Arbutus, London W1

Which is why Arbutus - the name refers to the strawberry tree that grows in nearby Soho Square - stands out from the rest of the fashionable London restaurant scene. Chef and co-owner Anthony Demetre had been cooking top-shelf produce for years at Putney Bridge, renowned for its lobster, turbot and foie gras dishes. But Arbutus represents a deliberate embracing of the lower caste of the food chain. Ironically, it is something of a return to the gutsy, no frills, flavour-packed food that Demetre used to cook on this very site 13 years ago, when it was Bruno Loubet's Bistrot Bruno.

Also something of a throwback is the pricing policy, with most mains under £15 and plenty of seriously good wine options under £30. And while there are no wines other than champagne by the glass, every red and white - even the high-flying 1996 Chateau Montrose - is available in a two-glass 250ml carafe.

Together with Will Smith, his front-of-house partner from Putney Bridge, Demetre has created a coolly modern bistro space that manages to be smart without being designery. Dark wooden chairs and floors, studded banquettes and monochrome textural art on the walls make a pleasant, if neutral setting.

The menu is both robust and fiercely seasonal, running from braised stuffed lamb hearts and andouillettes de Troyes (sausages of pig intestines) to a salad of Jersey Royals, goat's curd and land cress, and English asparagus with a poached egg. It is the sort of stuff that brings hardcore foodies and winies out of the woodwork, so tonight we have a Time Out food critic in one corner, Jancis Robinson and food critic Nick Lander in the next, and novelist and "kitchen pedant" Julian Barnes in another.

I order the squid and mackerel burger (£9.50), more out of curiosity than desire, but it turns out to be a real surprise packet. A single, handsome, crisp, golden patty, it is light, juicy, lush and sweetly flavoured within, teamed with a tongue-in-cheek swish of barbecue sauce, a little string of cherry tomatoes and wedge of grilled baby gem lettuce.

A dish of chicken sot-l'y-laisse (£6.50), those juicy little chicken oysters hidden away between the leg and the backbone that are known in my household as the "carver's reward", displays a charming layering of flavours. The meat is tossed with double-shelled broad beans, hazelnuts and house-made macaroni, linked by an intense, creamy, chickeny sauce.

Speaking of surprise packets, it is rare to see pieds et paquets (£10.50) on a menu outside Provence. Demetre strays little from the original, wrapping the little parcels of sheep's tripe and cooking them slowly them with chopped sheep trotters, white wine and carrots. It is rich and earthy, yet refined, and nowhere near as challenging as it may sound.

The committed seasonality of the cooking shines in a fillet of slow-cooked sea trout served with crushed Jersey Royal potatoes and spears of English asparagus (£13.95). The day-glo orange trout seems almost warmed rather than cooked, leaving it with the consistency of softened butter; and its marvellous flavour is punched up by a lightly creamy smoked salmon sauce. A little sea purslane and a baton of crisped sea lettuce add savoury intrigue.

There are few Chilean whites I would walk over the Andes to try, but a carafe of peachy, floral Palo Alto Viognier from Francisco de Aguirre (£6.50) is terrific value for money.

Season's greetings continue with a summery treat of fresh cherries, iced white chocolate and pistachio parfait (£4.95), which will be even better when the cherry season is in full swing. A dish of floating islands (£4.50) is a cute little bit of fluff with pink praline floating in a deliciously runny custard.

Another visit brings another good wine and another good meal, although a fillet of commendably sustainable pollack (£13.50) lacks flavour, and a side dish of peas is undercooked to the point of crudite.

But by any measure, Arbutus is one of the brightest and most welcome London openings of the year. It has a lot in common with another new favourite of mine, The Ambassador, in Exmouth Market, so I am hoping that this seasonally adjusted, seriously crafted and modestly priced dining thing is the start of a major trend.

The service is caring and knowledgeable without being robotic or serf-like, and Demetre could hold masterclasses for other chefs in how to make the most of available produce. The best thing, however, is Arbutus's sense of time and place. When you eat here, you simply could not be anywhere else in the world, at any other time, than in England in late spring or early summer. And how nice, that you actually get to pay less for that privilege, rather than more. s

15/20

Scores 1-9 stay home and cook 10-11 needs help 12 OK 13 pleasant enough 14 good 15 very good 16 capable of greatness 17 special, can't wait to go back 18 highly honourable 19 unique and memorable 20 as good as it gets

Arbutus, 63-64 Frith Street, London W1, tel: 020 7734 4545

Lunch and dinner served daily. Around £85 for two including wine and service

Second helpings: Three more tree-related restaurants

Box Tree 35-37 Church Street, Ilkley, West Yorkshire, tel: 01943 608 484 Simon Gueller brings this landmark Ilkley restaurant up to form, with a Michelin star to boot. Look for slow-roast squab pigeon with choucroute, roast lobster risotto and line-caught sea bass with confit tomatoes and olives.

Lemon Tree 268 Woodstock Road, Oxford, tel: 01865 311 936 Lemon tree, very pretty, and the lemon flower is sweet... Seekers of seared tuna with Puy lentils in a relaxed Mediterranean atmosphere, look no more. Owner Clifton Pugh liked it so much he bought it back after selling it.

Foliage Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, 66 Knightsbridge, London SW1, tel: 020 7201 3723

The foliage - leaf-themed décor and Hyde Park itself - in no way camouflages the quality, as chefs David Nicholls and Chris Staines serve up mulligatawny of langoustines, shallot, parsley and bacon-crusted frog's legs.

Email Terry Durack about where you've eaten lately at t.durack@independent.co.uk