L'Etranger: Style meets food

www.etranger.co.uk

We had eaten at l'etranger only once before, but decided to take our friends there for dinner. We thought it would be a great place to get a taste of London, as we all live out of town. Outside of London you can find wonderful 'country park' and 'boutique' hotel restaurants. If you are looking for something that is edgy and cool, with oodles of sophistication, but without the starch collared structure of a fine dining establishment, then London is the place you need to go.

I suppose it must be the wealth in the city that allows this kind of place to exist. The kind of place where you can have an informal semi-reasonable meal or spend over a grand on tasting menus and wine, a truly flexible dining experience. To give you an idea of the coolness factor, we are all in our twenties, and although we didn't see anyone in there younger than us, I felt a tinge of 'out of towner'. All diners were dressed well, 'rich/pseudo-intellectual sports casual' if that means anything to you.

L'etranger describes itself as a fusion restaurant - Japanese meets French, which personally, is not something I look for in a meal. If it doesn't sound like your bag either, do not let it put you off. The most Japanese element of my steak with truffled polenta chips and peppercorn sauce was the Japanese plate it was served on. If however, nipponch cuisine is exactly what you have been missing in your life, then there were curiosities (like Tuna Tataki with Foie Gras Shavings & Truffle Ponzu Jelly) on the menu to appease you.

The thing that impresses you the most are the quirky theatricals you witness, from the elegance of the olive bread sticks to the presentation of the courses. The attention to detail really served to prove that money had been spent on the right things and that you were somewhere a little special. The cutlery and glassware were über-sleek, the menu (sadly I did not photograph this) was printed on pearlized paper held in a handsome wallet.

Black and green olive pastry sticks.

Every time a course arrived there would be something at the table you had not seen before to capture the imagination, like the deconstruction of foie gras with foie gras lolly pops, foie gras creme brulée, and a test tube of plum wine!

Scallops with Parmesan purée in a shaved wood strip.

Foie gras three ways, with mushroom brioche and plum wine.

Calamari with lime and chilli sauce.

Five tomato salad with burrata, basil sorbet, and truffled balsamic pearls.

So we went to town, we started with cocktails, then we had starters, then we had mains with wine (from an extensive list) made more alluring by the fact that we could espy the glass walled wine room from our table.

All four of us chose the fillet for the main course.

We then shared a dessert 4 ways, which may seem impossible to you, but it was a platter of chocolate in 7 different incarnations including a mousse with orange, a bitter chocolate sorbet, chocolate fondant, an opera cake, and even a dark chocolate and truffle ganache.

Death by chocolate - seven ways.

To top off our night we had a flight of 6 dessert wines (which we also shared among us).  They had carefully selected 6 wines of increasing intensity. Starting with a light semi-sweet apple nosed wine to an aged pedro ximénez that clung heavily to the sides of the glass, a tar like nectar with the deep sweetness of liquorice, treacle and raisins.

They brought all the bottles to the table for us to see... and check out the cool table lights!

The holders for our flight of dessert wines were very fun and futuristic.

We were there for hours and we had truly taken advantage of the spectrum of delights they had to offer. The service was what you might expect at the finest establishments, the food was rich, delicious and comforting yet sharp and thought provoking. If you are looking to have a unique 'London' night or just want to be fed well and in comfort, then this place is for you. An intimate and classy joint that tickles with its play on food yet does not compromise your stomach's enjoyment in the process!

The Waterside Inn: Back to the era of Classic French Gastronomy.

www.waterside-inn.co.uk

When you enjoy fine dining as much as I do, it isn't long before you start to set your sights on the cream of the British restaurant crop, the 3 Michelin starred restaurants. As those of you in the know will know, in England this isn't even a list of restaurants, there are 4. Although I have visited a handful of 2 Michelin starred establishments, my visit to The Waterside Inn, was my first 3. In fact such an expensive meal warranted an occasion, and we visited to celebrate our engagement. In order to to further relieve us of our money we also opted to stay in one of their rooms. I must admit to being skeptical about this, as I had viewed their rooms on the website and found them rather unappealing. I may even have mocked the "garden furniture" in one of the rooms and I certainly found their decor a little too reminiscent of the 80s/90s crossover years.

The village view from our room.

Arriving in Bray, the renowned restaurant town (due to its two 3 Michelin starred restaurants), was an experience it itself. Coming off the hectic M4 only miles from London, one arrives almost instantly in this countryside idyll. Right before your eyes the modern world disappears and you find yourself on the set of Midsummer Murders. It is a wonder to me that this little town of so much acclaim could remain here untouched. Well, there is one thing, the wealth. You know you are in a chocolate box village near London when you see all the driveways and streets crawling with mercs and beemers, new ones.

The view at the front of The Waterside Inn.

Anyway, it was a warm late afternoon as we approached the restaurant, a Tudor style country spot on the river. The first thing that you notice is chefs. Chefs here, chefs there, chefs everywhere. How do I know they were chefs... easy the tall hats. Anyone who has been to Oxford knows how the place crawls with intellectual student types, and you just know they 'go to Oxford'. Well, here it was the same, but with chefs. Outside in the daylight, carrying things to other buildings, standing around chatting, having a fag-orette break.

The place seemed lovely and calm and it felt very much like we were somewhere special. The place did seem a little dated in style, but everything was ultra sharp and clean. Our room was small, and the decor as predicted, but the details were right, and nothing was tired. There were Roux cook books and magazines that served to remind just what a special place you were in.

Our Room Key.

The bedroom.

There was no mini-bar, but we were shown to a kitchenette down the hall that boasted an 'Honesty bar'. For those unfamiliar with this notion, an honesty bar is an unmanned bar where you pour your own drinks and write down what you have so they can charge you accordingly later. This is a lovely idea in general as it implies they trust you and that you can make your gin and tonic as strong as you like. However, when the cost of a G&T matches the price of a whole bottle of gin in the supermarket it makes you feel more like they do not trust you in any way.

The kitchenette, complete with complementary tea and coffee.

Price list for the honesty bar.

We sat outside overlooking the river for a pre-dinner drink and canapes. We were lucky that it had been warm enough for this as it was so wonderful out there. We then made our way in to a corner table for our meal.

Where we sat for our drinks.

The view at night.

The canapes.

One thing you did notice was that it is not a huge place, and the sheer number of staff was incredible. In fact, if you count the chefs and kitchen staff there is a more than good chance that the guests were outnumbered! The service was also super attentive and faultless. It is also fair to say that there was not one member of the waiting staff that did not come and say hello at some point in the evening. Surprisingly perhaps, I was not overwhelmed by it, and I am the type who does not like to get too 'involved' with the waiters, I like a bit of space and I do not like to feel like I am being watched.

The view of the room from our table

The room itself was nice enough, it had that lovely soft glow and warm atmosphere. The decor, chairs and china were again outdated but not tired. The menu was classic French without a doubt and without apologizing for it, as was the very extensive French only wine list. To me it served only to reinforce the fact that the food must be phenomenal, or they would not get away with it.

A wonderful Chestnut and champagne veloute with foie gras dumplings. Delicious.

Flaked haddock souffle.

The runny hidden egg in the souffle.

The best plate of food I have ever eaten. Rabbit with fondant celeriac, glazed chestnuts and armagnac sauce. I cannot begin to understand or explain the flavours. This was the highlight of my night.

Venison Wellington. I tried this and it was superb. The venison was beautiful and the surrounding substance was unexplainably delicious and perfect.

Chocolate Fondant with clementine sorbet.

Assiette of desserts.

Caramel almond.

The cheese trolley.

By the end of the night, it felt like the restaurant had been there forever, protected in a bubble of its own exquisiteness. An old world charm, unchanged by the advances in modern gastronomy. The food had truly been mind bogglingly faultless, and there had been no theatrics. A simplicity in it's delivery that really, for the price, was brave or even cocky. However, the complexity of the flavours on the palette were enough to make you want to cry about your own cooking. I trust these people with my food.

As we were so full we opted to have coffee and mignardises taken to our room. They were happy to oblige.

Coffee & Mignardises in the room.

Breakfast could only be had in the room.  So that is where we had it and it was of the caliber you would expect. We checked out and coughed up over £700 for the dinner and room. We were given a Roux signed book at check out as well. Before driving away we wandered round the back to see the view of the river.

A view of the terrace where we had had our drink the night before.

The river.

All in all, it had been an expensive night. The room is not worth the £230 price tag, but that is the premium you pay for staying here. The staff were lovely and the food outstanding. It was certainly a special experience, and something everyone who loves food should try once.

I managed to leave with mixed feelings though, this place is old fashioned and out dated and there was no sorbet or pre-dessert. You got what you ordered, and there were no extras or surprises, but what you did get was sublime! I can see why the Roux family dynasty have an established place in history with their contribution to classic cooking.

Pied-à-terre: Best restaurant in the world?

www.pied-a-terre.co.uk

Arriving at Pied a Terre was a lovely experience, it is only a small restaurant really, and the space is long and narrow. That said, it is beautifully appointed in a warm modern fashion and the place oozes refinement. I felt like I was somewhere special almost immediately. The moment you arrive you are taken into the care of the staff, and they wait on you as if you are the only reason they are there. NOT in an overwhelming and stalkerish way, but in a warm and thoughtful way that seems so effortless that you know they must know what they are doing as there is a restaurant full of diners recieving the same level of care.

10 Courses. The tasting menu experience is an event that lasts about 4 hours and is a real treat. Before I launch into the food, I should mention the Sommelier who pulled together a wonderfully interesting selection of wines for me to try. Not only this, but for each wine he visited the table twice, once at the start and once at the end of each course. The first visit would always be to pour the wine before the corresponding plate of food arrived. The second visit he would bring back the bottle, ask us about the wine, discuss the flavours and finally reveal the bottle and tell us about the wine. With charm and consistency he would arrive so casually, yet so punctually and he never missed his cue. We developed quite a fondness for his visits to the table and he was a delight to discuss wine with. In fact he also helped me track down a wine I was trying to source at the time (a Lillypilly Fortified Shiraz).

The food was superb, each plate so perfect and so pretty! Each dish so complex and I never saw a plate with less than 10 parts/ processes to it. Everything was simply sublime.

Canapes: Some sort of pastry with truffle.

The amuse bouche: The most processes I have ever seen in one amuse bouche EVER.

 

A Salad of Raw and Pickled Autumn Vegetables
Toasted Sunflower Seeds and Carrot Oil

Confit Yellow Fin Tuna with Dill Pickled Chayotte,
Oyster Mayonnaise, Toasted Quinoa and Mustard Seeds

Roasted Cheltenham Beetroot with Pinenuts, Balsamic Gel, Lancashire Bomb Cheese and Mini Capers

Lightly Poached Scallops with Cuttlefish, Confit of Buddha Lemon, Samphire and Saffron Velouté

Roasted Foie Gras with Rhubarb Curd, Hazelnut Crumble,
Parsnip and Vanilla Custard

Salt Baked Jerusalem Artichokes with Avocado Oil, Sea Purslane and Trompette de la Mort

Pan-Fried Turbot with Shaved Chervil Root,
Braised Cavolo Nero and Caper Beurre Noisette

Butternut Squash with Fresh Shimeji, Sage Beignets,
Toasted Pumpkin Seeds and Baby Wood Sorrel

Herb Crusted Saddle of Sika Venison with Cranberry Red Cabbage, Baby Spinach Compote, Shallot and Red Wine Jus

A forest of cracker shards.

Le fromage!

Lime Airs and Caramel Foam with Toasted Meringues,
Wild Finger Limes and Mint Oil

Bitter Sweet Chocolate Tart, Stout Ice Cream
and Macadamia Nut Cream

A generosity of Mignaridises

The overall experience was wonderful, and I think it is the best dining experience I have ever had. For me, this is now the restaurant to beat. I heard once that to be a great chef you need to be generous and want to give as much as you can. Well, this place is a living testament to it. You see the tower block of mignaridises above? We had 2 of those for a table of four! The sheer volume and variety totally uneccessary for a group of people who have just eaten 10 courses of food!

No expense, no detail, no effort spared in bringing you the very best of everything through every part of the visit. In no way does it feel like a business transaction, these people take you in and as if without considering cost they offer you everything they have! Bravo!

L'atelier de Joel Robuchon: An artist's Workshop

www.joelrobuchon.co.uk/first-floor

Oh Joel. He was my first 2 Michelin Star restaurant and what an experience it was. We went a la carte rather than tasting, and "Je ne regrette rien"! I remember arriving here and finding the place sleek and cool, modern with an almost Asian vibe and red accents on everything. Before I launch into the food, I must warn you that this man is an artist. When I think of the direction he takes the food, I am sad to think that most people will live their entire lives without knowing ingredients can be used like this.

Foie Gras Ravioli in Chicken Broth with Whipped Cream: What can I say. It sounds original and it was. It was so fresh, so zesty with a light airy creaminess brought about by the presence of one dollop of whipped cream in the broth. The extremely finely diced fragrant herbs cut through the oiliness and left your palette in a totally new place. The whole dish was simple and yet so inspired. What a badger!

A modern take on Tournedos Rossini. truffled beef fillet and foie gras. This came with a mini saucepan of "special" mash. In fact it was so special I will never forget it and it dictates how I make mash at home!

My mother had this. Seafood extravaganza of some kind, it looked wonderful.

I cannot remember what this is but it is what my fiancé had and there were no complaints from him!

Pre-dessert: White chocolate and Yuzu ice lolly dipped in popping candy. This was the first time I had seen popping candy used this way and it has certainly popped up many times since.

I feel guilty for not remembering what this is, although I do know it had chestnut and it was divine not to mention breathtakingly beautiful.

A perfect Soufflé

My mother had this, and of the desserts it looked the most spectacular. You are looking at a cherry dessert within an edible, clear sugar sphere with gold leaf.

Another precision executed dessert.

Gold dusted liquid caramel chocolates.

A very interesting espresso cup.

I do not know what else to tell you other than that the food was so imaginative and mind openningly fun and delightful. I hold Joel in very high esteem, I think his creativity and excellence are on the cutting edge of gastronomy. A whole new food experience. I cannot wait to have more, learn more and be amazed some more!