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Children’s illustrators Helen Oxenbury and John Burningham in Paradise with owner Wasel Shahid |
Paradise is a curry with Tandoori King Prawns
Childrens’ illustrators Helen Oxenbury and John Burningham are in Paradise. Peter Gruner joined them
ONCE upon a time there was a little boy who was taken out by his parents to a smart restaurant for a treat – but all he wanted to eat was cornflakes.
I was reminded of the story, Eating Out, illustrated by Helen Oxenbury, when I met her and husband John Burningham at their favourite restaurant this week.
The tale struck a nerve with every parent who has ever suffered the agonies of irascible young children in restaurants.
It’s nice to take the kids out for a family meal. But, as a father of three, my feeling is that if they are only going to want baked beans, parents would be better off paying for a babysitter and going out for a blissful evening on their own.
However, Helen and John – two of Britain’s greatest children’s illustrators – hadn’t come to Paradise (formerly the Curry Paradise) in Hampstead, to discuss the hell of eating out with young children.
Today their own three children are long grown up, which means the couple are able to enjoy the pleasures of eating out without distractions.
Helen said: “We like coming to the Paradise. It’s a relatively short walk from our home opposite Hampstead Heath. The food is always fresh and delicious and tastes like it could be home made. Most importantly, the prices are reasonable.”
John said: “It’s nice in summer because they can roll back the doors. There’s lots of space between tables so you can enjoy your privacy. So many restaurants have terrible acoustics but here you can hear yourself talk.” Helen and John both started with the hearty mulligatawny soup (£2.80) which they described as always delicious. I had the lentil soup, (£2.80) flavoured with cloves, peppercorns and turmeric, with a slice of lemon to give it a bite.
Helen had Tandoori King Prawns (£12.95) while John half a Tandoori chicken (£6). I opted for the vegetarian Chana Masala (£5.45) with spicy chickpeas, potatoes and cauliflower. Sharing each other’s dishes, we all agreed that the food tasted really good. Paradise, a family restaurant, has been going for 40 years and includes among its celebrated diners Jude Law, Robert Powell, and Ester Rantzen.
Helen spoke about her new book, out in late spring, with Ruth Krauss. Called The Growing Story, it is being published by Harper Collins.
She said: “It’s about a little boy who sees everything else growing around him – the dogs, chickens and plants – but he’s not getting any taller. There is a happy ending, of course. Finally, he wakes up to find his clothes are too tight. He’s started to grow.”
John has written a semi-autobiographical book, which, combined with an exhibition, reveals much of his early influences and inspirations. Eating out is an occasional treat for the couple, and at home their tastes are simple.
Helen said: “I’m happy with something like grilled tomatoes on toast.”
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