Three Way Thoughts on Theo – Theo Randall at the Intercontinental, Mayfair, 23rd of September 2009

As a twist on the standard one-man review I’ve been posting many of recently, especially since the fact that for the first time in months the three of us made it out to the same meal, three reviews in one are coming up.


Tom’s review:

I arrived at Theo Randall with suitably high expectations, with it consistently gathering plaudits and awards (Jay Rayner loves it, GQ voted it their Italian restaurant of the year last year), and to an extent it lived up to its billing.

The evening started with a drink at the bar in The Intercontinental; an experience not to be recommended. (Too many suits, too much arrogance, a lack of Guinness and a ridiculous price: two bottles of Meantime + compulsory 12.5% = £11.65.) At the restaurant, we were greeted by a friendly front of house, which is something you can't say as often as you should be able to. We all opted for the set menu which came with a glass of Prosecco (lovely). We then later added an additional desert, true to form.

I opted for the Crab as my antipasti, which came with foccacia and both English and French Mustards. The flavour was excellent, with the crab tasting quite sweet and with an incredible lightness. At this point, we really must mention the quality of the bread throughout, both prior to and with my starter - served nicely warm, it was delicious. From here I moved on to the seafood risotto, which looked plain due to its presentation, but had a lovely warm and complex flavour to it. For the main, I picked the Pollo di Faraona (stuffed chicken breast served with chard and lentils), which tasted as good as it sounds. The portion was too big though, two surprisingly large fillets being served, which contrasted with everyone else’s portion being slightly under-size.

The desert of choice was a panna cotta with grappa-soaked raspberries. The texture was exceptionally smooth, and the again the excellent quality of the garnish stood out - with the Raspberries looking and tasting fabulous.

Theo's was excellent. I would recommend a trip to anyone, and it must be one of the most laid back restaurants in any of London's big hotels. However, for me it kind of missed the point of going to an Italian restaurant with friends - the food and the surroundings it’s served in should be fairly simple, but full of heart and character, the atmosphere lively and bustling. Although the atmosphere improved as the evening went on, it lacked the kind of feel you can find at either Ciao Bella or Amalfi where we've all eaten together before, which in a way was inevitable.


Mike’s review:

I have had my reservations about Hotel Restaurants ever since an underwhelming experience at Galvin at Windows a few months ago. I am also a staunch detractor of “Set Menus” (It seems rather like going to the opera and taking the seat with the obstructed view). With this in mind I approached a long overdue “catch-up” meal with Jonnie and Tom with a fair amount of caution.

Like the gluttons we are, we chose to go for 4 courses; antipasti, primi, secondi and dolce (as our Italian cousins like to call them). Among the dishes we sampled were a rather interesting smoked eel with beetroot, a fairly routine bresaola with parmesan and rocket salad, a tasty but poorly presented risotto (rather resembling a plate of gruel), a disappointing ravioli with sheep’s cheese, a tender and well flavoured piece of beef unfortunately served on a bed of borlotti beans, a nicely cooked but under-supported piece of salmon with capers and a perhaps over portioned stuffed chicken. The star course for my money was dessert, which included a very solid chocolate cake with mascarpone and a delightful take on a traditional cheese cake made with ricotta and served with marinated pears.

In summary, Theo Randall went some way towards restoring my faith in hotel restaurants with some friendly but not over attentive service and a warm and fairly lively atmosphere (particularly later in the evening). However the food, while generally well cooked and well flavoured, lacked the excitement I had hoped to find at an establishment of this stature. An enjoyable meal but I won’t be rushing back. At least not for the set menu!


Jonnie’s review:

Ever since the Taste London Festival, I have wanted to eat at Theo Randall’s restaurant. Having watched him prepare a stuffed guinea fowl breast and sampled his restaurant’s delectable chocolate cake, I’ve been – to put it bluntly – gagging to try the restaurant proper. Using a set menu deal, the three of us embarked on a journey into Mayfair with our stomachs waiting to be impressed.

Tom ventured the great idea of using the three courses we were entitled to under our set meal deal to make up antipasti, primi and secondi, then go for a dessert menu from the main menu. Four courses on a Wednesday..? Naturally!

I started with the Anguilla (chilled smoked eel) which came with dandelion hearts, beetroot and leaves. Somewhat predictably, this was tip-top: light, delicate, smooth… It was perfect fare for the wonderful summery September we’ve had in London, invoking memories of bright sunshine and plush lawns. Certainly the best Anguilla I’ve eaten (probably because it’s the first time I’ve tried Anguilla, but it was great.)

My pasta course was just about everything I personally desire in a primi: minimalist, simple, meaty and saucy. Steak in Chianti (tomato sauce) with pappardelle pasta is about as tailor-made a dish for me since I ate steak stuffed with foie gras on tagliatele in Prague. And yes, it was quite lovely.

The main course wasn’t a great one. And this is where set menus become arduous. Steak? Yes please. Medium rare? Well, alright; although I’d prefer rare. With leaves? Sure, why not? And beans? Oh dear… And pesto? Oh, lord… The meat was well-cooked but each side in turn felt like a bit of a let-down. I enjoyed sampling Mike’s salmon (exquisitely cooked) and Tom’s chicken (exquisitely stuffed), though we all found some reason to moan about the main courses.

On to desserts, which prompts a sort of “fasten your seatbelts” approach from the three of us usually, and this was no let-down. You’ve heard about Mike’s brilliant cheesecake and Tom’s excellent panna cotta, and… you’ve actually heard about the chocolate cake I ordered already here. Let me just say it was brilliant still. Somewhere between cake, mousse and brownie, ludicrously rich and sickly sweet, a healthy dollop of mascarpone cream… I could go on about this, but I have a feeling I’d give you diabetes if I did.

I did enjoy our meal at The Intercontinental. The place itself is lovely, but does feel a bit cavernous if there aren’t many patrons there. I did come to something of an epiphany throughout the meal though. For months now I’ve been caught between deciding my favourite food: Italian or French. After this meal I can tell you it’s French. The realisation I’ve come to is that, whilst I could probably eat Italian food every day of my life, French food is often spectacular. And it’s really hard to make Italian food spectacular.

In fact, how about a compromise..? French food at restaurants, Italian food at home.

Kickin’ it With the Trendies – Kumo, Knighstbridge, 19th of September, 2009

I don’t eat enough Japanese. In fact, I don’t eat much of what the Far East has to offer which, if you consider the Michelin Guide’s recent surge towards Tokyo, is pretty bad. On a late Saturday night, Mike, my other half and I decided to have some half-price Japanese eats at what we thought would be a trendy restaurant in Knightsbridge.

It turned out to be a trendy bar that also served food. As such, our late attendance meant that most of the meal was spent trying to shout over the frankly terrible music that was being blasted across the floor. The evening certainly had a casual feel, since we were more or less sat at a low drinks table as we ate.

Having come to terms with the fact that Kumo was indeed a bar and not a restaurant, we were a little edgy about what to expect. Our waitress had a beaming (and near constant) smile, but didn’t appear to know much about the food – we asked what a particular ingredient was, and how much we should expect from a bowl of rice, and both times she needed to consult the kitchen.

So, to the food. Bloody marvellous at times, pretty good at others. It was a pleasant surprise to be presented with some light squid with spicy dipping sauce to start with, followed by some incredibly delicate chicken with spring onion, grilled on skewers. Really fine snack fare to kick us off. Seconds were a very lively if not-at-all-traditional-Japanese chicken breast with a cream, wasabi and mushroom sauce, and some quite wonderful scallops. The former was ever-so-slightly tangy with the wasabi in the sauce and very properly cooked. The latter were just brilliant. As light, juicy and fabulous as you expect good scallops, served on a bed of greens which included lettuce and seaweed.

All in all, the night of eating in a bar told me two things: firstly, I need to be eating more Japanese; secondly, you need to get to Kumo early if you’re eating!

Kumo

Amalfi - Soho, 18th of September, 2009

Going back to old favourites, well-trodden paths and popular haunts can be a dangerous game, and I fear things are getting that way with Amalfi. Bang in the middle of one of London's most vibrant and colourful areas, Old Compton Street, Amalfi is a classic. It has a stunning capacity, with over 100 covers possible in the place, and the downstairs dining experience is one that resonates well with Soho's rustic Italian heritage.

The menu is one of familiar regularity. I don't recall trying anything there I haven't enjoyed. The pasta is passable, the pizzas genuine, the meat is well-cooked and the desserts are all great.

On the other hand... I've noticed that their mushrooms with polenta (a one-time banker of a starter) has been slowly in decline. I once dined there with Mike and Tom, and Mike's rack of lamb came to the table cold. Never mind that it was delicious when heated, that is just unacceptable. Dessert on this occasion was iffy: the chocolate sauce on our crepes was powdery and insubstantial.

Then again... Their Gamberi Piccante - warm tomato spiced chilli sauce with prawns - is always on the money. Carbonara there is as it should be (not easy to do, by any means), and the Polpette (meaballs on spaghetti) are far better than some others I've had. You can eat the whole dessert card: there is zero filler here. Crepes, tiramisu, apple pie, cheesecake, panna cotta. All are competitive when on song.

I guess the point I'm making is: be careful how many times you re-visit your standard choice places. Try to keep things fresh and go to as many new places as you can. All it takes is one or two flaws, and suddenly your favourite little place becomes boring, stale and utterly fallible.

Still, if you're in the area...

Amalfi

Money-Saving Tips for Eating Out

Now, without trying to get too autobiographical, I'm not rich. I'm certainly in no financial position to be eating out all the time...at fully-priced restaurants. There are two main reasons I can afford to produce the volume of reviews that I do. The first is being pedantic enough to document just about every meal I eat out of my house; the second regards money-off deals.

Pretty much every booking I make is done through TopTable. Many of you may already know about or use this website, and I cannot recommend it highly enough. They run offers all the time, some of which have allowed me to eat some stunning meals across not just the capital, but other cities and even other countries (they currently run reservations in 14 different nations). I cannot recommend trying this franchise out highly enough. You accrue points as you attend more reservations and these can eventually add up to a free meal or gifts.

The second, more recent, deal-maker I have been using is the Taste London website (they of the festival fame). They operate on a similar scheme to TopTable, but you also get a fancy card to go with your application. The main difference between the two sites is this one costs money. £70 for the year, it's worth investing in for their 50% off deal with Pizza Express alone. There are a good few restaurants across the capital that subscribe to their scheme, and their search facility is excellent. Whilst not as detailed as TopTable, it still outlines the procedure you need to follow for booking and dining with a Taste London card at any particular restaurant. (For example, some you may need to call ahead and mention the card, others may have a limited usage.)

Both schemes are fabulous and hugely important in bringing decent eating to more than just those with an income surplus. I like both sites and both serve excellent purposes, but my preferred one at this moment in time is TopTable, simply for the great depth they can give you with menus, pictures, reviews and information on their site. Great newsletter too, and it's free!Look into these if you feel you need to start eating out more.

TopTable

Taste London

Square Pie Co. – Spitalfields Market, 13th of September, 2009

It’s lovely to hit the markets at the weekend. Whether it’s looking for fine foodstuffs at Borough on a Saturday, or nostalgic antiques at Portobello road or gimmicky fashion at Camden, there is charm aplenty and usually some decent bargains to be had. When it comes to food, you’ll find things veer from the disgraceful to rather lovely. In the Spitalfields market hall resides one of the Square Pie Company’s premier spots. Chain eating can certainly have its advantages, and stopping for a quick bite whilst zooming ‘round the stalls here was one.

They operate a pretty standard tried-and-tested formula: pie + mash + peas/beans + gravy = £7. You can’t really complain about this, because the pies aren’t half bad. Considering they have to be made and cooked in a pretty short time frame and wheeled out swiftly, they’re actually decent fare. As much cop as they are at a festival, Square Pies aren’t a bad bet if you’re in the mood for uncomplicated and quick traditional English fare.

Square Pie

L Restaurant: High Street Kensington, 9th of September 2009

This was a nice little jaunt on a midweek evening. I’d eaten here once before for a birthday lunch and thoroughly enjoyed it then, so my standards were pre-set and high enough. However, since this was an evening occasion, I was more aware of the bar at the ground level of the place, which was suitably sedate on the previous lunch. In the evening, it was still fairly empty, only now playing latin-themed muzak far too loud. (Certainly loud enough to wend its way down the stairs to the restaurant to offend me.)

We went for that ever-present classic chicken liver parfait to start, and I loved that this particular version of the starter was some way between a parfait and a pate. I’m not certain if this is technically correct, but it worked really well with the crispy thick bread and jellied sherry dressing. If it’s good, I just cannot get enough parfait these days.

Main courses went well. A very competitive cut of pork belly with slightly chorizo-infused jus, cherry tomatoes and potatoes did not disappoint at all. It was crunchy on top, chewy underneath and then smoother at the bottom. I find a good cut of pork belly is hard to dislike, so as long as it’s cooked properly and the sides are right. With this, we tried some sea bream, presented as fish is often done these days: stripped off the bone, skin on, sliced long and piled in the centre of the plate with a few dressings. I can never complain about fish like this, but it always seems a little insubstantial to me. (Maybe that’s my hearty British meat-eating appetite baring its teeth a little too much though…)

Desserts weren’t too shabby either. A chocolate fondant (but of course) with some too-strong orange sorbet was fairly enjoyable. (But again – why overcomplicate something of such simple purity with some crazy accompaniment?) We also tried the Caramel Millefeuille, which I have to say was excellent. A sort of layered cake made from thin pastry slices with strongly sweet cream and some caramelised sugar decoration, it was light and very comforting.

If you’re near High Street Kensington then I suggest checking out L Restaurant for a meal. Equally useful for lunch or dinner, the quality is certainly high enough to make me want to try it a third time.

L Restaurant

A Bank Holiday Weekend To Remember: Here & There, 28th-31st of August, 2009

Much like restaurants you’ve heard good things about, Bank Holidays often have that air of disappointed expectation about them. Where you’re going to go, what you’re going to do, who you’re going to meet up with… It inevitably turns into a lounging-fest which, whilst relaxing, is a little way short of the fulfilled weekend you promised yourself a fortnight ago. And don’t get me started on the weather we usually end up with…

Since I wasn’t going away on holiday this time, I thought a weekend of fun eating might serve well. I made a couple of hotel restaurant bookings (these are quickly becoming my staple) and during the weekend, another couple of tasty treats unfolded from the mix.

I’ll start at the beginning. My last dining experience in an Aldwych hotel was one of spectacular lonesomeness (devotees may remember the meal for one at the Waldorf Hilton during restaurant week), so I was happy to be going back there with another person this time. Indigo at the 1 Aldwych hotel promised to be a great evening’s eating from the moment we were seated in our wide reception-room chairs. I enjoyed the cosy feeling of lounging in my little throne on the mezzanine level of their eating and drinking complex as we were served most uninterruptedly; first water, then bread (butter and oil as standard – bravo!), then our starters.

There are dishes which need only explanation. All that is required after that point is a brief summary of whether or not said dish lived up to its description. I was lucky enough to have one such dish this Friday: scallops and pork belly. I need say no more than this: exceptional. Along with this, we tried a fairly decent carpaccio of beef which came with rocket (tolerable) and shaved parmesan (more like it), which wasn’t bad.

Main courses were also pretty special. Some modern classic veal – by which I mean sliced meat accompanied by jus, carrot puree and fondant potato sides – which we ordered rare hit the spot instantly. Bold flavours, subtle textures and zero filler: more please. With this we tried a simply stunning piece of duck breast. It was cooked pink as it should be, then thickly diced and served with blackberries, jus, bitter cauliflower florets and small potato spheres. This was some damn fine eating.

Desserts were the crowning achievement of the evening. And I say this because we decided to test ourselves with three desserts between two. A spot-on crème brulee, a syrupy and sweet white chocolate panna cotta with strawberry soup (strawberry soup!) and then a very bizarre upside-down cheesecake that looked weird (base on top with cheese pellets as decorations) but tasted great.

Indigo started the three-day weekend on a soaring high. Nothing I could really complain about here. If you’re going to do similar things to other restaurants, do them memorably and do them bloody well.

Saturday evening turned out to be more of the same, really. Another hotel, more modern European fare, another lovely part of town: The Bloomsbury Street Bar & Grill. This meal went from stellar to decent (which immediately makes it worse than Indigo) but that’s not to say it was bad. Part of the reason it slid downhill is because the two starters we tried were just fantastic. A duck platter which included seared foie gras, confit, cold shredded meat and liver parfait was about as good a use of duck I’d seen since…well, the night before really. Stunning stuff, served with sweetened softened apple slices, thick lightly toasted bread and fig jam. To go along with this, we ate a mackerel and rhubarb combination, served cold with chive crème fraiche inside a fine pastry nest. Bizarre indeed, but fresh, refreshing and highly recommended.

Main courses and desserts didn’t quite match up to what we began with. A pretty lovely piece of chicken cooked with a rich, buttery herb sauce and some decent vegetables was slightly let down by the potato fondant that came with it, which tasted as if it were out of a packet. The steak we went for was served with cooked cherry tomatoes on the vine which I liked, but was nothing exciting. Very edible though, which really does count with steak

Desserts were flamboyant if ultimately a little anticlimactic. A peach sorbet, meringue and ice cream assortment was lovely to look at, if only vaguely interesting to eat. Likewise, the white chocolate truffle with cherries started well, but fell away slightly with the wedge of cherry-esque jelly they stuck in the middle of it. Could’ve been better to finish.

Still, I wouldn’t complain that much. It’s a nice place, the Bloomsbury Street Bar & Grill, even if it’s drape-lined room is a bit dark, it’s a beautiful modern dining hall and it’s in a gorgeous area. Friendly service too.

Sunday night saw me prepare and cook a cracking carbonara for Tom and some other friends. It was great. (No false modesty.)

Monday transpired out of a discussion with Tom on the Sunday, as I found out he and some other friends were heading to The Boundary, Terence Conran’s hotel and restaurant complex on a rooftop in Shoreditch to celebrate a couple of birthdays. In the hopes that I could have a fourth great meal in four days, I naturally leapt at the chance.

The Boundary is made for sunny days spent with friends. We enjoyed our wooden tables underneath the material roof as the sun spread across the view of the east end, and the day got hotter and hotter. The atmosphere was just about right, but alas the food did not follow the standards of the weekend. The good parts were: a steak that was tender enough, simple and well-cooked; a chocolate pot that was suitably rich and concentrated; and a pavlova to share that just beggared belief. This thing was the size of a cartoon jelly and the eight of us devoured it unceremoniously. On the downside were some very fresh yet rather bland large prawns and red mullet. I’m almost moved to think that I’m not really that into seafood, because there must be a part of eating these dishes that I’m missing.

The other bits and pieces that I managed to try weren’t too bad: some interesting enough poussin (barbecued chicken to you and me), okay salad, lean lamb chops, nice stuffed bread to start, and a cracking bowl of raspberry ripple to finish things as we relocated to some reclining chairs late in the day. It can be a great day up there on the rooftop, but I think the draw of the place is its exclusivity and its views. The food isn’t bad but it is pricey. I get the sense the best thing to do up there is while away a few hours with some snacks and a cocktail or three. Also check out the fine foods shop on the ground floor, Albion.

That was, my friends, the weekend that was. Super weather (at times), superb food (at least once): a well-spent three days. Oh, and many happy returns to Tom!

Indigo

Bloomsbury Street Bar & Restaurant

The Boundary