Mark Bixter visited a recent addition to south west London's eateries and was charmed by what he found...

Being new to this website it seemed fitting that I should review a place that was new to the area.

That is exactly what I did with Golden Pie, which opened up on Lavender Hill at the latter end of 2011.

The recession has lead to a shift in the restaurant world, away from fine dining towards casual reservation free and street food-style dining experiences.

In light of that, Golden Pie is bang on trend, serving traditional pie and mash at great prices to hungry locals.

To call Golden Pie a restaurant is, however, slightly misleading. It is in every sense a local cafe and all the better for that.

It opens Monday to Saturday from 10.30am – 6pm and the menu is short and to the point offering pie, mash and liquor, jellied eels if you wish, two or three other pie and pudding options and three deserts.

My dining buddy and I opted for the main event: traditional pie, mash and liquor and a chicken and mushroom pie with mash and gravy (£3.50 each).

I am ashamed to say I had never tried liquor before but the lady serving was more than happy to give me a taste, ladling some into a bowl and splashing in some vinegar.

She warned that people either love it or hate it, luckily I loved it.

It was thicker than I imagined but extremely fresh, blasting you with parsley flavour and added texture from the chopped leaves.

The pastry lids were heavenly; perfectly cooked, flaky and buttery, the mince meat was rich and unctuous with a lovely gravy.

The chicken and mushroom pie was also excellent with a generous helping of chicken that was still tender and moist carefully avoiding dried out lump syndrome.

More out of gluttony than need we had pudding.

We tried a spotted dick and apple pie both served with custard (£3 each). The spotted dick was a delight.

The sponge was well spiced with cinnamon, and the generous serving of custard providing sweetness, I don’t know where I’d go to find a better version.

Golden Pie is a winning addition to south west London and if it’s possible to find food this good at these prices I’d love to know where.

Meal for two, with drinks, £15.

188 Lavender Hill, Clapham Junction, London, Wandsworth | 020 7924 6333 | www.goldenpie.co.uk/

Mark Bixter is a food writer who runs the blog http://michelinmicrowave.wordpress.com/