Hardman WITH enough eating places to justify its own Guide

Michelin, Notting Hill might seem to have reached restaurant saturation point. Everything that isn't a shop is now a restaurant, and every shop that shuts down reopens as a restaurant anyway. Every pub is a 'gastropub' and now, on the outer fringes, we see the rise of the ‘gastroclub'.

First came the Cobden Club. This was an old working-men's club on the Notting Hill perimeter and is now a members-only restaurant plus several bars for those who do a less backbreaking sort of work if, indeed, they do any work at all.

Now, it has a rival in the form of Woody's, which feels like a club but is open to all. Like the Cobden, Woody's is hardly in Notting Hill, hidden up a small street off the Harrow Road. But the social tom-toms beat fast and loud in this neck of the woods and it is already drawing a large Notting Hill media/trust-fund/Internet crowd up beyond the A40.

Formerly a run-down nightclub, Woody's is four floors of a large house with a restau- rant on the first floor and bars on the other three. Apart from a small brass plate on the door, there is little to indicate that it exists.

It had been going for only two days when I arrived on a Saturday night but the roomy ground-floor bar was already heaving with people in black who seemed to know each other. The barman turned out to have been hired from the Met Bar, the former It joint in Park Lane. Perhaps Woody's is the new place for cocktails.

I do not know because hunger, the lack of a seat and my tweed jacket sent me straight upstairs to the equally busy restau- rant. There my companion and I were given a duff table next to the open-fronted kitchen, but it proved entertaining. Teething troubles with the ventilation twice brought a metal fire-screen crashing down like a bank counter faced with a gunman.

The simple decor — wooden floors, plain tables and bright lighting — gives the room a determinedly unpretentious feel, unlike some of the clientele. The plain brown wall- paper turned out to be plain brown paper (the sort used for wrapping parcels). Cover- ing all the walls cost the princely sum of £8, which should be a comforting thought in the event of a trustafarian food fight.

As with the bar, there was a clubby feel to the restaurant — much hailing from one table to another — and also to the menu.

This is modern clubland grub with more of an eye for female tastes than some St James's menus.

'A good selection of girlie stuff,' mused Richenda, observing no fewer than four sal- ads on the list of starters. In the event, she chose the seared scallops with ginger and spring onions, and received a plate of very simple, fresh scallops which she adored. My crab and avocado pancetta was a generous mulch. I suppose I might have preferred a slightly smaller helping with a little more crab but I would certainly order it again. The main courses cover all the likely ground, including tuna steak, breast of chicken and a Woody's burger, and, again, proved to be a case of simple foOd done properly. Richenda was delighted with her cod fillet on wild rice. My pork chops were excellent and all the more tender for a jus of sage and citrus. At £8.50, they were also pretty cheap by Notting Hill standards.

For pudding I ordered the lemon tart, which was a firm, tasty slab from a home- made mother tart the size of a game pie. It must have been two inches tall. Richenda went straight for the After Eight ice cream which tasted exactly how a box of After Eights mashed up with some cream and stuck in a freezer ought to. The bill, includ- ing two bottles of 1996 Cune Rioja, came to a bearable £81 without service.

Afterwards we looked around. Given its out-of-the-way location, Woody's is a place for a night out rather than a quick bite. The box-like basement bar boasts a dance floor but was too full for dancing. On the ground floor, the haute-grunge crowd were still 'Felix, drag that thing off the health and safety guy before he kicks up a fuss.' drinking their cocktails and shouting about Internet flotations.

The top floor, quieter and with seats available, contained a more ordinary crowd — some not wearing any black at all — but turned out to be a private party. We went back to the restaurant and had another glass of Rioja.

Woody's is off to a flying start. Owned by a trio of well-connected Notting Hill thir- tysomethings, it already has a strong local fan base; a few days later I dropped in for a midweek birthday party and saw a queue for the restaurant at 11 p.m. It will not be long before we are reading of celebrity assignations there.

As with any hot new arrival, though, its problem is going to be keeping the momen- tum once the novelty value has worn off, and that means ensuring that first-timers find it enjoyable as well as fashionable.

A loyalty scheme for would-be regulars is already in place and the managers are restricting the numbers of those who only want to drink and dance. I think it will work and I suspect that we will see a few more Notting Hill gastroclubs — if anyone can find the premises.

In this battle for the in-crowd, though, there must be casualties. On the other side of Notting Hill, a restaurant catering for a more sedate clientele is suffering. A few nights later I tried La Candela, which has taken over the old Boyds spot on Kensing- ton Church Street. It has set itself up as a smart Italian in the style of Como Lario, La Famiglia and all those other busy Chelsea Italians which are past masters at cram- ming in the smart set, laying on the bon- homie with a spatula and cranking up the prices.

But while Kensington and Chelsea is one borough it has two separate dining commu- nities. Chelsea, with its older crowd, likes its old familiars. Kensington — especially North Kensington — wants cutting edge.

La Candela is genuinely Italian, prettily decorated and no better or worse than its Chelsea counterparts. I started with some tasty grilled squid followed by a disappoint- ing veal cutlet, and ended up with a Chelsea bill. The veal alone was £16.25 with vegetables charged as extra. At £110 for two, it was not surprising that there were empty tables on a Friday night.

Now the management have had enough of Notting Hill and are seeking a new site among more appreciative customers in Chelsea. That, in turn, will mean yet anoth- er new restaurant in Notting Hill.

Woody's, 41-43 Woodfield Road, London W9; tel: 0207 266 3030. Dinner only, Monday to Friday. Lunch and dinner at weekends. La Candela, 135 Kensington Church Street, London W8; tel: 0207 727 5452. Lunch and dinner, Monday to Friday. Dinner only, Sat- urday. Closed Sunday.

Robert Hardman is a columnist and corre- spondent for the Daily Telegraph.