Lunch at Canteen Notting Hill and the dessert that started it all

I come to Canteen Notting Hill for one very specific reason: the chocolate mousse. I’ve seen it everywhere – it’s basically gone viral on TikTok and beyond.

The Canteen chocolate mousse is thick and glossy, shaped in a large quenelle, and finished with olive oil and sea salt. It’s the kind of dessert that looks indecently good on a phone screen and even better in real life. Everything else on the menu is, frankly, a bonus.

I’ve come on a Friday lunchtime promptly at noon (opening time). Canteen in Notting Hill doesn’t take bookings but, not long after I arrive, the restaurant fills up quickly.

The menu changes often, and you won’t find an up to date version on the restaurant’s website, so there’s an element of luck involved before you even sit down. I walk in hopeful, slightly hungry, with one question. Is the chocolate mousse worth the hype?

And is the rest of the menu at Canteen Notting Hill any good? Let’s see.

Quick info on Canteen Notting Hill

• Restaurant: Canteen
• Where: Notting Hill
• Booking: Walk-in only
• Canteen Notting Hill menu: Changes often and isn’t published online
• Best seats: Counter if you like watching the kitchen
• Heads up: Quite a pork-heavy menu on the day I visit

Read our Canteen Notting Hill restaurant review to find out more.

Warm seats, hot oven, good energy

The space at Canteen Notting Hill is generous and relaxed. Tables aren’t crammed together, and counter seating is comfortable. What’s more, being positioned right by the pizza oven gives the restaurant a cosy glow.

If you pick counter seat, you get to watch the chefs working, stretching and loading the pizza dough, finishing pasta dishes and plunging things like mackerel and lamb chops into fire.

I do occasionally get a bit self conscious watching the chefs, but no one seems to mind.

Overall, Canteen Notting Hill is lively without being chaotic, and overall a nice vibe for a lunch.

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The Canteen Notting Hill menu comes with a leap of faith

Things start to get tricky with the Canteen Notting Hill menu.

The menu changes often, and because it isn’t available online, you only discover your options once you’re already seated.

That’s fine if you’re flexible, and much less so if you have dietary restrictions.

On the day I visit, pork features heavily. Half the starters, half the pasta dishes and half the pizza options (of which there are two) contain pork. Bah.

The tagliatelle ragu contains pork, as does the ravioli with pancetta. That means that if you don’t eat pork, your pasta options narrow quickly, which is a shame given how appealing the house made pasta sounds.

It’s worth knowing before you go. You need to arrive open minded and ready to adapt. If you’ve built your entire lunch around one specific dish you’ve seen online, there’s a chance it won’t be available.

Or, that the already small Canteen Notting Hill menu will become even smaller when you eliminate the things that you don’t/can’t eat.

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Risotto Milanese with bone marrow

I start with the risotto Milanese topped with beef bone marrow. You can order pasta dishes as a small or regular size, and I pick the small. I’m having a solo dinner, and I don’t want to fill up on the pasta.

The small portion is still quite big, and would be a good lunch by itself. This is the kind of dish you order to share, maybe between two or even three if you’re sampling widely.

The risotto is properly al dente, glossy and deeply comforting. The saffron gives it warmth and colour, while the bone marrow melts through the rice, infusing everything with savoury richness. It coats the mouth in the best way.

I stop myself from finishing the entire thing because I’ve also ordered lamb chops, and I want to save room for the famous Canteen Notting Hill chocolate mousse.

Lamb chops worth saving room for

The lamb chops arrive next, served with puntarelle and anchovy.

They’re cooked beautifully, with tender meat, crisped edges, and fat that bursts in your mouth around each bite. This another example of confident cooking at Canteen Notting Hill.

The anchovy on the puntarelle adds salt and depth, and while I don’t massively enjoy the bitterness of puntarelle, I can appreciate how grown-up and intentional the pairing is.

The lamb carries the plate regardless, and I’m very happy with the decision to order it.

The viral chocolate mousse at Canteen Notting Hill

And then, once the risotto and lamb have been enjoyed, we wait for the main event – the chocolate mousse.

It arrives, as tantalising in person as on social media, glossy and aerated, rounded and coated in olive oil.

I carefully pry the first spoonful away and take that first taste. Reader, I kid you not, I let out a small moan.

I can confirm that the Canteen Notting Hill chocolate mousse is as good as people say.

The portion is generous to the point of being slightly dangerous. The mousse itself is thick and velvety but still incorporates air, so it doesn’t sit heavy.

The olive oil adds a herby, earthy, slightly floral aroma, and turns each mouthful to silk. It and pairs beautifully with the thick chocolate, slicking each spoonful and coating the mouth beautifully. And the sea salt, applied generously, unlocks all the flavour.

It’s indulgent but also balanced. And of course – utterly moreish.

I tell myself I’ll eat half. But that comes and goes, and before long I’ve finished it all. It’s a beautiful dessert here at Canteen Notting Hill, and yes, it’s worth the hype.

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A few practical lunch notes

Canteen Notting Hill gets busy quickly, especially on Fridays, and probably even more so on the weekend. With that in mind, I’d arrive at the start of service if you want to guarantee a space at the restaurant.

If you’re dining solo, be aware that the menu really shines when shared. You’ll likely find yourself mentally rationing dishes to make room for what’s still to come.

And if you’re visiting specifically for something you’ve seen online, accept that the menu changes and availability isn’t guaranteed.

Except, if you’re lucky, the viral chocolate mousse.

Final thoughts on Canteen Notting Hill

There’s a lot to like about lunch at Canteen Notting Hill.

The restaurant is warm and welcoming, and the cooking is confident and generous. The risotto is deeply comforting, the lamb chops are beautifully handled, and the chocolate mousse is special.

However, the ever changing but not published menu may end up limiting choices for unsuspecting diners, who don’t know what they’re in for until they arrive at the restaurant.

It did for me, when faced with a decidedly pork-heavy menu. Not seeing the menu in advance adds an element of risk. But when the food lands, it really lands.

I come for the mousse. I stay for everything else.

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Canteen Notting Hill restaurant review
Address – 310 Portobello Rd, London W10 5TA
Nearest Tube – Westbourne Park