No Expert – Page 38 – No Expert …but I know what I like

Tom Aikens – Downsizing

Readers of our earlier post (Tom Aikens – Flavour, Flavour, Flavour) will have noticed that our only criticism, applied to portion control. It does rather seem that Tom Aikens has had this feedback from a number of customers and has made some changes. Ironically we went here, without having had breakfast, ready for a feast, instead we had a well balanced lunch.

The petit fours also used to be a highlight, and now at lunch time are limited to some Madeline’s and rather tiny chocolates, which might have been ok, if we had not been aware of how spectacular this part of the meal used to be.

We had the Tasting Menu with some stunning matching wines. The lamb course with artichokes was the weakest course, but on the whole the food was superb.

It is also great to be given the details of the wine parings.

One day we will visit and stick to our original intention of trying the much cheaper lunch menu. The temptation was just too much for us yet again.

Update: Tom Aikins is now doing BYO – see

http://www.hardens.com/restaurant-news/uk-london/17-09-09/byo-tom-aikens-bob-ricard/

Marks out of 10

Food 8

Service 8

Ambience 8

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The Berkeley – Pret a Portea

KiA friend reserved a table for the Pret a Portea at The Berkeley – the famous fashionista’s afternoon tea. Not that I qualify in any way for the description of fashionista, but there were plenty of them in the room to make up the shortfall.

The table was beautifully set, with individual stylised menus and a personalised name card. Our only criticism was the size of the font on the menu (see vent number 21). We also had some concerns when only one cake stand was set on the table for four people – there was only two handbags!. However the waiter quickly reassured us that the plates would be swapped out as and when we finished them. He was true to his word as we discovered following multiple plate changes.

The sandwiches (we had 3 rounds each and were offered more!), savoury spoonfuls and cakes were all of a very high standard. In fact I actually enjoyed the afternoon tea more than the lunch we had a few months back in Marcus Wareings restaurant!

We also had a few glasses of champagne – they offer standard or couture. The waiter serving the champagne was particularly proficient as he single handedly poured the champagne, smoothly swapping from one hand to the other. He also used a small laser pointer to individually identify and describe the sandwiches and cakes! I jokingly commented that he put on a better show than the Fat Duck. So you can imagine my shock when Heston Blumental walked by a few minutes later. The Berkeley will be a rival to his planned new Restaurant in the Mandarin Oriental just around the corner (see Foliage replacement – the gossip!), so I guess he was just being neighbourly!

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Osteria Dell’Angolo – 3’s a disappointment

Visited the Osteria Dell’Angolo for the third time, after its holiday closure and menu change. First couple of visits led us to believe we might have found an exceptional restaurant, especially the meal on our second visit. Not the case however as this visit showed.

We had a rather boring amuse-bouche and a couple of quite bland dishes, based on this it does look like the Osteria has lost its wow factor.

Marks out of 10

Food 6

Service 6

Ambience 6

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Roof Top Bars in Barcelona

Apparently “the luxury consumer’s desire to climb skyward is most strongly felt in dense, heavily populated urban metropolises”. I can not disagree with that, so when you get the right weather, it’s good to find a venue with a view. Here are a couple of our favourite Roof Top Bars in the urban metropolis that is Barcelona.

The Majestic – Gourmet Bar

The Majestics pool bar has stunning views, it is a beautiful location, however it does have a few negatives :-

Drinks are expensive and served in plastic glasses!
The drink selection is limited
The staff seem more concerned with keeping the place tidy than serving customers.
No idea on the food front as nothing offered on the menu that we could see, just rather plain crisps delivered with our drinks.

Here is a short video:-

The Claris Hotel – La Terraza del Claris

Views from the Claris Hotel are not as good as the Majestic, but the bar service and food choices are a lot better. It’s a more laid back venue. The prices here are also very expensive so prepare to nurse that drink and make the most of the view.

For more roof top bar locations see :- Roof Top Bars in Europe.

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Inopia – VIP tapas (Closed)

We had heard good things about Inopia, but were not sure it would be our scene, as it seemed a little too trendy and lively for our tastes, but we decided to give it a go. Following advice from other food bloggers we arrived early (about 7:30 to avoid the queues) the red rope was raised and we got the last two seats.

The place was already buzzing, food bloggers were clearly in situ, armed with cameras and note books. For such a busy place the service was exceptional, friendly and efficient.

As you would expect with the el Bulli connection (Inopia is owned by el Bulli’s dessert chef, Alberto Adria), the food quality and service was definitely well above your average tapas. We were happy to follow the waiters recommendations, sampling top quality tapas favourites like Patatas Bravas and ham croquettes, along with other dishes such as the Russian Salad and the Tuna carpaccio, we had about 7 dishes in total, washed down with a couple of glasses of Kalimotxo and a refreshing complimentary liqueur.

UPDATE November 2010 – Last weekend, the last tapas were served at Inopia, co-owned by Alberto Adrià, who is said to have been too busy working on another project to mourn over the closing, the place is soon to reopen under a new name, Lolita.

Marks out of 10

Food 7

Service 7.5

Ambience 7.8

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Moovida – grazing time.

This is pretty much our first stop after getting off the plane in Barcelona. Moovida is the bar of the Hotel Omm, so its menu covers bar food, but that description just does not do it justice, as the quality is unmistakable. We started with a stunning veal sandwich (actually more of a burger than a sandwich), then added in a cheese course to extend the meal and finished off with a delicious apple tart with ginger ice cream.

UPDATE: May 2010 – Revisited Moovida, we had exactly the same meal. There was no dip in the quality. The menu is more extensive, but when you find something you enjoy it’s hard not to do repeats.

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