, Anna Haugh and Gregg Wallace.