Thyme out

Take the wrong turning on the way from Clapham Common tube station to nearby Thyme restaurant and very quickly the atmosphere becomes distinctly threatening. Gangs of youths hanging round the stairwells of shabby blocks of flats, stray dogs taking care of their business on unkempt verges and the odd lager-carrying tramp - you get the picture. Even when you do find the right road, it's not exactly salubrious: the restaurant is to be found opposite a Sainsbury's car park, wedged between a newsagent's and a photocopying shop.

But the run-down nature of the neighbourhood was, in fact, one of the key things that attracted joint chef-proprietors Adam Byatt and Adam Oates to take on the site in 2001. "This was the first site that we came to see and it was exactly what we wanted: a 50-seat restaurant with a separate bar in a lively neighbourhood," Oates says.

Byatt adds: "We like the fact that it's in a seedy area, with crack dens over the road. That's the irony of London, the juxtaposition of somewhere nice against somewhere horrible. People get a lovely surprise when they walk through the door here. I also believe that restaurants have the ability to revive an area and that's what we'd like to do here."

Positive impact
Certainly since the restaurant opened in October 2001, it's had a very positive impact on the local dining scene. Winning a string of awards - most recently New Restaurant of the Year in the Tio Pepe Carlton London Restaurant Awards - not to mention outstanding reviews from virtually all the country's leading restaurant critics, has ensured full houses every service that Thyme opens (Tuesday to Saturday evenings). Indeed, demand is now such that the restaurant is to begin opening for lunch from the end of this month.

What has wowed both diners and critics is Thyme's unusual concept, whereby all dishes on the menu are served in starter-sized portions, encouraging the sampling of four or five dishes rather than the usual three. Moreover, dishes universally comprise a minimum of three finely worked ingredients, so, though small, they deliver maximum flavour and sharp contrasts of texture and temperature.

"When we were thinking about what to do with the restaurant, I came up with the idea of serving small portions because I simply think it's a nicer way of eating," says Byatt, head chef in Thyme's kitchen. "And it's also a great concept as a chef," he admits, "because in an hour-and-a-half you get to show a diner your skills in five or six dishes rather than two or three."

That said, it's not a concept that's easy to pull off. Byatt acknowledges that his way of cooking is extremely labour-intensive and involves thorough organisation and enormous commitment and self-discipline from him, Oates and the other three brigade members. "To get all the dishes out quickly enough is logistically very hard," he says. "I wouldn't say we achieved any consistency until August last year. But now we've got the food to a standard and consistency I'm happy with."

This has been achieved partly by running menus for six weeks, rather than changing them weekly, as was the case when they first opened. "When you open your own restaurant, it's amazing because you get the chance to do everything you've ever wanted to do - 17 different rabbit dishes in a week, if you want to," confesses Byatt. "But I've calmed down now, so only do a major change every six weeks, though I do put on daily specials to try dishes out."

As soon as a new menu is introduced, the process of coming up with the next one begins. Byatt experiments with various ideas for dishes and Oates, who fills the role of pastry chef and baker at Thyme, as well as helping Byatt during service, acts as chief taster and guiding influence. "Adam filters everything I do - his opinion is the most important one to me," Byatt says. "I tend to be a bit manic and shoot from the hip, but Adam makes sure I keep my feet on the ground and stay on track."

Oates chips in that they organise things so he takes on more of the financial and administration side of the business, and "Adam [Byatt] can keep his focus on the food. I feel I'm privileged to be in partnership with one of the most innovative and creative chefs in Britain", he adds.

But isn't this 50-50 partnership difficult sometimes, with the two men bringing such different skills to the table? "Not at all," Oates says. "We're great friends apart from anything else, and discuss everything. We both care equally about this restaurant, so there's no competition or friction between us."

Byatt adds: "We both understand that Thyme is our big opportunity in life - we're not going to blow that for anything, particularly not anything as silly as ego."

Thyme, 14 Clapham Park Road, London SW4 7BB. Tel: 020 7627 2468.
Web: www.thymeandspace.com
A tale of two Adams
Adam Byatt and Adam Oates met in the early 1990s when both were fresh from college and got jobs in the kitchen of Claridge's hotel in London.

"We became great friends early on and were only about 18 when we first talked about running a business together one day. I guess it's every chef's dream and it was certainly both of ours," Oates says.

Although the pair went off to work in different kitchens, they kept in touch and in 1996-97 ended up working at Philip Howard's two-Michelin-starred the Square restaurant at the same time, Oates in pastry and Byatt as sous chef. "Again we talked about opening our own restaurant, but the timing wasn't quite right then," Oates says. But when both were in their late 20s in 2001, "everything came together and it was the perfect time for us to take the plunge".

Both were keen to have their own business - "I didn't always want to be somebody else's sous chef," as Byatt puts it - and because they had very clear ideas about how restaurants should be run.

In particular, they wanted to introduce a management style based on "getting the best out of people by giving them responsibility, rather than through fear", Byatt says. And they also both firmly believe there should be no divide between front-of-house and back-of-house staff.

"Every day at 6.15pm we all - chefs and front-of-house staff - sit down together and discuss what's happening that evening. And on Wednesday and Thursday evenings one person from the kitchen and one from the front of house sit down together and have a couple of dishes and a glass of wine together. This helps bonding and ensures the chefs understand the importance of service and the front-of-house staff have an awareness of the food," Oates says. "There's no them-and-us divide here."

What's on the menu

Thyme's menu boasts at least 15 savoury dishes, all of which are served in starter-size portions. Prices range from £6 to £10 per dish, a reflection of the types of ingredients used and how much they cost to source, rather than differing dish sizes. Here's a selection from a recent menu.

* Crisp fillet of mackerel, beetroot jelly, horseradish cream, £6
* Ravioli paysanne, smoked ham hock, mushroom consomm‚, tarragon, £6
* Mousseline of oyster, spaghetti of cockles, smoked bacon, £7
* Glazed organic belly pork, sauté of scallops, haricot blanc, £8
* Roast rump of beef, white onion tatin, Jerusalem artichoke, cooking juices, £8
* Pot roast quail, glazed salsify, sauté of foie gras and hazelnuts, £9
* Rump of lamb, confit shoulder, turnip tatin, lamb vinaigrette, crackling, £10
* Braised beef red wine, bone marrow mash, truffled sweetbreads, trompettes, £10

Adam Oates's desserts similarly include three or four small and carefully worked components, so the style of the menu follows through to the end of a meal. These are some recent examples.

* Hot chocolate fondant, malted milk ice-cream, cacao, £6.50
* Pineapple tatin, mango parfait, coconut ice-cream, £6.50
* Honeycomb mascarpone mousse, lemon jelly, lavender ice, pollen, £6.50

In addition to the à la carte, Thyme also always offers two set menus, each of which includes three savoury dishes and one dessert. Cost is £30 without wine, or £55 with a matching glass of wine to go with each dish.

Rump of lamb, confit shoulder, turnip tatin, lamb vinaigrette (Serves four)
Confit fillet of cod, truffle mash, seared foie gras, port deduction (Serves four)
Critics' verdicts

Adam Oates and Adam Byatt have been astounded and thrilled with most of the reviews they've received, although that of AA Gill "hurt because this restaurant is so personal to us and his comments were so misplaced", Byatt says.

Here are some key snippets from the critics' columns:

* Terry Durrack, The Independent on Sunday: "Thyme feels like a restaurant opened by people who adore food and wine. I think I'm in love."

\* Jay Rayner, The Observer: "All big-name chefs have a breakthrough restaurant, a place where everything comes together. For Marco Pierre White it was Harvey's in Wandsworth. For Gordon Ramsay it was Aubergine in Chelsea. For two young, unknown chefs called Adam Byatt and Adam Oates, that restaurant is Thyme in Clapham. Sweet Jesus but it's good."

\* Fay Maschler, London's Evening Standard: "Thyme does have a shy and retiring and, on the evening in question, misted-up frontage but on no account should you fail to find it. In this deceptively simple arena some truly accomplished cooking is taking place."

* Matthew Fort, The Guardian: "In style, manner, bustle, friendliness, indeed, in everything but food, it declares itself to be a neighbourhood restaurant…The smallness of the scale did not diminish the impact of each dish. Indeed, the flavours were forceful and well-focused and rich."

\* AA Gill, the Sunday Times: "Nouvelle cuisine became the hated motif for the callous, stupid, spendthrift, egotistical 1980s and, frankly, I thought it had been ridiculed into garnish. But this week I found it again, alive and flourishing in, of all places, Clapham…All the food was fantastically well made and incredibly clever. But instead of loving it, I wanted to punch its taunting little lights out."