Somerset Energy, Relaxed Food Shopping and Lunch to Go in Mayfair.

If you are not completely loaded crossing over the invisible border from the westend to Mayfair can give anyone palpitations.

Mayfair known for the well heeled and the beautiful people can be a little bit intimidating if you are more of a pie and a pint person. I’ve sat down in a small Italian red table clothed bistro before had a bowl of pasta and a glass of wine and nearly coughed up my lunch when I was handed the bill so it’s good to know about places like the Farm Shop, offering beautiful freshly prepared sandwiches, salads and snacks, cold drinks and “wild food” fruit, more like a posh supermarket meal deal with tables outside, lovely on a sunny day, where you can be in the thick of things without needing a bank loan to pay for lunch.

If you want more of a sit down affair they do have a restaurant and “wine bar” downstairs. I didn’t explore the menu or the prices but the tomato open sandwich I ordered off the counter was incredible, had a kind of salty tapenade pesto combo to give it a lift and served on fresh crunchy ciabatta. A decent sized portion for the price £7.50 too.

With a piece of fruit and an original Hullabaloo lemonade, refreshing, homemade taste the bill was less than the street parking close by.

It’s actually more like a little farm shop supermarket, deli than a restaurant serving coffee and pastries too if you are looking for a cute place to enjoy a cuppa mid morning.

I also noticed small pop up brands displayed like cashmere socks and scarves from independent Scottish brand, made exclusively for The Fife Arms by British-based knitwear designer Rosie Sugden. The socks were £40 which I didn’t think was too bad. They felt really lovely. The matching scarves were a lot more expensive at £395 but it was great to see these great Made in Scotland goods being given a push.

It’s a quirky place, part food store, part supermarket, part gifts and independent brands so definitely worth popping into for a noisy if you are passing. The closest tube station is probably Marble Arch and I’d say it’s about a 10 minute walk from there.