A short menu, written every morning
Lantern Table Kitchen opened on Lantern Row to cook a small number of dishes well and to publish what each one costs. This page explains how that works in practice and where it stops.
The approach, in three acts
- 01 Welcome
- 02 Method
- 03 What to expect
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Act 01
Welcome
Lantern Table Kitchen is one room of twenty-six covers on Lantern Row, with a counter along one side and a long table of ten at the back. A visit does not start with a reservation: the door opens at eight, walk-ins take whatever is free, and the day’s plate is written on the board by eleven. The only thing held in advance is the long table, and that is held in writing.
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Act 02
Method
The kitchen buys from the market first and writes the plate second. One lunch plate is listed each morning, one soup is made and not restocked, and the pastry counter is baked before the door opens. That order is why a visitor reads a real description of one dish instead of a long menu of dishes that may not be available. Prices sit beside those descriptions on the Services page rather than behind an enquiry: two of the six carry a “from” figure and one is quoted in writing, and in each of those the exact amount is confirmed before anything is agreed. No service charge is added at the table.
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Act 03
What to expect
A first-time visitor should expect to be told what has run out. The soup stops when the pot is empty and the pastry counter is thinnest after two, and the kitchen says so rather than substituting something at the same price. Dietary questions, access needs and group sizes are answered in writing before the visit rather than at the table, and a reply arrives during opening hours.
Three operating principles
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Publish the price
Every service carries a figure on this website. A “from” price is the lowest price for the stated scope, never an opening bid.
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Say what is not available
The soup runs out some days and the pastry selection changes. The kitchen says so rather than substituting something and charging the same.
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Confirm before holding
A message is an enquiry. Nothing is held until a person at the kitchen has replied and named the date, the time and the price.
The four steps of an enquiry
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Read the scope and the price
The Services page states what each service includes and what it costs.
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Send one message
Name the service, the date and the group size. A telephone number is optional.
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Read the reply
The kitchen answers during opening hours, confirms the scope and states the exact price.
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Agree the visit
Only then is a table or a long-table date set aside, and the confirmation comes in writing.
What the kitchen does not do
Expectations
The kitchen is closed on Monday and closes at 3:00 PM on Sunday, and it does not take orders outside those hours. There is no delivery, no set banquet menu and no fixed seating plan beyond the long table. The dining room seats twenty-six, so a group larger than ten cannot be accommodated at one sitting. This website sends messages and shows prices; it does not confirm a reservation.
Contact
Ask before a first visit rather than at the table
Dietary requirements, access needs and group sizes are all answered in writing. A reply comes during opening hours.