Hailing the arrival of Harpers in West Wickham - dining at its finest.
It's always interesting when a new restaurant opens up in the area and we're delighted to welcome Harpers restaurant as the latest addition to West Wickham high street.
Owned by twin brothers, Alistair and James, who are both local lads from Beckenham and now firmly ensconced in West Wickham, Harpers opened in August this year and has already been making its mark on the local dining scene.
Serving up mouthwatering morsels ranging from lobster to Aberdeen Angus steak in a comfortable, intimate atmosphere, Harpers is the happening place to be.
We put Alistair and James through their paces in a quickfire Q&A session... and here are the results!
Where did you go to school and hang out when you were younger?
Our early years were spent at two local Beckenham Primary schools - Clare House and Hawes Down. After that we went to Langley Park School for Boys. I was there just last week, and I know everyone says this, but it's completely changed now.
When did you know you wanted to be in the restaurant business?
The restaurant business is pretty much in our blood - Dad and other family members owned restaurants while we were growing up. We started off at the bottom by washing up in Dad's restaurant and things just continued from there, working our way up. Dad owns Don Giovani in Bromley and owning restaurants runs in the family, so we're only a stone's throw from home and what we know.
What type of food do you prefer when you go abroad?
Good local produce is important to us and we draw inspiration from positive influences we've seen around the world. We love Cyprus and their food, and I also lived in Australia for a year travelling around and loved their sense of adventure they have in their approach to food. We also admire how Americans tend to embrace culture and experimental food - it seems that for them the rules are: there are no rules. English restaurants can sometimes feel a bit more reserved - we like to spice things up and break with tradition!
Seasonal offerings are important too. We grow our own vegetables wherever possible on local allotments (our head Chef has one which is a great angle for us!) and we make sure this is the first port of call for Harpers.
What can people expect when they come to Harpers?
For us it's all about serving simple, well cooked food.
We believe that there's so much produce out there now that there's no excuse for poor quality. The best steaks make their own sauces, for example, and having access to "home grown" fruit and veg at an allotment in Bromley means we know first hand where the food has come from - and it's good (not that we're blowing our own trumpet or anything!)
We have strong Pan Asian, American and European influences with superb presentation that's a feast for the eyes (followed by a feast for the stomach too!) Our menu changes 4 times a year to reflect the seasonal produce changes, all of which keeps our dishes fresh and exciting.
What are your future plans?
We're ambitious and have ambitious plans too. We plan to take on possibly another 3 restaurants but up to a maximum of 5 as a five year goal.... watch this space! We're local lads and haven't ventured too far from home so we definitely prefer a local location, but all with a stylish, London feel. We've used our own name as the branding to give the restaurant personality.
It's exciting times for Harpers in West Wickham and we at thebestof Bromley Borough wish you every success.
