Category: UK

Texture – feeling a bit rough!!

Birthday lunch at Texture – rather over did it, going for champagne cocktails, tasting menu and matching wines, cheese board and more wine. The Food was of a high standard and the Wines were all very, very good. Maybe a little too good as I definitely suffered for my overindulgence later that day. This level of fine dining comes at a cost (physically and financially), next time definitely going for the very reasonable set lunch at £22.00.

The menu we had included a delicious Heritage Tomato (or Heirloom Tomato as they are known in the US) salad, my favorite Texture dish – Anjou Pigeon with, sweetcorn and bacon popcorn, a rather moorish Icelandic Cod dish and a very refreshing Strawberry Textures Moscatel sabayon.

The presentation and menu choices included in the Tasting Menu were not as effective as those on our earlier visit (see Texture – something good from Iceland),  but eating at Texture is certainly a pleasure. Looking forward to returning in the not too distant future.

 

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The Landmark – Champagne brunch in the Winter Garden

OK so it is still Summer, but champagne brunch in the Winter Garden at The Landmark Hotel is just too good to resist.

It’s 3 hours of non stop champagne and access to an extensive buffet containing a wide variety of lovely dishes.

You can go for breakfast, perhaps have an omelette from the Omelette station, or go for  typical brunch dishes like Eggs Benedict. There was also a lovely fish pie, lots of salmon dishes, and a really good range of sea food and sushi.   If you prefer Lunch to Brunch, you also have soups and roasts.

For those of us with a sweet tooth, this place is an absolute delight, as there is no skimping on the dessert selection either.  Desserts included a chocolate fountain, sorbets and ice cream, tarlets, fruit and cakes off all sorts.  I especially loved the marmalade meringues and the cup cakes.

In fact to really appreciate what’s on offer here, it is best to make this the only meal of the day.

The venue is lovely too.

This has to be one of the best brunch spots in London.

Marks out of 10

Food 7

Service 7

Ambience 7

 

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40|30 at the Gherkin – COOLest venue of the Noughties!

My last visit to 40|30 Restaurant at the Gherkin was in January, long enough a gap in my view.  So it was back again with a group of friends to enjoy a night out in the one of the  “COOLest venues of the Noughties“.

So is it still “Cool”? – Absolutely.

This place has substance and style, there is no question that 40|30 is continuing to delivering first class food in a first class venue.

The menu was both interesting and varied, some classic food combinations and some more surprising ones.  My main course of  Pork belly with Black Pudding doughnuts was  just stunning and the cheese cake with celery of all things, was another standout.

For food of this calibre in such a world class location, 2 courses at £39.50 and 3 courses at £47.50 is such a good deal (especially as it includes an amuse bouche and a pre dessert).  The wine list is extensive but there are sufficient bottles under £40 to ensure that it is not too daunting.

You could tell by the empty plates at our table just how much we all enjoyed the food.

 

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Cross Keys – and angry words

The Cross Keys is a historic pub in the heart of Chelsea. It has a couple of lovely rooms that can be hired out and a separate  restaurant at the back with a retractable roof to let in the sunshine.  We dropped in for Sunday lunch, not realising that the pub had changed ownership earlier this year.

The service itself was a bit patchy, with the bread and one dip arriving first, then a second dip coming  just as the main courses arrived. I am pretty sure the rather loud argument we heard from the serving area did not help the ambience!

The bread with fresh pesto dip and olive oil was a good start, but the menu selection was not very exciting,  none of the starters grabbed our attention, nor did the desserts. So we ended up just having main courses, specifically  the Lamb Cutlets and the Wagyu beef burger with Truffle fries which at £16.00 has to be one of the most expensive burgers I have ever had. The Truffle fries were nice, but the burger was very ordinary, and served with way too much Kos lettuce. At that price I was expecting something a bit more  sophisticated, like the “frenchie” burger served at Bar Boulud for example.

So maybe on my next visit I will just stick to drinks and bar snacks and avoid disappointment.

Marks out of 10

Food 4.2

Service 4.5

Ambience 4.7

 

UPDATE – November 2012: Restaurant is now closed. See article about Squatters taking up residence for some background information.

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Confessions of a Chocolaholic Afternoon Tea at the Hilton

Overindulged at the “Confessions of a Chocaholic Afternoon Tea at the Hilton”  in the Podium Restaurant on the ground floor of the Park Lane Hilton.

This afternoon tea is good value for money, compared to a lot of the hotel based afternoon tea options in London (£29.50 including a glass of champagne).

The three tier cake stand used looks great and I was impressed by the chocolate selection, even the gold sprinkled base was made out of chocolate.  There is so much here, making the pretty take away handbags a must.  The Tea selection was also interesting and extensive.

The open sandwiches were beautifully presented, tasty and fresh. The chocolate spread with Chocolate Chip scones was also a nice touch. Not so keen on the cup cakes though which were rather ordinary.

The let down was more on the service side, which although friendly, was really slow. It was hard getting attention and it was nearly a hour before we started!  I am also not sure that “I did not have time to bring the extra sandwiches is a particularly good excuse” in a hotel of this calibre.

The room was pleasant enough but had rather bad acoustics and the use of live and canned music really did not work.

Marks out of 10

Food 5.7

Service 3.8

Ambience 4

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The Chop House – Vegetarian friendly!

Had a casual lunch with some friends in Butlers Wharf Chop House, we went for the set lunch in the bar area rather than the main restaurant.  For a restaurant known for its meat, the set menu surprisingly did not include any, just a rather nice selection of vegetarian dishes and one fish dish.

For starters we had the Vegetable and Barley soup, tasty and very wintry, but as the sky was dark with rain, it rather suited the day.  The Heritage Tomato salad was also delicious, so fresh it reminded one of my friends of her childhood eating tomatoes straight from the garden.  I had the red onion and cheese tart which I really enjoyed, the onions were very sweet and the combinations just worked. The Ling and runner beans needed a side order to complete the dish and the perfectly cooked Jersey potatoes were ideal. For dessert we ordered the Knickerbocker glory (nothing special), but the Secretts Farm Plums, Praline and Vanilla ice cream was well received, even if it was difficult to eat from the glass bowl.

The service was also very good, the staff were friendly and efficient. The only time we had any issue was when we came to pay the bill and found the bar area empty of staff.

Marks out of 10

Food 6.5

Service 6

Ambience 5

 

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