The Clove Club - The end product

I've been thinking of how to open this post about The Clove Club. About how it all started 3 years ago with three very talented chefs, and how I've intently followed their progress through a variety of popups that they have done. It would be an understatement to say that I've been a fan of their work. I feel a little sad that there is just Isaac McHale left of the original three Young Turks, but thankfully the food is as great as ever. Partnering up with co-collaborators of their stint at the Ten Bells, the Clove Club was born.

Bird of Smithfield abridged and in pictures

Bird

Move over "Dude Food", Modern British seems to be taking over the London restaurant landscape. With a glut of chefs seemingly moving on from the old school British institutions such as the Ivy and St John, we see them trying to reinvent themselves and embrace what they love most. This can only be a good thing. At Bird, an ex Soho House alumni, expect the best of British produce updated in it's elegant upstairs dining room.

Salon - A truly British affair

One of my favourite places in London is the Granville arcade, better known as Brixton Market, leading into the hotbed of great little food restaurants, Brixton Village. I have spent many hours wandering these hallways trying bites of food at the many food stalls lining the arcade, generally getting lost in the feeding frenzy as others swarm around you with similar ideas. This group of restaurateurs continues to grow, and one of the newer additions is Salon, a small dining room located above Cannon & Cannon (a British deli) cooking up food with a very fresh and mostly British focus.

[Mini Bites] No waffle on Duck & Waffle

So one of the most covered openings in the blogosphere over the last 6 months has to be Duck & Waffle, a restaurant located on the 40th floor of the Heron Tower in Bishopsgate, and subsequently, contender for most awesome view in London while you eat. So much has been written about this already (like here, here, here and here just to name a few) that I will keep this very brief. The food on offer is essentially "British Fusion", British ingredients and inspiration in most part, with ingredients and ideas from the rest of the world.

[Mini Bites]: Josper grilling at Plateau, Canary Wharf

I love playing around with gadgets and there are fewer better gadgets to play around with than a fully fitted professional kitchen. One rainy Satruday not that long ago (but long enough ago that I can't remember when), I was invited along to Plateau in Canary Wharf. The main reason behind this was to geek out and learn about the restaurant, their meat (and their suppliers) but most importantly, we had the opportunity to experience and cook with a Josper grill.

Unshackled: Alyn Williams at the Westbury, Mayfair

Procured off the Westbury website 

When it comes to fine dining, I actually often find it very hard to put the experiences into words. Most of the time, it is impossible to fault the cooking of the food, but I can't help that the higher up the Michelin scale you get, the higher the chance of the food boring you to death. This is partly why I have never got round to writing up mega-restaurants such as Gordon Ramsay or Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester. Both restaurants definitely rolled out course after course of well cooked dishes, with great produce and fantastic service at the core of what it is trying to achieve. Yes they were good, but lacked any wow factor.

Roganic: A little bit about Ben

It seems like an eternity ago that I tasted some of Ben Spaldings food for the first time. I have been rather slack all things considered in the blog department, whilst the eating has not abated (not without good reason, but all will be revealed soon enough). In that time, I have sampled menus which had been cooked by Ben twice, totalling about 23 different courses from this man. Ben is a mere 24 years old and has already had experience in some of the country’s finest restaurants, including Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, L’Autre Pied, Gary Rhodes W1 and of course L’Enclume. Now he is heading up the chefs at Roganic, Londons L’Enclume in residence, and man with skills in the kitchen belying his age.

Bread Street Kitchen

Poor old Gordon does get a bit of a bashing in the press, doesn’t he. It was always inevitable that there would be an automatic condemnation of any new venture, and the launch of Bread St Kitchen was no different. Early feedback was ambivalent about the food, with many concentrated heavily on the shambolic service that they had received. Personally, I can forgive certain aspects of poor service, especially in the first week of opening, as long as the food is good enough to back it up. Having been invited to join a few others to give the menu a road test, I really wasn’t sure what to expect.

Mini Bites: The Ivy, Covent Garden

It's taken me quite a long time to jot down my thoughts on the Ivy, mainly because even up until now, I don't have much of an opinion. For many years, I had wondered what lay behind those stained glass windows, of what had attracted all those "celebrities" in the past, of what gave it that mystique. It's veil of secrecy definitely piqued my interest and when the suggestion to visit for a "work team lunch" was mooted, I nodded in agreement.

I was kind of excited. After all these years, I finally got to see what lay behind those multi-coloured windows. Once inside, I found a room buzzing with atmosphere, filled with those who had clearly frequented the Ivy for many years alogside those who clearly hadn't. The stained glass adds much colour to a classic look, I was genuinely beginning to be swept up in it all.

Pollen Street Social - A flying visit

By the time you would have read this write up, you would probably have read everything you ever wanted to know about Pollen Street Social. After all, it appears to be the new Dinner, the must visit location in the capital. People went crazy when the phonelines opened (myself included), all scrabbling for a reservation, and much like Dinner, I was really pleased to have got a table a few weeks into their opening.

Damn and blast. As luck would have it, my long and luxurious with some of the lovely folk of twitter was cut short by work. Scheduling our anniversary party on the same night as our reservation, a party where all our customers were invited, it would have to be an eat and run mission.

Life after Atherton: a return to Maze (invite)

It has been almost two years since I was last at Maze. It was my birthday and I was taking my dad out, and the whole meal was OK, nothing more. A lot can change in the space of two years, and in the case of Maze, a lot definitely has. Executive chef Jason Atherton has left to open his own restaurant, and the focus of the menu seems to have veered away from the sharing element.

Roast, London Bridge

I have always been a fond admirer of Lawrence Keogh. He (like me) went through a kidney transplant not so long ago, and inspires those that have gone through renal failure that you can still lead a full and fulfilling life, achieving the life goals you may have set yourself. Working as head chef of Roast in Borough Market, he has even written a cookbook focused on those suffering from renal failure, focusing on tasty dishes you can eat and make whilst taking into consideration the numerous dietary restrictions that people like me had to endure for so many years. In short, he is definitely someone I respect.

Having consumed numerous piggie rolls from the takeaway post stationed in the entrance of Borough market, I had high hopes for Roast. The minute I saw Toptable Spotlight offering £40 for £20, I snapped it up and plotted a trip. I thought I was being clever by scheduling a Saturday lunchtime trip, I could head to Roast and pickup some delights from Borough Market for later consumption. This was my first mistake, Borough was already heaving and the hordes were making me angry as I got there at 12. I was to end up with no treats.

The room itself is a nice airy space. High ceilings, lots of natural light with windows absolutely everywhere and a great view of the market below. Scattered with various photographic portraits of people you will recognise, I was left to stare at Simon Pegg's rather sad looking face during the whole meal. With a 2 hour turnaround time, we were keen to order, but after the initial welcome, and the reminder of the 2 hour rule, we struggled to attract the attention of our server, quite a feat in itself as we were sat right next to the till. A little while later, we managed to order, with 3 starters to share and mains. We also ordered the house special cocktail and waited.

After a little while, our starters arrived, but there was no sign of our drinks. We ended up asking three times before they eventually surfaced. We couldn't wait around for our drinks so we tucked into our food. It's hard to beat deep fried cheese, but even Laverstoke mozzarella (which is quite delicious) is over priced at £9.50 for 3 measly pieces of lukewarm cheese. Even more parsimonious was the £8 saveloy scotch egg. Basically, it was an overcooked battered egg. The sausage meat was barely there, and no matter how nice the sausage meat around the egg tasted, it was a lot of money to pay for a battered egg. The corned beef and pickled onion hash was better, but did not redeem the two dishes before it. Eventually, as we finished off our first course, our drinks arrived.

The mains were at least warm, but were nothing to write home about. The sole (which was a megrim as advertised, and not a lemon sole as our waiter insisted) went down well and was a hefty beast. If there was a gripe, it was not hot enough to melt the shrimp butter on top. My main of pork belly was decent enough, with excellent crackling, but the meat was on the chewy side, and the apple sauce was poor at best, tasting and looking like apple flavoured baby food.

Once again, we were missing items we had ordered. Beef dripping roast potatoes arrived a little while after the mains, and were nothing like the wondrous beef dripping chips at Hawksmoor Seven Dials. Underdone, lacking any crisp, insipid in flavour and actually unpleasant to eat, I had one and couldn't bring myself to eat another. The cabbage we had ordered failed to turn up at all, and when we pointed this out to our waiter, he visibly shrugged his shoulders. A little while later, our cabbage eventually turned up piping hot. The only relief was that we had eventually got some hot food.

By the time they had offered us dessert, we really just wanted to leave so we tried to settle the bill, but even that took a few goes to get somebodies/anybodies attention. The total bill pre voucher came to nearly £90, and that was with the cabbage removed and also begrudgingly the drinks. A huge wad of cash for mediocre food and terrible service. We considered desserts briefly, but when I saw them all sitting on the tray by the pass, right next to the heat lamps which failed to keep our food warm., I was very glad I hadn't. I couldn't believe it but I was pleased to be re-entering the seething mass which is Borough Market. I admire you Mr Keogh, but your restaurant, not so much.

Roast - The Floral Hall, Stoney Street, London SE1 1TL

101010 - Shaun Hill at the Rivington Grill

The tenth of October 2010. 101010. The day that maths geeks get really excited. It was also the day that I got quite excited as it was the day I got to eat at the Rivington Grill, with Shaun Hill (of the Walnut Tree, Abergavenny) in the kitchen.

The London Restaurant Festival (this year, in association with AMEX) comes but once a year, with new and exciting events each year to commemorate it. You may have seen a giveaway for tickets to the Big Quiz a few weeks ago on this blog, but one of the big events for this year was 10-10-10, ten different chefs from outside of London, working alongside ten chefs from within London, all on the 10th of October. As part of the London Restaurant Festivals 10 “bloggers” that they were working with, I was invited down to the Rivington Grill where Shaun Hill of the Walnut Tree in Abergavenny was taking up residence for one night only.

I really didn’t know that much about Shaun and his work, but a little research revealed that he has had a Michelin star for over 20 years and favours a more rustic approach to his food. A few more feelers revealed that some who had eaten at the Walnut Tree had often found it the highlight of their trip to the Abergavenny festival. All pretty good news. I was regaling all this new found information with my dining companion, but unfortunately she was far from interested. Instead, her attention was drawn to the bowls of warm salty and perfectly crisp pork crackling placed evenly across the bar. We slowly stuffed our faces with this most satisfying of “amuse bouche” and I actually had to restrain myself from eating more, a task I never knew I was actually capable of.

As we sat down with our pear and elderflower Bellini’s, we were given a basket of battered samphire. Battered in a fluffy, yet crispy beer based batter, the samphire delivered nuggets of salty bursts. Another incredibly addictive pre meal snack, even though the flavour of the samphire was lost a little, the batter was greaseless and delicious.

Given a few options over three courses, my companion opted for a sweetcorn soup with squid, a dish I had considered owing to my obsession with all things sweetcorn, although the burrata with Tuscan bread salad was equally so. A quick chat later and it was decided. The sweetcorn soup was perfectly acceptable although I found the fishiness dominate the subtle flavour of the sweetcorn. The burrata was unbelievably creamy. Similar to a mozzarella, although made with cream, it mingled with the vegetables and olive oil to almost become a dressing. Expecting something more similar to a panzanella, the bread was fried into croutons, although I am rather fond of croutons so still went down well. All the flavours formed an enjoyable salad, although I found the huge chunks of raw onion lazy and actually quite hard to digest. I ended up taking them out.

With fish being one of the options for a main (albeit served with sweet clams, which I seem to have developed a bit of a crush on of late) and hare the other (never been the biggest fan of hare), I opted for the Welsh lamb with ragout of Autumn vegetables and ceps, an interesting combination, and a dish I was really looking forward to. The lamb arrived as two perfectly pink cutlets sat on a bed of delicately fricasseed shreds of lamb and a ragout of turnips, squash, carrots and potatoes. The shreds of lamb were cooked in a delicate cream and wine sauce, with the ample ceps acting as sponges, soaking up all the sauce. For some reason, there were huge undercooked leaves also on the plate, which seemed totally out of place, and were left largely untouched. The combination of all the elements to this dish (sans greens) went really well together and I looked sadly at my plate as it lay empty.

Desserts were uncomplicated but elegant. The mountainous orange and almond cake was delicate and light, despite appearing quite a task to finish when it first arrived. My choice of autumn berry soup with cinnamon ice cream was light and tasted more of Christmas than autumn. The lightly spiced soup was thick and rich with raspberries and blackberries, a fresh ending to a good meal.

Although there were a few issues with some of the dishes (huge chunks of onion, errant pieces of unnecessary under cooked greens), I rather enjoyed my taste of Wales. It was clear that there was some very good cooking going on in the kitchen and was pleased that an event like the London Restaurant Festival had introduced me to a well established chef from outside of London. For someone who has lived in London for over 10 years now, I often forget that there is more to life than the big smoke and rarely venture outside of the M25. I really need to change that.

*I was invited on behalf of AMEX and the London Restaurant Festival*

The Rivington Grill - 28-30 Rivington Street, EC2A 3DZ

The Walnut Tree - Abergavenny, Monmouthshire NP7 8AW

Public House, no ordinary pub (invite)

I feel bad. It has taken me a good few weeks to write this one up. A few months ago, I was invited to try out Public House, a restaurant cum bar just off Upper Street in Islington. Not really sure what to expect, I was intrigued by some of the flavor combinations that they presented in a press release that they sent and coming from one of the old Loungelover team, I was expecting some decent grub in an elaborate and well thought out setting.

Never has there been a more misleading name for a restaurant. With a name like Public House, I would expect a roaring fire, a drunk local at the bar wearing a hat at a jaunty angle, maybe a dart board but definitely a fruit machine. Public House is as elaborate as it's provenance suggests. There are definitely influences of Loungelover in this space and although elaborate, feels comfortable and rather easy on the eye. With a small bar at the front, and a dining area towards the back, it's not a huge space but feels comfortable and not cramped.

The menu is short and changes every month but presents a variety of interesting options. I was drawn to the scallops, them being my "new favourite thing" and of course it had to be pork for the mains. Once we had ordered, we were presented with an "amuse" of salted cod flakes with "terrible" potatoes and roasted seeds. Now before you all shout at me, I realise that salted cod is going to be salty, but this was really too far gone. Every mouthful had me reaching for the water, which is a real shame as I actually quite liked the idea of the dish. The roasted seeds provided a nice contrast in texture to the cod and the only thing terrible about the potatoes was the name. Small cubes of soft potatoes perfectly sauteed with flecks of vanilla, surprisingly tasty.

Our first course in earnest were two large scallops, perfectly seared and presented with their roe still attached. Many places remove the roe, but it's a total waste. With a deeper flavour than the white flesh, it is arguably tastier. These scallops were perched on top of little disks of haggis and then again on top of sticks of rhubarb blanched in champagne. A very odd and somewhat ambitious combination but actually proved to be quite successful. The haggis was iron rich and was significantly mellowed by the sweet scallop. The tart rhubarb was a good contrast and I genuinely enjoyed such a strange combination.

My main was a far more straightforward pork tenderloin wrapped in pancetta, stuffed apple and cauliflower purée. It's not often that I am disappointed by a pork dish, but this left a lot to be desired in my eyes. My main qualm was that the piece of meat was rather tough, and using the blunt knife I was provided, I hacked away a chunk. It tasted ok, but nothing to shout home about. The apple was stuffed with a smidgen of liver but my aversion to most things offal meant that this was largely left alone. Cauliflower puree was nondescript, the whole dish could have done with some starch and some gravy. Having said that, most dishes would benefit from starch and gravy.

Dessert was a sorbetto with blackberries. Incredibly light and refreshing, the actual sorbetto contained hints of a blackberry liqueur but arrived far softer than I anticipated. In fact, it was more like a blackberry slushy, pleasant, but not what I was expecting.

So that was that. A pretty average meal with some good ideas and some good cooking. If the kitchen can just pull both together in the same dishes, it should do well. After all, I find that the food around Upper street is rather poor in general, and I admire its ambition. Worth a try and certainly not your ordinary pub grub.

Public House - 54 Islington Park Street, London N1 1PX

Back to the Future: Bellevue Rendez-Vous

In homage to my late late Le Cassoulet post, I thought I would take this opportunity to go back to the future and catch up on another meal worthy of a write up. The date is some time in early November 2009, the place, Bellevue Rendez-Vous.

I have lots of sisters. In fact, I have them coming out of my ears and as they get older, birthdays appear to be getting more and more expensive. I swear their more exuberant requests for birthday presents are not proportional to my rather gradual increase in salary. Thankfully, my little sister is probably the least fussy of them all. I even remember fondly how one year, all she wanted for her birthday meal was not a slap up five course meal but a local takeaway kebab.

This year saw us head to Clapham and the aforementioned Bellevue Rendez-Vous. Located just round the corner from Chez Bruce and Brinkley's, it has some seriously fierce competition. Serving modern French food, it's not really reinventing the wheel, but it sticks to the basics and executes on these well with the occasional artistic squiggles and splodges. There are no airs and graces, with friendly service and informal decor. People drifted in and out with their obligatory pushchairs in tow (this area isn't known as the pram belt for nothing).




The starter of smoked duck on a celeriac remoulade was incredibly moreish, but that could have had something to do with the fact that it was a minuscule portion. I simply wanted more. My mothers wood pigeon was perfectly executed, with a reassuring pink tinge to the flesh, still tender and juicy. The tiny stack of pear chutney was the perfect accompaniment, although I am unsure as to what the dark streak down the middle of the plate was nor why it was there.



The mains were equally well executed. My roast venison had a slightly more rustic approach with everything slathered neatly onto my plate. Again, perfectly cooked meat and a really wholesome meal. Even though the presentation appeared more straightforward, the kitchen was still showing some invention with the introduction of the artichoke mash which was pleasant, if a little unusual. The confit leg of duck was also highly commendable. Although not my dish, the three portions ordered by separate members of my family meant that there was ample amounts of duck for me to scavenge. Crisp skin and moist flesh with bags of flavour, this also comes highly recommended.



Fit to burst, desserts were almost overlooked but you don't become a Teh without culturing a fearsome ability to eat, so a few were ordered and shared out amongst us. The poached pear was a triumph, simply poached in red wine, cinnamon and cloves to retain the flavours, gentle to the bite whilst not reduced to mush. This was accompanied by vanilla ice cream and the obligatory unnecessary squiggle.

I know it's been ages since I went, but looking through my photos of this meal brought back fond memories. Although it is clearly competing with some serious competition, it is more than capable of holding its own. What you get is delicious, beautifully presented, well cooked dishes. You can't really ask for more than that, now, can you?

Bellevue Rendez-Vous - 218 Trinity Road, London SW17 7HP

Everything I look for in a restaurant: Trinity, Clapham Common

The first time I went to Trinity, I took my parents to celebrate a rather important anniversary. The food was marvellous and beautifully presented, and I was heartbroken to find I had taken my camera out of my bag only the night before. I needed to go back, to sample the great food and to give it the write up (with pictures) it deserved.

Located in the heart of the old town, it is an oasis of calm away from the madness that is Clapham High street. Whereas the high street is heavily influenced by the indomitable Infernos and its crowds flowing from bar to bar, old town is much quieter with a few restaurants and local pubs and bars.

Trinity is conspicuously tucked away and I only succeeded in locating it once I had been informed that there were fairy lights heralding its entrance. The restaurant itself is unassuming, a simple and clean space with white walls and understated pictures adorning the walls. The staff are friendly and talking to them felt like talking to old friends. They have so much energy and I genuinely felt that they just wanted me to be happy and enjoy my meal. I hadn't even looked at the menu yet but felt totally at home.



As we were handed our menus, we were brought some warm homemade crispbreads with a smooth pink paste of salmon roe. Normally something I would turn my nose up owing to its intense fishy hit, I was pleasantly surprised by the layers of fishy flavour and although strong, went very well with the accompanying crispbreads. Digested with an aperitif of a rhubarb Bellini, we made our decisions and ordered.

The last timed I dined here, I did the unthinkable and went for an all fish menu (barring the few nuggets of chorizo that came with my halibut). This time, veering away from the enticing a la carte options, I ordered off the more straight forward but incredibly good value prix fixe. First up was a rather simple sounding butternut squash and parmesan soup.



I wouldn't ordinarily opt for soup but having previously tried their sublime white onion and truffle oil soup that my mum had ordered and remaining green with envy for the rest of the meal, I wasn't going to make the same mistake twice. I am so happy to tell you that this was delicious. Slurp after slurp saw spoonfuls of sweet butternut squash with the occasional burst of flavour from the salty flecks of parmesan disappear down my gullet. I wouldn't say that this is a conventional soup as the consistency was far closer to that of a light and delicate mousse, but I was reassured that the secret came from the fact that it was one third milk and one third cream. My arteries screamed in despair as my taste buds nodded their approval.



Next up was a solitary Toulouse sausage on a bed of puy lentils and dabs of cauliflower puree. A simple yet rather good main. I was slightly worried that a single sausage does not make a meal (breakfast maybe) but on reflection, the whole meal was actually finely balanced. The bed of puy lentils concealed a tiny treasure trove of lardons, although this tipped the salt balance of the dish a little too close to "generous". Jokingly, I asked our French waitress where the sausage had come from. Our rather animated waitress exclaimed "Toulouse of course!". If its provenance got her seal of approval, it certainly got mine too.



Finally, pleasantly sated, I had the pleasure of digging into my dessert of pear tarte fine with a liquorice ice cream. Absolutely fascinated by the ice cream, I tucked in straight away and what I got was a subtle taste sensation. With no initial discernible liquorice flavour, tasting much more like a plain milk ice cream, the slight aniseed tang descended upon the extremities of my mouth and finished with fresh licorice. Strange, but lovely. By the time I had tried to analyse exactly what was going on, I had pretty much polished off the ice cream, and devoured the remaining tart "au natural".



I had eaten well and wasn't ready to leave. I ordered some coffee and alongside came a rather generous portion of some of the most delightful nuggets of fudge I had ever tasted. They summed up everything I loved in this place. Simple, unpretentious food, well executed, beautifully presented and made with care and attention. My companion's "celebrity" goggles were on and spotted Jean Baptiste, maitre'D of the F Word, dining happily in the center of the room. I am sure if he had dined here a few months earlier, it would have been a shoe-in for best local restaurant. My local and I love it.

Trinity Restaurant - 4 The Polygon, Clapham, London, SW4 0JG

Launceston Place, just a hair/hare out of place

Launceston Place is one of those places which seems to have been on "that list" forever. You know, the one of the places I had always wanted to go to but never got round to and probably never will. The first time I was meant to go here, my companions were ill, and even though it was tempting enough to go on my own, I restrained myself and waited for another opportunity. The second time, I was ill. When my sister had arranged a family meal only for the parents to pull out, I made damn sure that this was going to be third time lucky and substituted my parents for @foodbymark and @almacarina.



Head Chef, Tristan Welch, is another one of those chefs who I discovered through watching the Great British Menu. Incorporating modern spin on British classics, I was drawn in by his style of cooking and Launceston Place was firmly on "the list". I arrived early and was welcomed enthusiastically, and when the rest of my rabble arrived, we were shown to our table in the compact dining room and brought over some devilled parsnip crisps to nibble as we perused the menu.



As we were lunching, we had to choose between the dinner (much wider choice and £45) or the lunch menu (limited to 3 choices for each course, £20). As tempting as the dinner menu was, the lunch menu had seemingly good choices and for a mere £20, is extremely good value. Choices ordered, we were brought an amuse of a hot and cold leek soup, with the contrasting heats of the liquids adding an interesting touch to a very tasty palate livener.



Starter - Cep Risotto, Spenwood Cheese
Simply presented and packed with flavour. The flavour of the ceps permeated deep within the risotto, each bite was luxurious. This was liberally shared around, with the copper vessel deceivingly large, and every single mouthful came with a murmur of agreement, swiftly followed by a request for another bite. Other starters of lobster soup and scallops off the dinner menu also met with a seal of approval. Good start.



Mains - Braised Wild hare, pistachio butter, chicory and pear salad
This is was very disappointing. Having never eaten hare before, but partial to a bit of Bugs, I was excited to try this and paired with pistachios, one of my favourite ingredients, this should have been an exciting new taste experience. Instead, what I got was an overwhelming taste of salt. The dish had been heavily overseasoned and although the few slices of pear help dilute the assault on my tastebuds, the dish was a write-off. To top it off, my sisters hare had a different type of hair in it, one of the human kind. The staff were quite gracious and handled it very professionally, offering to replace her main, and then allowing her to choose 2 desserts instead. They also proceded to comp her meal for this indiscretion, but it still left a bad taste in the mouth.



After a very Christmassy and refreshing palate cleanser of mulled wine mousse, pear sorbet and candied orange, we embarked upon our miscellaneous assortment of desserts.



Dessert - Apple tart, home made clotted cream
One of LP's signature dishes, the tart arrives in a massive copper bottomed pan and is individually dished out to each lucky recipient. Each slice has crisp pastry with a sweet, caramelised apple topping. Served with homemade clotted cream, this was seriously good...but not perfect. I would much rather have had an ice cream and found myself dunking my spoon into Mark's raspberry ripple ice cream. This accompanied a superlative rice pudding souffle, which was one of the best souffles I have tasted. Other desserts of poached pear and banana sticky toffee pudding were also accomplished, if not quite in the same league as the two afforementioned sweets.

On reflection, this meal was very good apart from two things. The main was a disaster. No matter how good the rest of the meal was, all I can think about how my hare was totally ruined by the over liberal use of salt. The added hair was also a black mark on LP but was handled very professionally by the staff.

Which brings me to my next black mark. Although on the whole, the service was exceptional, we were told by a member of staff (who wasn't serving us) that we had already been informed that we weren't allowed to take photos. Now, nothing annoys a food blogger more than being told that they aren't allowed to take photos of their food. And to top it off, I am pretty sure that isn't the policy of the restaurant, having had our waiter proudly pose with a decadent white alba truffle.

These little annoyances shouldn't detract from the fact that this is a very good restaurant. We had one awful dish but the rest of the food should not be overlooked. And that £20 set menu is insane value. Make sure it's on your list.

Launceston Place (Website) - 1a Launceston Place, London W8 5RL