It is a rare occasion when all the resto-biz sideliners are whole heartedly in agreement. A lifetime’s sniping from cover can result in a certain sourness of outlook, but everyone who is anyone seems delighted by Jeremy Lee’s triumphant return to Soho. What’s more you can spot the Hart brothers (with whom Jeremy has gone into partnership at the re-energised Quo Vadis) because they are the ones with wide grins as they work the room shaking hands in what is now their busy and buzzy restaurant. During his sixteen year stint looking out at Tower Bridge Jeremy Lee’s cooking has always impressed, now it can be enjoyed in a great deal handier location.
It is just about time to say goodbye to 2011 – and to comment on how resilient the restaurant industry has been in the face of the continuing economic gloom. If there has been a popular strategy for beleaguered restaurateurs it is the “small plates” wheeze. Offering several small dishes rather than a formal three courser means that customers can reassure themselves that they will only order a couple of dishes (and pay as little as £6 each), which adds an attractive entry point to enticing pricing. Then the dishes are so good that you eat four or more – and end up paying much the same as you would in a large plates establishment. New restaurants Soif and Ibérica Canary Wharf both flirt with this tactic.
When he was sixteen Alyn Williams applied for a job as a luggage porter at the Westbury, thankfully he didn’t get it. Fast forward to the 28th November 2011 when the Westbury opened a new, super-slick, highly ambitious restaurant with Alyn’s name over the door - “Alyn Williams at the Westbury”. When he was sixteen Alyn Williams applied for a job as a luggage porter at the Westbury, thankfully he didn’t get it. Fast forward to the 28th November 2011 when the Westbury opened a new, super-slick, highly ambitious restaurant with Alyn’s name over the door - “Alyn Williams at the Westbury”. Both Williams, and the amiable front of house Giancarlo Princigalli, know a thing about running successful restaurants within smart hotels as they served time with Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley. The new venture seats 40 plus a couple of private dining rooms and has been completely re-designed – this may be the only restaurant in town with a glitter sparkly carpet.
The World’s End stretch of the Kings Road is a strange locale, smart Indian restaurant Vama never quite made a go of it. 808 - a Pan-Asian-Eclectic from the Will Ricker stable - enjoyed some success but hasn’t blown anyone away. With the arrival of Medlar, however, things are looking up. Joe Mercer Nairne (chef) and David O'Connor (front of house) have an enviable pedigree: Joe has cooked at Neil Perry’s Rockpool in Sydney and then Chez Bruce, while David has served his time at the Square, the Ledbury and Chez Bruce. If we were talking racehorses the bookies would be shortening the price and chalking up a new favourite. Even without all the background the Medlar menu screams Chez Bruce. This is a very good thing indeed.
There are two things about Raymond Blanc that would puzzle anyone, firstly how has he managed to spend over forty years in England without losing his impenetrable French accent? And secondly, how can it be that Le Manoir has held two Michelin stars for 27 years without either gaining the third or being demoted to a one star? For me this is yet another reason to query the judgement of the tyre people. It seems highly implausible that a restaurant could be knocking on the door of the ultimate accolade for over a quarter of a century without getting better or worse. It’s even more puzzling as Le Manoir is undeniably a class act…
Imagine you are setting out to find a restaurant that is quiet at lunch time, (so that you can get a table at short notice); where they cook really well and serve beguiling, deceptively simple, ingredient led dishes. Add in comfortable service and a softly priced drinks list. You have arrived at Hereford Road where the set lunch is the bargain of the age - two courses £13 or three courses £15.50. And if those prices seem to rich for your blood (ie if you lunch at McDonald's or KFC) there is the Express Lunch at £9.50: roast quail, watercress and aioli + glass of Pegões Tinto 2009 + coffee.
With some telly time and a couple of pretty decent cookery books under her belt, Silvena Rowe has been talking about opening her own restaurant for several years. At the beginning of August she finally got her wish, as she opened Quince which you’ll find in the “Langan’s” end of the May Fair Hotel. This is a hotel with a strange aura that combines chav-glossy with expensive and a clientel
Armed with the trusty Food Programme recording machine, and after a very good lunch at Rockpool Bar & Grill, I managed to get Neil Perry to say a few words about Australian cuisine. Truth to tell I was a little in awe of Mr Perry whose “Balance and Harmony: Asian Food” is something of a favourite. It’s one of those books that seems to be packed with good sense and interesting ideas, but I confess that I have never actually cooked any of the recipes within it. While trying to get the little lights on the Nagra recorder into the right zone I casually asked Neil how long he had been cheffing for and he replied “about 35 years”….
In Britain a small number of elite chefs have bitten the bullet and moved their restaurants into hotels. The chefs benefit from sympathetic rents and overheads, the hotels benefit from having a destination restaurant within the building, and sometimes a few much sought after tables available exclusively for their guests. This kind of symbiotic approach is also to be found in Sydney – Tony Bilson
Chef Shannon Bennett has long been the darling of Melbourne’s foodies, bloggers, guide book inspectors and reviewers. He has worked his way from the award for “Best new talent” in 2003 to a top score of three chef’s hats in the well respected “The Age Good Food Guide” 2010. He has also moved his restaurant, Vue de Monde twice, the latest migration being in June 2011 when after many months of building work it re-opened on the 55th floor of the Rialto – a central Melbournian skyscraper. Happily Vue de Monde opened a week before my visit to Melbourne and I was able to pop in for a spot of lunch.
