Dining at Les 110 is an experience for grown-ups. The London sibling of the two Michelin-starred Paris original is housed in a fine yet somewhat austere Georgian building on Cavendish Square. The venue imbues a sense of expectation, but also one of reverence. Full marks for the food and its pricing; less praise for the service and overall ambience…
Sea Containers: Smoother sailing
My initial visit to this venue in February was characterised by a mix of positive and negatives: design, views and cocktails in the former camp, but a poor menu concept and disappointing service distinctly in the latter. However, full plaudits to Sea Containers for mostly delivering on this occasion…
Nuala: Dining just got a whole lot cooler
The Red Pepper: The past is a foreign country…
L P Hartley’s famous line seems an appropriate way in which to describe The Red Pepper. Time does funny things to one’s memory and, of course, we all grow up, but put simply, a recent visit to this restaurant showed demonstrably that in the past, “they do [did] things differently.” We left feeling underwhelmed …
Bluebird Café White City: Mixed signals
Long-established as a fixture on the King’s Road in Chelsea, the Bluebird has now spread its wings. A second venture bearing the same logo and concept has just opened in White City. More are apparently planned too. However, the Bluebird is not the Ivy: there is nowhere near as much general affection for the former as the latter. Whereas the Ivy has flourished in its multiple locations, showing that traditional British values (and cooking) can travel/endure, the Bluebird evokes Chelsea decadence, and found its apogee over a decade ago …
Hām: Coming hām
Let’s first get one thing clear: the accent on the ‘a’ of the restaurant’s name is deliberate and renders pronunciation of the word ‘hame.’ For the unaware, it is old English, for home and a very appropriate choice for this restaurant. Coming here is like coming home/hām, a friendly and welcoming local venue, which cooks a small number of dishes playing strongly to England’s heritage – and does them very well.
Yauatcha City: High life
Times have changed. Twenty years ago, when I was first in London, in this venue men in pinstripes drank champagne while overlooking an ice rink. Now, the clientele is more diverse, the food multiple notches better, although the views more depressing. Hopefully the scaffolding surrounding much of the Broadgate complex will be gone once Crossrail is complete and then diners can get to appreciate better this outpost of Alan Yau’s ever-expanding empire. The impressive thing about Yauatcha is that its quality remains undiminished and remarkably consistent across branches
Breddos Carnaby: Tasty tacos, but trouble too
Pachamama: Well-trodden path
A trip to Peru was one of the most memorable holidays I ever undertook. On returning, I lamented for many years how there was a dearth of Peruvian dining options in London. In the last five, however, the city has gone mad for all things culinary from South America. While thoroughly enjoyable, a recent visit to Pachamama yielded nothing new in terms of discovery...
Avenue: Road to nowhere?
Why call a restaurant avenue? Are diners being taken on a journey? If so, to where? Plaudits to Avenue for having survived for over twenty years – no mean feat in the cut-throat restaurant market of London. Some of its success must be down to constant reinvention, attempting to stay relevant and draw in as broad a range of punters as possible...
Delamina: Winning formula
For a mid-market restaurant looking to tick all the right boxes, look no further than Delamina. Like many of the eateries of Tel Aviv from where the team behind this venture hail, the atmosphere is distinctly informal, but buzzing with life. Food-wise, the emphasis is on healthy and nutritious, combining the freshness of produce from the Mediterranean with the spiciness and cooking techniques (especially grilling and roasting) of the Middle East. If the Palomar and the Barbary led the way in this respect, then Delamina represents a natural evolution...
Plateau: Elevation, Canary Wharf-style
Amidst its jungle of skyscrapers, Canary Wharf has many dining options, but few high-end ones. Plateau is therefore a welcome relief, even if the formula is a familiar one. This is perhaps unsurprising given it is part of the D&D restaurant group. Even if the food pleased and service could not be faulted, it still did not take away from the fact that places sorely lacks atmosphere, or even a sense of joyfulness
Crocker’s Folly: Victorian grandeur meets Middle Eastern cuisine
Crocker’s Folly was my local boozer when I first moved to London.. When the venue reopened as a restaurant in 2014. I visited and was highly disappointed by the service, uninspiring food and poor value for money. With some time having elapsed, a return trip was merited. In summary, Crocker's remains as stunning as ever, while the menu now has a dedicated Middle Eastern focus. The combination of opulent Victorian architecture and Lebanese-style food may seem like an incongruous one, but it kind-of works.
Sketch – The Lecture Room & Library: Not just a meal, but an experience
Fifteen years is a long time, particularly for a restaurant in London. Yet, since 2003, Sketch has remained a unique venue, a cavern of opulence and decadence, which also serves exceptionally good food. It is no mean feat for Sketch still to be almost as trendy now as when it opened and the fact that it is only one of nine locations in London to hold two Michelin stars speaks to the quality of its offering. Diners should be prepared for an experience.
Zuma: Living the dream
Zuma has become almost an institution on the London dining scene. Even more than 10 years on from opening it can still be hard to get a table here. It would be easy for a restaurant in such a position to dine out on its success, but standards have stayed consistently high. A recent lunchtime visit demonstrated that the food remains as good as ever. The atmosphere, however, left quite a lot to be desired.
Mee Market: Casual Korean hits the spot
It’s arguably harder for a restaurant in Soho to succeed than any other spot in London. Such is the range of options that dining spots need to do something different in order to survive. Mee Market has taken an innovative approach, combining retail outlet, takeaway counter and eating space all in one location
Sea Containers: All at sea
The Harcourt: Mixed messages
It’s a puzzle trying to decide how to describe the Harcourt. Maybe as a first stab, it is a traditional English pub with Scandinavian influences offering food from the region with a modern European twist. The venue’s website (un)helpfully has the catchy moniker, “old, but new.” Confused? So were my comrade and I when we dined at the Harcourt on a recent weekday evening. There was a great atmosphere, but the food was not sufficiently impressive to justify the prices charged
Marianne: Don’t shout too loudly, but…
A Tenth Wedding Anniversary is a significant event and so choosing a restaurant in which to celebrate is no trivial matter (especially for an amateur food critic). Nonetheless, after little consideration, my comrade and I elected Marianne. This was the third time we have visited it – and we have never been disappointed yet. Arguably, it is the best place to go for an intimate fine dining experience in London...
Le Boudin Blanc: An unwelcome step back in time
The last time is visited Le Boudin Blanc was a decade ago. It felt dated then, and even more so now. Clearly the place must be doing something right since it was packed when I visited on a recent weekday lunchtime, but to my mind the place demonstrates almost everything that is bad about restaurant culture.