Tag Archives: wine

Chez Bruce, Wandsworth

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Of all the London Michelin star restaurants I have visited, Chez Bruce wins my favourite. Both meals I have experienced here have been the perfect balance between fine cuisine and deliciously tasty food. Bruce proves that Michelin meals don’t have to be pretentious and overly experimental to win prizes. Located just a short walk from Wandsworth Common train station, the venue is less challenging to find than many may think and is only a brief journey from Victoria. The nearby green is perfect for an after lunch stroll.

Chez Bruce is part of a trio of wonderful London restaurants, which includes La Trompette in Chiswick and The Glasshouse in Kew. La Trompette is also a favourite of mine, and I have heard very good things about The Glasshouse. All three pride themselves on providing honest, exceptional food, prepared immaculately with a strong French influence.

A small and unassuming dining room is the home of Chez Bruce, it feels like you are eating in a cosy sitting room with simple design and comforting decor. The clientele seems to range enormously from young food enthusiasts to older knowledgeable restaurant regulars. It is clear immediately that every food lover is welcome here, and it emanates a lovely relaxed atmosphere.

The wine list is affordable and varied with something for every palate. Unexperienced and impressionable in this department, both times we have opted for simple fresh white and the champagne… and have found them to be delicious and very drinkable. Before the three courses begin, guests are treated to parmesan shortbread biscuits and ultra soft rosemary focaccia bread, they are both so good I would come to the restaurant just for these!

After two visits we have tried far too much incredible food to list here but a few favourites stand out. Salad of pork belly with jerusalem artichokes, salsa verde, chorizo, watercress and crackling was a beautifully constructed dish made from carefully selected ingredients, the meats and vegetables matched perfectly to create an addictively good starter. Tagliatelle of chanterelles with salsify, thyme and parmesan was another miraculously tasty dish, startlingly simple but just so good with homemade pasta and the creamiest, lightest sauce you can imagine.

For mains we have sampled amazing Venison loin with shoulder vol au vent, spiced carrot puree and sauce poivade which was a glorious wintery meaty recipe. Roast phesant with bacon and onion dumpling, brussel sprouts, chestnuts and sage was a brilliant version of the familiar festive meal, with every component beautifully cooked and seasoned.

The desserts at Chez Bruce are simple and stylish. Classics include an exquisite creme brulee, and more unusual ideas include a refreshing Yorkshire rhubarb and vanilla cheesecake with mandarin sorbet and orange zest or for cocoa lovers, a dangerously luxurious Hot chocolate and almond pudding with praline parfait. The meal finishes with a pot of homemade chocolate truffles which you can eat in the restaurant or take away as a little momento of the meal.

Bruce doesn’t just provide delicious food for hungry foodies, he inspires food lovers to try his easy recipes to create these amazing dishes themselves. I am a convert, and as soon as I have my own kitchen will be using his cookbook on a regular basis.

More information here: www.chezbruce.co.uk/

The Bingham restaurant, Richmond

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We both had a nightmare journey getting to the Bingham. My poor friend and her broken sat-nav got completely lost in Surrey suburbia while I battled with a horribly aggressive taxi driver, who insisted on getting out of his car and shouting at me as I ran to the hotel doors. I was relieved to be greeted by the smiling Bingham staff, who escorted me gently to the lounge and blazing log fire. Externally the Bingham Hotel has a low profile, this sophisticated Georgian Townhouse could easily be mistaken for a private property. Inside, there is a quiet buzz of activity as guests and visitors enjoy the comforting surroundings. I rested as I waited for the other distressed member of my lunch party.

Almost half an hour later than our original booking time and we were finally ready to go… we apologised profusely though the waiters seemed completely unfazed and instead offered warm welcomes and a lovely corner table overlooking the restaurant.

The smart light and airy dining room is luxuriously appointed with wooden flooring and French windows revealing a lovely al fresco balcony for summer… this stunning room raised our expectations. This restaurant once had a Michelin star, but two years ago lost it for no apparent reason, and in 2012 failed to regain it, again without explanation. We wondered why throughout our lunch.

Guests can choose between the reasonable but restricted market menu, the six course tasting menu or the a la carte. Interested by the variety in the a la carte, we both chose this option. Chef Shay Cooper uses the freshest seasonal ingredients to create irresistible Modern British cuisine and we thought this was best exemplified in the full menu.

To start:

Venison tartare with preserved vegetable salad, foie gras mousse, horseradish creme fraiche

Winter vegetable salad with crispy onions, organic leaves, goats curd, walnut vinaigrette

For main:

Cornish Stone Bass with braised endive, artichoke, glazed salsify, potato gnocchi, bergamot lemon, mushroom vinaigrette

Saddle of rabbit with grilled pear, cured ham, smoked celeriac, braised rabbit, truffle sauce

To finish:

Selection of British and Continental cheeses

Mascarpone Mousse with candied pistachios, espresso ice cream, hot valrhona chocolate sauce

Salted Butter Caramel with apple compote, cider cream, bitter chocolate vanilla ice cream

After a delicious vegetarian mousse amuse bouche we decided to leave the bread, avoiding the risk of becoming too full to enjoy the meal. Service was professional but relaxed and very efficient throughout. Our waiter seemed to possess impressive expert knowledge on all of the food and wines. The dishes were presented in an incredibly clean and attractive way, and thanks to the natural daylight in the restaurant each plate really did look beautiful.

The Winter salad was one of the best I’ve ever tried… a variety of different colours, textures and tastes make what could be a very boring choice into an imaginative feast of flavour. The soft creamy goats curd was matched with crunchy leaves and sweet caramelised vegetables, every mouthful was different. The venison was carefully arranged with the other components, green lettuce and pink onion adding colour, another artistic masterpiece.

Mains were the perfect size, both wholesome, well balanced dishes. The delicate and light Stone Bass was served with a variety of subtly flavoured vegetables to avoid overpowering the fish and a rich and creamy gnocchi cheese on the side for eating with the fish or separately afterwards. The rabbit was exquisite, wrapped in Iberico ham and precisely cooked so that the rabbit was tender but the ham was crispy and almost caramelised. The grilled pear was a surprisingly delicious addition to the dish and the truffle sauce added a touch of extra indulgence.

After a round of the best cheeses to share, from the Teddington Cheese shop up the road, it was time for puddings. The list of sweet options all sounded so tempting that it took some time to choose our final two… and even then we promised we’d share. Interestingly we both had our favourites… for me the clear winner was the salted butter caramel, a wicked dessert with an odd but brilliant mix of flavours. The chocolate salted caramel disc in the centre was soft and buttery and worked well with the acidic apple compote and the sweet cider cream. Definitely in my top three desserts I’ve eaten, ever. The mascarpone mousse was completely unique and faultlessly tasty too. Hot chocolate sauce is poured over the hard chocolate casing to melt a piercing hole. The light creamy mousse is mixed indulgently with the chocolate, and the nuts add a bit of exotic crunch.

With our strong coffees we received a final plate of treats… tiny heavenly handmade petit fours: macaroons, bailey truffles and fruit jellies.

The Bingham restaurant is better than many 2 Michelin star restaurants I have eaten in and I feel completely baffled by the board’s decision to withdraw the one star. This eatery deserves the highest recognition for offering the finest food, a magnificent menu and exemplary service. I would recommend this restaurant to even the fussiest foodies and the meanest critics.
More information here.

www.thebingham.co.uk

Drakes, Ripley

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Drakes is in Ripley near Woking, but please don’t let the location put you off… I would travel to and from Woking every day for food this good. The cuisine is amongst the best I’ve ever experienced and the restaurant is utterly charming.

On a Saturday lunchtime there were numerous menu options available, the set and tasting menus are named flavour discoveries and explore seasonal produce.

Steve Drake is an energetic enthusiast in the kitchen, keen to create food which is both healthy and innovative. When we visited, his latest toy was a clay oven used to immaculately cook the cauliflower in one of our courses.

The a la carte menu looked exemplary but I was pleased to find a special flavour journey had already been decided for us… this way I could skip the agonising choosing process and try a larger selection of small dishes, rather than the standard three courses. I would definitely recommend ordering this way, it is a more exciting and refreshing way of sampling what’s on offer. Drakes believe this way of eating offers: intrigue, adventure, flavour, simplicity and discovery.

Our Flavour Journey

Snacks

Quail, Rhubarb Gel, Foie Gras, Compressed Lettuce

Scallop, Clay Baked Cauliflower, Raisin Puree, Curry Oil

Monkfish, Pumpkin Yolk, Crisp Mussels, Alexanders

Slow Cooked Mutton Shoulder, Heirloom Carrots, Tarragon Oil

Parsnip Ice Cream, Blackberries, Sorrel Ice

Pear cooked in ‘Beurre Noisette’ Goat’s Milk, Hibiscus, Crystalised Vodka

Chocolate Breakfast

So as you can see there is far too much too talk about in this review… instead I will pay attention to the most vivid memories that remain with me a week after dining at Drakes. The ‘Snacks’ they refer to so bashfully in the menu were exquisite, and all in miniature: pork fritters with cider vinegar jam, quinoa crackers with dandelion puree, duck’s heart with chicken broth and red pepper brioche balls. It was a borrower’s meal in itself, fun and full of flavour.

My fish was kindly substituted with vegetarian ingredients, the staff delicately enquire at the start of the meal if any guests have specific dietary requirements. Of the itemised courses the quail, monkfish and pear really stood out for me.

The quail is cooked to perfection with a subtle caramelly sauce. It is elegantly presented with small slices of creamy foie gras and wonderful compressed lettuce. The monkfish is a dish of surprises, a beautiful piece of fish with a pumpkin sauce pretending to be a yolk (the encased pumpkin bubble is heated to 50 degrees so that only the middle melts). The sugary buttery pear is to die for, a typically French idea juxtaposed with peculiarly refreshing goat’s milk ice cream and shockingly fabulous tiny crystallised vodka pieces. The only course I was less wild about was the mutton which in comparison to the rest was a little bland.

The wine journey paralleling the food was a real highlight of the meal for us. Eight highly original and exciting choices were delivered just before each plate of food. The sommelier was not only precise and professional but showed huge, genuine enthusiasm and passion for wine. His approach was humorous throughout proffering anecdotes and stories about each bottle. His expert knowledge was obvious when he spoke of discovering unknown wines such as the South Australian First Drop ‘The Mother of all Harvests’ and Austria’s exquisite Weinland ‘Theodora’. For the first time ever I understood the wine while appreciating it. Drakes has a truly special sommelier who I’m sure would bring wonderfully unexpected wines to accompany any meal.

I truly am in awe of the Drakes team for creating such a spectacular restaurant and a miraculous, magical menu. I think the photos prove my point.

More information here.

www.drakesrestaurant.co.uk