The Cherry Blossom Menu at Sake no Hana

Name: Sake no Hana

Where: 23 St James Street, London, SW1A 1HA, http://sakenohana.com/london/

Cost: The sakura menu costs £34 per person inclusive of a cocktail, miso soup, two bento boxes including sushi and sashimi and a hot  main course. Dessert is available for an additional £8.50.

About: Part of the fabulous Hakkasan Group, Sake no Hana's restaurant on swanky St James Street, in celebration of the Japanese cherry blossom season (sakura), is offering a special menu created by Head Chef Hideki Hiwatachi.

The sakura menu will be served until 18th June, and for the duration of the menu, the entire restaurant and bar are decked out in pretty cherry blossom, making for quite an atmospheric spot.

The menu is available at lunchtimes in the restaurant, while at dinner time it is served in the ground floor bar, and this was where we had our meal.

What We Ate: The menu kicked off with a steaming white miso soup with edamame bean tofu, spring onion and wakame seaweed. I enjoyed this soup – the dashi broth was well made and delicate while the addition of white miso gave it a delectable savour. I particularly enjoyed the nutty, jade-green edamame tofu cut in the shape of a lotus flower.

For our main courses, we ordered two different dishes to share. The chicken sumiyaki with spicy shichimi sauce was served in a perspex bento box with an accompanying green salad dressed with a citrus yuzu-pon dressing.

The grilled chicken was well flavoured and succulent, served alongside the spicy shichimi sauce made of sesame oil, soy sauce, Japanese 7-spices, garlic, ginger and a hint of wasabe.

The other main, also served bento style, was the seasonal vegetable tempura which included slices of pumpkin, onion, asparagus, aubergine and lotus root. Delectable though it was, unusually Sake no Hana's version uses breadcrumbs rather than the more traditional tempura (wheat) flour, so this was not tempura in the traditional sense.

Now onto the raw fish bento – a selection of sushi and sashimi – super-fresh slices of yellowtail, red tuna and salmon, were served chilled over ice and beautifully presented in a bamboo sake cup.

A delicious trio of nigiri sushi included fatty tuna, salmon with chopped wasabi and sweet shrimp. The vegetable shiso maki had crunchy okra with dried sweet plum, while a forth seabass nigiri was nattily dressed in an aromatic bamboo leaf.

Dessert is not included in the fixed price, but we could not resist the cherry chocolate sake mousse (£8.50). This had cherry chocolate and cherry sake mousses, chocolate crumble and sake jelly, glamorously served on a plate decorated with a green chocolate 'tree', with fresh cherries.

Vanilla macarons came filled with chocolate and green tea ganache (£1.80 each), and had a perfect crisp coating with an indulgently gooey centre.

What We Drank:  The cocktail on offer for the sakura menu is a Kaori Arpège, a heady and gorgeously presented mix of Beefeater 24 gin, yuzu sake, cherry liqueur, peach bitters, grapefruit juice and agave. It was served with a selection of 3 spray perfumes - cherry and cinnamon, jasmine and elderflower, and violet. Diners are invited to spray the perfume around the cocktail, one fragrance at a time, and savour the different flavours and aromas.

With our meal, we shared a small carafe of Kozaemon Sakura Junmai Ginjo sake (£18.80). A limited edition sake available only during sakura season, just a few hundred bottles are produced each year. Opalescent, off-dry with barley, savoury and meaty characteristics and a rich complex finish, this was rather like a top quality, long-aged amontillado sherry.

Likes: The cocktail, sushi and sashimi and desserts were delicious and gorgeously presented, and great to experience in the beautiful cherry blossom setting. 

Dislikes: During dinner service, the bar lacks a little atmosphere. 

Verdict: If you haven’t visited the fabulous Sake no Hana yet, the sakura menu at £34 is a great reason for doing so, and it will not break the bank. But rush because the menu ends on 18th June 2016. Recommended.

The Sommelier’s Table at Hélène Darroze

Hélène Darroze at The Connaught is without a doubt one of my favourite restaurants in London. I have visited it on a number of occasions and written about it in The London Foodie, here and here.

Hélène Darroze’s cooking is exquisite – her use of outstanding ingredients (she works very closely with all her suppliers as seen here), the flavours and presentation she conjures up in her dishes are some of the reasons why I go out to eat or write this blog. 

From Landes in Southwest France, Hélène Darroze has held her 2 Michelin stars for years; she is the 4th generation descendent of a long line of chefs and was the right-hand woman for Alan Ducasse in Monte Carlo where she worked. Since adopting two Vietnamese children, her French cooking has taken inspiration from the flavours of the East – Vietnam, Japan and other Asian cuisines. I still dream of her steak tartare flavoured with yuzu ponzu, and caviar!

As much as I love getting stuck in some great burgers and street-food, Hélène’s cooking is something only a handful of chefs in the world can put together – it is unique, very highly skilled and something truly special. 

I recently returned to Hélène Darroze’s Sommelier Table. The Sommelier Table is a beautiful private room in the underground cellars of The Connaught Hotel where you will find some of the hotel’s 6,000 vintage wines. For groups of up to 8 people, you can enjoy a private 4-course lunch with wines included for £150 per person or perhaps a 6-7 course dinner for £1,200 (for up to a group of 8 diners, not including wines).

As the name suggests, there is a great focus on wine-pairing at the Sommelier’s Table, and the night we were there, sommelier Mirko Benzo did not disappoint. Guests are not told the identity of the wine in advance, and this blind tasting focuses the concentration on its taste, nose and harmony with the food – unconstrained by preconceptions relating to region, vintage or value. At the end of each course, the wine is revealed.

And now onto the wonderful, 7-course dinner that Hélène Darroze prepared for us. We started with a Champagne reception and a few delightful morsels of French ham and croquette canapés which got us off on a very good note.

Hélène’s focus on ingredients really showed on her menu – the dishes’ names were given by the use of the main ingredient in each dish. So next up was “Caviar “– crab, radish, Hass avocado. This was the most exquisite dish served that evening and the flavours were fresh, clean but still super intense, it was like having a private garden on your plate!

This was followed by “Foie Gras” - wild strawberry, rhubarb, and lemon verbena. The creamiest foie gras, with a crystal clear rhubarb jelly and wild strawberries, another fantastic dish.

The “Coco Bean” – eel, shimeji – this was yet another great dish with a coco bean emulsion, well eel and shimeji mushrooms.

Next up was the fish course - “Lobster” - asparagus, bottarga, and seaweed.

The meat course – “Sweetbread” - asparagus, morel, and vin jaune was also one of my favourites. I love sweetbreads, it is such a delicacy and deliciously creamy when well cooked, like the one pictured.

I love the concept of pre-desserts and Hélène’s Baba “Armagnac” - with strawberry and banana, doused in her own family’s Darroze Armagnac was the lightest and most wonderful baba I have ever tried.

Dessert was a torte of “Chocolate” – ginger and Bourbon vanilla, which was followed by a tier of mini choux buns filled with cream and macarons.

This was a splendid dinner and one I will remember for years to come. For a special occasion or if you would like to enjoy some of the best French cooking and wines that London can offer, there are very places I can think of rather than The Sommelier’s Table at Hélène Darroze. I highly recommend it.

For reservations, email: helenedarroze@the-connaught.co.uk or call:  +44 (0) 20 3147 7200. 

For more information about The Sommelier Table at The Connaught Hotel, visit their website:
http://www.the-connaught.co.uk/mayfair-restaurants/sommeliers-table/

The New Tasting Menu at Tamarind of Mayfair

Words and Photography by Matthew Brown and Luiz Hara

Name: Tamarind of Mayfair

Where: 20 Queen Street, London, W1J 5PR, http://www.tamarindrestaurant.com/

Cost: We visited Tamarind of Mayfair to try their new ‘Taste of Tamarind’ menu, available every day until 9:30pm. It’s a six-course set menu, priced at £65 per person, or £115 with a pairing that includes some exceptional wines. 

The restaurant has several other menus. The lunch set-menu is £21.50 for two courses, and £24.50 for three. Sunday Lunch is £32 per person, and a pre- or post- theatre 3-course menu is £35. The à la carte menu is pricier but not excessively so, though there are decadent options, such as a Lobster Masala (£39.50) and Tiger Prawn Kebabs (£34.50) available. 

About: This year marks the twentieth anniversary of Tamarind of Mayfair’s opening on Queen Street. It was the first fine-dining Indian restaurant anywhere in the world to win a Michelin star, and it’s now the flagship for an international group with venues from Kensington to California.

Situated on a quiet Mayfair street, there’s no doubt that this restaurant is still the jewel in the group’s crown. The gold-pillared underground dining room feels as though it’s in a great ocean liner.  It is an elegant restaurant overlooking a busy open plan kitchen offering impeccable service and great food.

What We Ate: Our meal began with a delicious Channa Chaat - spiced potato and chickpeas - served in a patty that had the shape and depth of colour of steak tartare, and just as indulgent. This was delicious - the chickpeas were soft, served with crispy fried gram flour for bite and a thick tamarind and sweetened yoghurt sauce for acidity and freshness. 

To follow we had the grilled scallop served with smoked peppers and spiced tomato chutney, which was not as successful (although any dish following that marvellous Channa Chaat would be at a disadvantage). The scallop flesh was soft, and the chutney well-spiced, but the tomato flavour was overwhelming in our opinion - the dish lacked the complexity and freshness of the Channa Chaat.

Tandoor-grilled baby chicken breast was better, with charcoal-smoked crispy skin and butter-soft flesh, served with fenugreek leaves wrapped in vermicelli and a spiced tomato purêe.

Up to this point the portions had been small, and a rich but tiny tamarind and date sorbet did little to assuage our hunger. The fourth course was however more substantial, and very well made - lamb chops served with spiced spinach, a creamy makhni daal, pulao rice and naan bread. The daal was dark and creamy, the spinach rich but light and the lamb chop was an excellent choice of meat.

For dessert, we had carrot fudge served with white raisins and melon seeds. This was soft and buttery, and served with a rich, nutty pistachio kulfi.

Tamarind clearly pays as much attention to its desserts as it does its savouries, and even the petit fours - salted caramel truffles and mint leaves coated in white chocolate, could have been a dessert in their own right. They were delicious.

What We Drank: With the sublime Channa Chaat was paired with an equally vibrant wine - a Riesling Trimbach 2007, from Cuvée Frederic Emile in Alsace, with apricot flavours and plenty of minerality, this was more than a match for the rich tamarind sauce.

With the scallop came a delicious Chablis Premier Cru Les Lys 2013, with fine citrus fruit and melon notes.

With the tandoori chicken came a chardonnay from Italy, the Cevaro della Sala 2012, with exotic tropical fruit flavours to match the weight of the dish.

To accompany the lamb, we had a glass of Dom Chante Cigale 2011 from Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Another respected vineyard on a flight of strong European wines, this complex wine made of several varietals had soft tannins, berry fruit flavours and great length.

Our dessert wine was an Andrew Quady Orange Blossom Muscat from California – sweet enough not to be overwhelmed by the dessert but with enough acidity to give it some grip. 

Likes: The tasting menu is well balanced and varied in character. The Channa Chaat warrants a visit to Tamarind of Mayfair on its own right. It can be hard to partner Indian food with wine, but Tamarind’s sommelier has chosen some excellent wines that are also a reason to visit in themselves.

Dislikes: The scallop dish was the weakest link in our opinion, and besides I could have done with a little more carb in the first three smaller starters.

Verdict:  With vibrant and well-balanced flavours, Tamarind’s tasting menu is an excellent option for those wanting to experience Michelin-starred Indian cooking in the heart of London's Mayfair. Highly recommended.

Gigi's - A Preview from The London Foodie Tipster!

Name: Gigi's

Where: 22 Woodstock Street, Mayfair, London W1C 2AR
www.gigismayfair.com

Cost: Starters are priced from £8.50 to £15.00, with pasta dishes from £14.00 to £27.00, mains from £19.50 to £36, and side dishes at £4.50. Two or three course set lunch menus are £22 or £25 (Mon to Fri, 12 - 3pm). These change weekly, and include vegetarian options.  Cocktails range from £8.50 to £11.50.

About: Opened in September 2014, this Italian restaurant headed by the Neapolitan chef Ivan Simeoli, previously of Club Gascon and The Wallace, is tucked away at the end of a tiny enclave off Oxford Street that could easily be missed.

Gigi's is an elegant spot, on which it seems no money has been spared, with classic parquet floors, plush green velvet seating, chandeliers and a magnificent cocktail bar.

I could not fail to notice that on the evening we were there, all the waiting staff were Russian. On further investigation, it turns out that the restaurant is Russian owned, which might explain the staffing, and the huge sums that appear to have been spent on the decor. It also claims to have  served the world's most expensive cocktail at £9000 a pop.

What We Ate: It is rare in a restaurant for me to find that I want to order many items from the menu, but this was an issue at Gigi's, and choosing was difficult. After much deliberation, we decided to start our meal with the roasted octopus with borlotti beans and flamed onion broth (£11.50). I love the combination of seafood and beans, and here the octopus was excellent, with a deliciously char-grilled flavour and sweetness from the onions, and surprisingly was even more tender than the accompanying beans.

The vitello carpaccio tonnato (£13.50) is one of Italy's most popular regional specialties  from Turin. Gigi's take on this Italian classic, dotted with leaves of radicchio and sorrel, was superb, with finely cut rare veal, and a light and creamy fresh tuna mayonnaise. Having enjoyed this dish on a number of occasions in Italy, I can safely state that Gigi's was the best I have eaten to date.

The ravioli with Amalfi lemon and buffalo ricotta (£14.00), from the pasta section, had a heady citrus aroma, and a rich buttery sauce. A refined, beautifully presented dish, it transported me straight back to my last visit to Sorrento (reviewed here).

The pappardelle Zafferano with ossobuco and sage butter (£19.50), had freshly made, paper thin pasta, nearly as wide as lasagne. Served with veal and bone-marrow, this was rich, sweet and full of flavour. The chef had substituted the more traditional risotto with freshly made pasta, which worked a treat.

The salt marsh English lamb, with heritage carrots, sheep's milk and crunchy shallots (£24) was in my opinion the star of the meal. Tender and full of flavour, and with a magnificent, highly concentrated jus, it was exquisite both to the eye and the palate.
  

The White Park rib eye beef was served medium rare, with turnip tops and mustard (£36). Richly flavoured and well presented, this was also very good, although compared with the lamb, it did not fare so well in flavour or value for money.

For dessert, we opted for the Ivan Simeoli's interpretation of tiramisu (£7.50). A delectable deconstruction of an overfamiliar classic, this featured chocolate tuile, coffee meringue and a coffee parfait.

The liquorice sandwich with apple bubbles (£7.50) was very fine, with an intensely flavoured and aromatic apple foam, and a well made hazelnut parfait.

What We Drank: We kicked off with a Silver-tini cocktail - a refreshing concoction of lychees, gin, elderflower cordial, lime and pink champagne (£11.50). Equally good was the Rose Petal Martini, gin-based (Hendricks), but flavoured with rose and voilet liqueurs and lychee puree (£10.50).

With the main course, we had a glass of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (£7.50 per glass), which was not a great match for the quality of the cooking.

Likes: The salt marsh English lamb was excellent, as was the vitello carpaccio tonnato, and both pasta dishes. Desserts were innovative and skillfully presented. Cocktails were strong and well made. The food menu is in the main well priced for the location.  

Dislikes: None

Verdict: There is some first rate cooking at Gigi's - Ivan Simeoli is a creative and talented chef using fantastic Italian produce to reinvent some of his country's classics. It's early days for Gigi's, and while it tries to find its feet on the London culinary scene, there is some serious cooking at surprisingly reasonable prices to be had. Highly recommended.