43 Thames Valley Members in Prison

Recently the members of the Thames Valley Bailliage had lunch at The Clink Restaurant in Sutton. This might not seem very unusual but the restaurant is situated within High Down Prison!

The intention of building the restaurant was to enable prisoners to be trained in both cooking and service so that on release they are able to obtain jobs in the hospitality industry.

The concept was the brainchild of Al Cresci, who has worked on the project for the last 3 years and was finally brought to fruition in late 2009. For his work on this project, he was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours.

Having been cleared through security by producing photographic identification and going through electronic gates, you are escorted to the restaurant and locked inside. However, once there you would never know that you were within the walls of a prison.

The restaurant seats 95 people and has a full open plan kitchen with some of the latest and most exclusive equipment. Al supervises the team of inmates preparing the food whilst Francis supervises the front of house.

The majority of the furniture and décor in the restaurant has been made by other inmates and you would certainly believe that you were in a first class restaurant.

The menu is set out below and both the presentation and food were excellent.

Warm Goat’s Cheese and Butternut Squash Tartlet

Fresh Fillet of Brill

Slow Braised Steak with Chasseur Sauce Served with fresh game chips and seasonal vegetables

Bakewell Tart with Fresh Raspberries Served with Sauce Anglaise

Coffee Whilst we would never recommend prison as a long term venue, our lunch there was certainly an experience well worth having.