Flash new restaurants in iconic London department stores is something of a continuing theme in 2023 – just take a look over at Harrods with their latest food hall refurb. Not to be outdone, Selfridges has also launched a new restaurant. But rather than parachute in big-name international chefs and brands a la Harrods, Selfridges have looked a little closer to home, choosing instead to showcase London’s own Jackson Boxer amongst the rails of high fashion.
Jackson Boxer at The Corner is tucked away on the second floor, in a bright corner room overlooking Oxford Street or Orchard Street, depending on which side you’re sat on. There’s also some booth seating in the middle of the room and a nice little bar with high stools – we can certainly imagine perching up here solo post-shopping trip for a fried chicken sandwich and a glass of fizz.
Talking of that chicken sandwich, it’s a beauty: lightly fried chicken sandwiched between toasted brioche with a caper mayonnaise and shredded cabbage. It was the perfect main event to a meal that also started very well with a couple of superb snacks: the smoked eel, beetroot and pickled shiitake mushroom skewer, and the potato cake (essentially a big crispy oblong hash brown) topped with whipped cod’s roe and kosho.
Other big highlights for us included the ‘peppers, egg, and anchovies’, a big hearty bowl of grilled peppers mixed with salty anchovies and topped with crisp shoestring fries; and the XL diver scallop, with Jerusalem artichoke and autumn truffle, swimming in a sauce that we don’t mind saying we drank right out of the shell, it was that good.
We didn’t make it to dessert, which was almost certainly a mistake as we’ve since seen how good they look on everyone else’s Instagram feeds. That, and a whole host of lovely sounding savoury dishes that we didn’t get to try, is more than enough reason for us to plan a second visit. Or maybe you’ll just find us at the bar with that fried chicken sandwich.
Second Floor, Selfridges, 400 Oxford Street, London, W1A 1AB
selfridges.com