Third Time Lucky? Gauthier Soho - Soho, Tuesday August 21st, 2012

I'm a firm believer that eating is just about the most fun anyone can have. Good food is peerless in terms of the fine, finer and finest things in life. Contrary to what some people assume about me, I am not one for showiness or pretence when it comes to great food. I don't need to see words like 'jus' or 'reduction' on a menu: 'sauce' is just fine. But here's the kicker: it has to be good.

It sounds simple, but people seem to forget the basic reason we eat in restaurants: we want to be impressed. We want to enjoy ourselves. We want the simplest thing in life yet it can be the most difficult to find anywhere. Of course, it's easy to criticise (how else would I get by?); not many people can work in a professional kitchen turning out credible results night after night. I am no slouch behind a stove but as soon as I'm cooking for more than four, I tend to lose the plot. You might ask why that gives me the right to criticise anyone's cooking - fair point - but it's why I'm writing a blog and not trying to run AA Gill out of a job.

Nevertheless, I know food. I know what is good and I know what is not. Why? Because I trust my opinion. And I can express it in a written form that makes sense. As above: simple but difficult to execute well. (Again; free blog amongst thousands, not a broadsheet newspaper.) Anyway, where was I..? Gauthier Soho, right. Once a winner, then a loser, then a Michelin Star loser (and, yes, this is that 'review to come'...) making this the third trip in three years to the very French, very townhouse-y and very varied Soho hotspot in three years. Perhaps that's my point: I know what I'm talking about when it comes to this place.

With another year came another nicely-worded e-mail to their clientèle explaining that another tasting menu was half off to commemorate another year of being open, so we thought another trip - for better or worse - was worth a try. Now, it's important to note that, at the time of visiting, this place still had its Michelin Star. The wife and I were adamant this honour should not have been upheld following our dreadful visit the year before. However, said visit meant that anything passable was going to be an improvement from last time.

The tasting menu had been somewhat pared back to its original glory which filled us with confidence. What was even nicer was that we were seated in the same table we'd had on our first visit. Bread, canapés and pleasantries were taken care of, readying us for a thrash at the starter, a very close take on the dish we'd started with in 2010: foie gras (left). Pan-fried and served with roast apricot for texture, ginger marmalade for flavour and port reduction for appearance, it was not bad at all. The only change I would have made is to put something to cut through the liver a little more. It was good but all a little too similar.

Scallops were up next and I was so happy they'd learnt from the year before: no more one third of a scallop per portion: this was serious food served properly (right). Two bulging scallops served with girolle mushrooms, parsley sauce and something called 'coral dressing'. I'm not entirely sure what this is but whatever it is lent a great balance to the dish. The seafood was properly cooked, meaning the rest was as it should be: supporting the main event excellently.

Risotto was still there and this is one of those dishes that the wife and I coo over at every recollected memory. This time, though, truffles had gone. I would guess it had something to do with the cost but perhaps a shake-up was on the cards anyway. Summer cep mushroom risotto is no mean substitute and they had kept the brown butter and parmesan cheese too (left). Still texturally perfect, the mushroom flavour was intense within a superbly al dente bowl of rice. Honest, real dishes like this should be on Michelin-Starred menus throughout the country.

Next was sea bass with baby squid (right). This was verging dangerously close to the overcooked nightmare of the year before but it turned out to be far better executed, if not perfect. The fish itself was flavoursome if a touch on the dry side, but the courgette tempura added a delicious crisp variation. The black squid ink fish sauce added colour and visual appeal but did not really add much to the dish as a whole.

The meat course harked back to the original menu of the place and I was looking forward to this one (left). Piglet belly with glaze heritage carrot, leeks and a cherry jam was a perfect balance of flavours and textures. The pork floss sprinkled over the dish was a slightly Asian-style addition but it did help the taste of the meat. Unfortuately the whole thing was a little insubstantial. It didn't hit the highs of the original visit and it was achingly close to great, but just short.

The cheese interlude was a very nice aged comté with assorted chutneys; again a step back from the assortment of cheese we'd once enjoyed but nice enough. The fruit dessert followed, with raspberries, strawberries, sorbet and blancmange combining to make a milky, sweet, acidic and fruity bowl of strong, refreshing flavours (right). Sadly, the last dish was the Louis XV which is always wasted on me because of the hazlenut base and the rich praline (left). The appearance and execution were as good as ever but those nuts!

So, with my opening in mind, plus the third visit in three years, what does it all mean? Well, sufficed to say it was a world away from the terrible service and food we'd had the year before, but neither was it as good as the excellent first time we went here. Maybe we have finally reached the true Gauthier level after some two years of fine tuning.

I suppose the remaining question is: should it have kept its Michelin Star? My answer is no, so the guide guys have got it right for now. I don't think places this inconsistent deserve that sort of recognition. Could they win it back? Absolutely, if they iron out the over-booked evenings and settle on a menu that will bring everyone back time and again. This is not a bad restaurant, but it's far from at the top of the game. I'm happy to pay to eat there, but I still haven't paid full price because I don't think it would be worth the money.

Contradictions abound, but at the end of the day, they are on an upward curve. If I end up eating there again in the near future, I've no idea what the overall outcome will be. I hope they hit the heights they previously enjoyed, but I hope if they do, it's because of excellent food, service and atmosphere, not because they're a fancy French restaurant in a chic Soho townhouse.

Gauthier Soho

@Siam - Soho, Thursday July 26th, 2012

As has been documented previously, I'm no fan of Thai food. Such barefaced criticism stirred a couple of readers into sarcastic feedback, so what better way to try and drum up some 'any publicity is good publicity' than to recant a trip to one of the busiest Thai places in the west end from last July?

This was another experience altogether from some of my previous Thai outings. We met two friends (one of whom is from Thailand) for some midweek dinner and I was as skeptical as ever. That said, our Thai friend actually knows the owner. Certainly something to make the evening more interesting...

The place itself has the look and feel (and definitely the name) of a very modern restaurant. Simply furnished without pandering to the kind of fake opulence that damns so many Asian restaurants in London, it absolutely is the kind of place you can wander in off the streets and enjoy a stress-free evening. The waiters wear shorts, the patter is friendly and you feel right at home as soon as you sit down.

Our friend ordered for the table which was a no-brainer. She was reminded that I cannot physically deal with anything too spicy but more or less everything else was fair game. There's something both reassuring and terrifying when you're left in the hands of an expert on a cuisine you've previously written off ordering for you in a language you can't understand.

The food was a mixed bag but in a far more positive light than I've considered Thai food before. We started with a gorgeous-looking sea bass which had been boned out and half-butterflied on the plate but with the head still attached and the body more or less intact. The array of green and red vegetable dressing added to the visual impact and the fish itself was perfectly moist and juicy. But it was just too spicy for me. I'm sure most people with an interest in tangy Asian food would love this but I couldn't hold more than two mouthfuls.

Some seafood soup was up next and this really is the kind of thing I quiver at the thought of. Thin Asian broths aren't something I enjoy and this looked essentially like a bowl of water with mussels and greens floating around in it. Sadly it wasn't one for me again but the wife loved it and the rest of the table got stuck in. I have to say, having tried some of the seafood itself, it wasn't half bad. It's just that seawater-esque broth that left a bad taste.

At this point, our friend mentioned to the owner that I was a "food critic". Cue embarrassed floor-gazing as I explained that I was merely a blogger-among-thousands and my outreach was negligible at best... But it didn't seem to matter. The rest of the meal was a thoroughly entertaining and engaging chit-chat with the owner which certainly helped relax me. Fortunately I wasn't quizzed on what I thought of Thai food in general but questions like "which is your favourite restaurant" did come up. That said, I did not lie when I said I was enjoying the meal.

The rest of the food was really rather lovely. Some rich, dark noodles with prawns were eaten mostly by me as the rest of the table enjoyed a pleasant-looking curry and the soup and fish which wasn't for me. Even better was some delicately-fried soft shell crab: a perfect balance of sweetness and tartness from the seasoning in the crisp coating. Essentially I ate the lot which meant we had to order a second bowlful.

I felt myself warming to the idea of Thai food. Maybe it was the owner or the friendly bill, or the genuine bustling bonhomie of the place, but something was clicking. Desserts came in the form of some mango and sticky rice which was so fermented (and served with a vile coconut sauce) that it made me recoil. Fortunately ice cream saved the day. Some green tea was okay, some sesame tasted of sesame (so not good at all) but two delicious scoops of mango and raspberry were a perfect end to what had been a very nice meal.

I don't write this review as a wholly-converted fan of Thai eating, but as a convert in the making (which I was). There will be more to follow, but for now, take my inexperienced but convicted advice: relaxed Thai food in Soho for reasonable money is a good thing. @Siam is a good thing. Thai cuisine is not a bad thing.

@Siam

Shanghai - Knightsbridge, Sunday 22nd July, 2012

Lazy summer afternoons in the city are always a lovely thing. Except they're rarely actually lazy in London since it's always so bustling and lively. A year ago the wife and I decided to take advantage of the nice weather to have a stroll around Knightsbridge (inevitably ending up with shopping) and through on to Hyde Park (inevitably ending up with a meal.)

We decided some dim sum was in order, so we tried Shanghai, situated on the Old Brompton Road and with a suitably serene, tranquil atmosphere within. It was a nice break from the packed, sun-bathed streets and dim sum is a great afternoon food whatever the location or season.

We went for mixed noodles and these were definitely worth the visit (left). A properly balanced array of squid, prawns and scallops, these were moist and substantial. The vegetables were all well-cooked, retaining some crunch but with a nice sheen from the sauce. Despite the heat, this was on the money. Mixed noodles from a decent Chinese restaurant is one of those mythical dishes: simple enough to make but rarely ever executed well enough to be enjoyable.

As with any (and I do mean any) dim sum meal, dumplings and buns had to be ordered (left and right respectively). These were unfortunately not on the same level as the dumplings: over-heavy, under-seasoned and a long way from the wholesome comfort eating they should have been.

This is perhaps the biggest risk of eating anywhere in Knightsbridge: the price. Whilst the noodles were a bit toppy, they were fine since the delivery was great. Dishes like this just aren't worth the extra couple of quid you get charged at places like this. We also ordered a couple of miscellaneous side dishes of vegetables and white radish but none of it could compare with the noodles. The best places to be for food like this on any given London day in the sun are in Chinatown and Bayswater.

Shanghai

Saporitalia - Notting Hill, Saturday July 7th, 2012

Having enjoyed a rather indulgent week of burgers, take-away pizza, tapas and mangoes, the wife and I had resolved to put a stop to any meals out for a little while. Whilst we hadn't spent a great deal on food, it would have done us good to cease our waistline-troubling frippery. Then, the day after Barrafina, we had no idea what to do in the evening. So we went out for dinner. It was late on Saturday, we didn't feel like cooking, so in our defence, dinner out made sense.

Shoddy rationalisation aside, we fancied a proper Italian meal out. I had been motivated by the master of comfort food whom had curated our visit to Joe Allen. Daniel Young's list of the best 10 pizzas in London is a mouth-watering read and it was with this in mind that we ventured up to Notting Hill for some rustic, filling dinner. Devotees may recall the wife and I made a pilgrimage to what was supposed to be London's best pizza place a couple of years ago and pretty awesome it was too. I was surprised to see Santa Maria not on the Young & Foodish list at all but the number one spot certainly merited investigation.

We were there for the pizza, but other things on the menu caught our eyes. Firstly the fried seafood - more or less fritto miso - was one the wife leapt at instantly (left). Despite not delivering quite the rustic crunch of somewhere like Bocca di Lupo or Polpo, the flavours and freshness were there. The squid in particular was delicious and the salad was far from irrelevant as a dressing.

There was a summer special on which neither of us needed much encouragement to order: spaghettini al tartufo (right). With black summer truffle and spaghetti costing only £10, it was one of the most reasonably priced dishes I can remember eating last year. The flavour was far from overpowering, with fresh truffles perfectly complimenting the thick, rich butter sauce & parmesan on top of perfectly cooked pasta. It was a glorious plate of food.

After such amazing starters, we were fairly sure the pizza was going to be worth the trip. Unfortunately we were both pretty full after the appetisers but the mission was to eat pizza, so we ordered two. Now no pizza place can be put through its paces properly unless a margherita is ordered. Only here it's called a 'marinara' which I suppose makes sense (left). Instantly we could tell that  this was serious pizza: proper thin, crisp dough with some chewiness in the middle. The sauce was rich and comforting, the basil a welcome addition, the pizza terrific.

We also tried the Pomodorini, Rucola e Crudo pizza, a more upmarket and drier proposition (right). This included sublime matured san Daniele ham and cherry tomatoes with some rocket to cut through the richness of the meat. This was possibly even better than the first pizza, offering a little more in terms of variation, in both texture and taste. The dough again was perfect, with the toppings coming together to ensure a quite wonderful dish.

Of course we were far too full to finish both pizzas, taking away the remnants for Sunday's dinner. To answer the question of whether or not this place is actually the best in London..? It is one year on (to the day) and I can recall every part of this meal with clarity and fondness to the degree that it just has to be. Incredible, reasonably-priced pizzas ably supported by an array of perfect Italian dishes from a charming restaurant. Life doesn't get much better.

Saporitalia

Barrafina & Madd - Soho, Friday July 6th, 2012

During my birthday week last year, the wife and I had taken in one enjoyable event at Joe Allen and had a pleasant pizza evening at home on the actual day. Ever in the mood for celebrating and eating, she suggested we take in a proper meal to cap things off. Tapas restaurant Barrafina was somewhere we'd long been interested in trying so the pretext of a birthday meal was a welcome one.

You can't book at Barrafina, like seemingly every Soho restaurant these days, so we got there in plenty of time to have an outside seat on a sunny Friday. It was a lovely moment in that we'd never before eaten a proper dinner outside on a beautiful Soho evening. However, before we'd had the chance to sit, we were asked to wait until a table became free. As such, we ordered some snacks while we waited.

Some chorizo wrapped in thin, fried bread got things off to a chewy, greasy start (left). And I mean chewy and greasy in the most positive way. Spanish sausage is wonderfully rich and indulgent and I quite liked the idea of serving them wrapped in crisp bread to provide some contrast and body. More simply, we also plumped for toast with alioli (right). There's not much to say about crusty bread with garlic mayonnaise except that it had better be done properly. And this was.

After our appetisers were out of the way, we sat down and immediately asked our waiter where we could find deep fried baby squid since it wasn't on the main menu. Fortunately, the chipirones were a special of the day so we wasted no time in getting stuck in (left). These were exactly as you want squid to be: crispy, a touch of chewy texture but enough moisture to make it a perfect savoury plate of summery Spanish seafood. Everything that's great about Spanish food in one simple plate.

Another special was one I ordered without a moments hesitation: summer asparagus (right). This was a delectable mixture of green and white, giving a nice variation in texture and richness, served with shaved payoyo cheese and balsamic vinegar. The cook on the asparagus was flawless and the combination of flavours was a mixture of sweet-sour from the vinegar and salty from the parmesan-like cheese, perfectly counter-balancing the sweet vegetables. Reminiscent of Bocca di Lupo some weeks earlier, this was a beautiful summer plate of food.

No visit to a tapas restaurant is complete without bravas potatoes of some kind, so we went for the option on the Barrafina menu which was 'Chips with Brava sauce' (left). The chips themselves were crunchy and properly prepared, with salt & thyme flowers to season. The sauce was a little too sour though, leaving me wishing they had really gone for the sweeter more classic Spanish option with some mayo and more balance to the dish.

We fancied some chicken and the thigh with Romesco sauce was one dish which jumped out at us (right). The chicken was well-cooked with a delicious crispy skin but the sauce, garnish and seasoning did not work. Almonds on top were more confusing than anything else and the whole thing was so covered in thyme salt that it was overpowering and a little too bitter in the event. We got little of the mildly spicy tomato sauce either, with a similar problem to the brava sauce which came with the chips.

More sausage next, with the very modern-sounding 'chorizo, potato & watercress', which was exactly what the dish was (left). Nothing fancy here, just a hearty and well-constructed array of complimentary ingredients. It didn't really feel like tapas as such, but the plate of food was nicely filling without being too rich or salty.

We had one more dish to come and it was possibly the one I'd been looking forward to the most. Pork belly from the specials board was an enticing-sounding thing and it looked pretty impressive too (right). However, it didn't really sit very well as part of a Spanish tapas meal. Where the chorizo with potatoes was a brisk, modern take on classic Spanish dinner, this was an English dish forced into a Spanish menu. The addition of mashed potato added little more than filler and the sauce was so rich and salty that it overwhelmed the pork. A shame to finish on such a strange dish but we were very satisfied overall.

There was not a lot to tempt us on the dessert menu, so we took a short stroll down on to Rupert Street and stumbled upon Madd, a relatively new (at the time) dessert shop/café with a strong mango theme. The setup here is refreshingly simple: you take your mango dessert, add whatever kinds of fresh fruit or dressing you feel like and away you go. The prices seemed a little high but the temptation of a mango creme brulée was too great (left). It was pretty decent in the event, a well-set custard and not too much burnt sugar on top. The mango flavour itself was not so strong, but the scoop of mango ice cream on the side was compensation enough.

I put them to the true mango test by ordering a lassi, one of my favourite drinks if done well (right). It was not the best lassi I have ever had but it was a decent effort: creamy, refreshing and sweet. It was certainly a lovely finisher to an evening of Spanish tapas in the sun. The youth hostel-like atmosphere in the place actually adds something to it, with the board games, pick-up sticks and drawings on the wall reminding you that desserts should always be carefree and enjoyable.

There is no doubting that Barrafina is one of the very best places to eat tapas in London. Especially when the sun is out. By and large the food was delicious and even though not every dish hit the spot, for a little grazing over proper Spanish, it's got my recommendation.

Madd is a different proposition but another well-crafted Soho venture. Properly put together mango desserts at semi-reasonable prices mean punters will keep coming back. For some light-hearted after dinner eats, I'll certainly be back before long. If things in Soho continue to trend as often happens, we might see a second Madd location in the near future.

Barrafina

Madd