Stepping out in London: Sunday Roast in Notting Hill

Did I ever mention that my mom came to visit me back at the end of March? Her visit was short, only 6 days, but Liebling and I had the best (if extremely busy) time showing her around London and allowing her to get a feel for the city that is our adopted home. One of the best things about having her visit was the fact that Liebling and I got to do a bunch of touristy things that a) we haven’t done since moving here, or alternatively b) hadn’t done in a very long while. One thing we absolutely had to do while she was here was go to Notting Hill and have a Sunday Roast.

I’ve written about Notting Hill before on this blog; it is the well-to-do area of London best known to tourists for long avenues dotted with colourful houses. I first became acquainted with the area back in 2010, when Liebling and I walked around and ate a huge pizza (I swear, it was almost as big as our table) at an Italian restaurant there I unfortunately can’t remember the name of.

At the heart of Notting Hill lies Portobello Road, a long stretch of avenue that houses an outdoor market specializing in street art, oh-so-trendy vintage clothing shops, and various stands selling everything from antiques to brick-a-brack.

At any rate, you can’t come to London without taking a stroll around Notting Hill.  You just can’t. Which is why I just had to drag my mom here. In my opinion, it is hands down one of the prettiest areas of London. Wouldn’t you agree?

After a brief walk about it was time to move on to our next order of business: find a pub where we could fill our hungry bellies with scrumptious Sunday roast. What is that, you ask? Quintessentially British, it is a traditional main meal served on Sunday (often in the early afternoon) that consists of a sizeable portion of roasted meat, accompanied by works: roasted potatoes, stuffing, vegetables, AND Yorkshire pudding.

It is a serious meal. But then we are serious people.

So while my mother balked at the thought of consuming such a heavy, hearty dish (“how will I finish all that food!” she cried), I, resident tour guide and exemplary daughter, had to ensure she had the full British experience. Because when you come to London, you MUST indulge in a Sunday roast. Anything else is just uncivilized.

And hence, with a bit of coaxing, she ordered a roast at The Duke of Wellington, a pub located right in the thick of the action on Notting Hill’s Portobello.

She opted for the pork roast and Liebling had the beef roast. Incidentally, I *ahem* ended up having a cheesburger.  Don’t judge me.  The girl to my left in the light blue shirt ordered one and it looked so good that I had to get one, too.  Besides, I was craving french fries!

Needless to say, I was insanely jealous when their food arrived.  I’ve had Sunday roast before and it is tasty, particularly the Yorkshire pudding.

Admittedly, I have been travelling so much lately (see my posts on Paris, Brussels, Dubai, Peru, Nice/Monaco, and Norway) that it hasn’t occurred to me to share some of the stuff I’ve been doing right here in good ol’ London.  Would you like to see more posts on what hijinx I get up to in this fair city? Let me know! Also, have you ever been to Notting Hill or eaten a Sunday roast? Is it something you think you’d like to try?

The Duke of Wellington

179-181 Portobello Road  London, Greater London W11 2ED
0871 951 1000

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