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What it's really like inside London's Insta-famous pink restaurant

These days a holiday doesn’t feel complete unless you’ve dined at a hyped-up restaurant that’s currently blowing up on social media.

Enter Sketch. London’s most famous eatery. You know the one, with its perfectly pale-pink colour palette and alien-like bathrooms?

The perfect date nook. Photo: Yahoo Australia
The perfect date nook. Photo: Yahoo Australia

After stepping into the whimsical restaurant, we can see why it’s a favourite selfie-snapping spot amongst the likes of Kylie Jenner, Bella Hadid, Tash Oakley and Taylor Swift. The pink velvet chairs and rose-gold copper finishings remind me of what it must be like to dine in Alice’s Wonderland. But it’s not just for celebs, at £59 per person for high tea, even a commoner like myself could rustle up the funds to enjoy a special treat.

Before the current series, artist David Shrigley offered a monochrome set of witty drawings, seen here as a backdrop for Taylor Swift and her matching-the-interiors copper skirt. Photo: Taylor Swift Instagram
Before the current series, artist David Shrigley offered a monochrome set of witty drawings, seen here as a backdrop for Taylor Swift and her matching-the-interiors copper skirt. Photo: Taylor Swift Instagram

Firstly, The Gallery (where the famous velvet chairs are) is just like it is on Instagram. A friend tried to tell me it wouldn’t match my expectations and convinced me it’d look tired. She was wrong.

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The millennial pink interior by U.K. designer India Mahdavi is a background for the current artist Sketch is showcasing: David Shrigley. His bold but witty drawings explode in full colour against the soft backdrop. Each painting boasting a strange news headline or dark piece of humour that is enhanced with each glass of pink Pommery. Sketch mixes up the vibe every few years to accommodate its featured artist.

Pastels on point. Photo: Yahoo Australia
Pastels on point. Photo: Yahoo Australia
UK artist David Shrigley’s colourful pieces provide plenty to digest with your afternoon tea. Photo: Yahoo Australia
UK artist David Shrigley’s colourful pieces provide plenty to digest with your afternoon tea. Photo: Yahoo Australia

The afternoon tea menu is split into a starter of caviar with a fancy egg soldier toast scenario and a three-tiered tray of asparagus, cucumber and ricotta sandwiches, foie gras tarts, pistachio and apricot cake and white peach and verbena cheesecake to name a few. The trolley rolls around with classic Victorian sponge cake – the Queen would certainly approve. Dinner items look more like bone marrow served on the bone with cauliflower and black garlic puree, oxtail beef and melba toast. Other eclectic rooms in the converted 18th-century building include The Parlour, The Glade and Lecture Room and Library. If tea isn’t your thing then book for breakfast, brunch, lunch, a cocktail course or dinner.

Caviar starter with an egg that isn’t what it seems. Photo: Yahoo Australia
Caviar starter with an egg that isn’t what it seems. Photo: Yahoo Australia
Marshmallows, cheesecakes, sponges, tarts – all the greats. Photo: Yahoo Australia
Marshmallows, cheesecakes, sponges, tarts – all the greats. Photo: Yahoo Australia

Sketch has been popular since its birth in 2002 but the venue could have Instagram to thank for taking its notoriety to the next level. The #sketchlondon hashtag has 47K posts on the Gram alone and while we think the real stars are the pink chairs, culinary superstars Mourad “Momo” Mazouz and head chef Pierre Gagnaire have created a sensory overload that’s been buzzing in the UK capital for more than 12 years.

The otherworldly bathrooms provide a weird but wonderful atmosphere for selfies. Although the alien pod-like toilets remind me a tad of a festival. Photo: Yahoo Australia
The otherworldly bathrooms provide a weird but wonderful atmosphere for selfies. Although the alien pod-like toilets remind me a tad of a festival. Photo: Yahoo Australia
Victorian sponge, anyone? Photo: Yahoo Australia
Victorian sponge, anyone? Photo: Yahoo Australia

People might clutch their pearls when they walk in, but Sketch is like a beautiful acid-trip to a dreamlike realm. Certainly worthy of a visit and a selfie or two.

The whimsical world of Sketch is set out over a sprawling Georgian townhouse in London’s Mayfair. Photo: Yahoo Australia
The whimsical world of Sketch is set out over a sprawling Georgian townhouse in London’s Mayfair. Photo: Yahoo Australia
Truffled egg sanga, smoked salmon and a patè tart. Photo: Yahoo Australia
Truffled egg sanga, smoked salmon and a patè tart. Photo: Yahoo Australia

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