Reviews in Mayfair

I've been going to London for many years and Le Boudin Blanc always offers great French food and atmosphere. Perhaps a little noisy and cramped for a business dinner, it is a perfect spot for a dinner for two or a date restaurant.

A meal of superior quality in a smart, yet unpretentious environment of rich dark wood fixtures and fittings, complimented by sympathetic lighting and a vibrant atmosphere. The live singing pianist was the icing on the cake, in a city where live music is bars and restaurants is sadly a rare treat. My starter of roast scallops, pumpkin ravioli, treacle cured bacon and mushy peas appeared to be unusual combination on paper but worked perfectly and was delicious. The scallops were cooked as good, if not better than any I've had in the best of London's restaurants. My dining partners starter of potted chicken livers, toasts and chutney was equally good but I was content that my choice was the better one. My main course of organic salmon, crushed new potatoes and crab caviar was of just as high a standard as the starter. We had side dishes of steamed broccoli and mashed potatoes, although the mashed potatoes were a little creamy for my taste but merely a matter of personal preference and weren't actually necessary unless you have a big appetite. I can't remember what my dining partner had but we both agreed that the overall standard of food was excellent and worth every penny. Just as importantly the service was also excellent and better than alot of the more expensive and so called prestigious eating establishments in London. Our waiter was friendly and efficient, and displayed the rare skill of anticipating our requirements. We had a drink in the bar afterwards before leaving, only to return for another drink when we couldn't find a better bar nearby. The bar staff and the door men continued the high standard of service we had received from the waiting staff and an impressive touch was when the door man returned a packet of cigarettes and a lighter that my dining partner had inadvertently left on a table outside. Altogether a very enjoyable experience and highly recommended.

Very impressed with the food. Service was fine. Price was slightly above average for pub grub, but it was definitely worth it as this particular Mayfair pub has an understated and underlying feeling (and taste) of quality. Would gladly recommend.

I have been eating at La Genova on and off for just under 40 years. They always give wonderful service and the food is sublime. I always go there on high days and holidays, not everyday. This way it is a treat for me and a wonderful way of meeting up with old friends.

I have been eating at La Genova on and off for just under 40 years. They always give wonderful service and the food is sublime. I always go there on high days and holidays, everyday. This way it is a treat for me and a wonderful way of meeting up with old friends.

Expensive, but the modern sushi is one of the best in London, the closest thing to the real experience in Japan. The atmosphere was quiet and chic and the service outstanding. Well Deserve the Michelin star!

I have been to Lebanese restaurants before, in London, but never to such a relaxing and friendly place like this place, The vine leaves, the baby chicken and the truly home made baklawa together with the mint tea, and to finish it off a smoky shisha, made our visit to London a must that we will tell our friends about..

The food delicious, the service excellent, the comfy seats were great. A great place to have lunch after shopping down the hectic Oxford street and relax for a few hours

Great Tapas, nice wine and it's not expensive for a Central London restaurant...

I celebrated my birthday in style at Hard Rock! We started the evening with their legendary margarita?, followed by a delicious meal which ended with Philadelphia cheesecake. The staff were amazing and even sang Happy Birthday to me. The music and the general vibe was really fun and lively.

I've had two great nights out recently - one with all my mates and one with my girlfriend. The atmosphere and service was fantastic on both occasions. The ribs were delicious and my girlfriend loved the cob salad (there was a lot more choice than I? expected). There's loads of events at the moment for their 35th birthday - so I?l definitely head back soon!

Bellamys is well worth trying the food is of excellent quality and the staff are attentive

This is a very beautiful restaurant. Glass and candles alongside sumptuous cushions and carpets. The service is great, the staff are keen to make your meal perfect and are happy to recommend dishes. The food was lovely and great to share. The meat was tender and perfectly cooked while the fish tasted really fresh. I would recommend this anytime if you wanted a special night out.

Great food and Great service too...

Wish this was my Living room!!! Celebrated my 30th birthday there it was amazing, great for parties and for dinner. Amazing choice of cocktails. All in all a really good first experience and I will definitely be going back Cheers!

I have been there three times; food has always been good, but their service is not something to write home about. Attention is far from personalized.

Recently my girlfriend and I ate at this establishment. The professional service and friendly atmosphere of this restaurant nicely surprised us. We thoroughly enjoyed our meals which where pepper steaks.

There are some moments in life which are built up so much in the preceding time that they are almost bound to come up short of expectations. Going up the Eiffel tower, your first taste of Champagne, having your first adolescent kiss all fall into this bracket for me. Being a sad 'foodie' certain restaurant expectations and openings also fall under the same bracket. The classic case of this was when I went to Gordon Ramsay Royal Hospital Road a couple of years ago to have a lovely meal but somehow for it to fail to live up to the mass of expectation that I had built up in my own mind. A truly magnificent meal to me is one which you can still taste and smell for days after, and it is very rare that this happens when I go to a 'highly praised and recommended' restaurant. It was therefore with some trepidation that one week ago on 5th October that I stepped through the doors of the latest hyped Gordon Ramsay offering of Maze. First of all, don't be scared by the name - the restaurant is not some mirror walled room which you may never escape - it is in fact a very funky New York style room with lots of beige and browns. We arrived at 9 hoping to get in a bit earlier than our 9.45 booking which we'd managed to get 5 days previous. So we sat down in the bar (which you can just go to for drinks) and ordered a couple of the most perfectly made cocktails ever (a Margarita and a lime, mint, ginger and rum concoction of which the name escapes me - both priced at a reasonable £8). After forgetting about the time we were shown to our table at exactly 9.45 which I requested to be in the raised area so that we could view the kitchen. We were then shown the menu and asked if we had dined here before to which the answer was no. We then had it explained to us that there were a range of around 30 'tapas style' (in the loosest sense) from which to choose (£4.50 - £8.50) or a more traditional 'a la carte' version of some of the tapas dishes (£12 - £25). We were also told that the most popular option was to go with the chef's choice of either six (£32) or eight (£42) dishes and we duly chose the eight courses without a moments hesitation. We had no idea what we were about to receive but we crossed our fingers, said a little prayer and 8 miracles duly came forth! The sommelier was very knowledgeable and chose a very good Pinot grigio (£29) as well as suggesting a glass of red wine for our main course (£9). You can also choose what they term 'flights' of wine consisting of three glasses of for example sauvignon, Bordeaux, or even up to champagne, ranging from £14 - £200. The first course (using 'tapas' to describe this food not only insults the food we had but also true tapas) consisted of three pickled beetroot parcels with a ricotta like filling with hazelnuts sprinkled on top. A very simple dish with the flavours perfectly balanced so that the taste of the beetroot, which was marinated in honey and soy came through with the smoothness of the cheese. Next up were two seared scallops with a light curry flavour with a celery cream and apple purée to the side. This again was something to behold. At first I thought the scallops would be overpowered but alas I should have feared not for not only were they not overpowered but the celery and apple brought out the flavour of the scallops like I had never expected. Next up was a dish of swordfish and tuna capriccios which for me was the relevant low point of the meal, not because of the food but merely that I do not have a huge love for capriccio of anything. It has however got to be noted that I have never seen a slice of meet so transparently thin and yet the flavour still so intense - this can only be achieved by perfect preparation, sliced just before serving. Next was the first meat dish (main course no. 1 in my book) of mini breast and confit of quail, with a slab of salted foie gras and onion chutney. The flavours here were so rich and succulent it was like the very first time you'd tasted a proper homemade chocolate truffle or the top layer of a bottle of gold top milk which has been stood outside your front door on a cold winters morning. The foie gras was like non I had experienced before. The salt crust went against the vein of 'just let a quality meat speak for itself' and gave it a whole new vitality and meaning in life, which with the perfectly pink quail brought me a few steps nearer to heaven. At this stage we tried to work out how far we had got and to our horror we were only half way through - trust me you will not be hungry when you finish this tapas offering. Between the main courses was a broad bean and pea risotto with grated black truffle which again was perfectly balanced in flavour with the sweetness of the in season broad beans and the scent of grated truffle. It has to be noted however that it was quite a large portion for this stage in the meal but this is the most minor of negatives when the food was this good. While I spoke of the quail as being a few steps closer to heaven the next course was truly food heaven in its purest, most holy, unadulterated of forms. The highlight and what they classified as the main course consisted of lamb cooked three ways. There was a roasted mini shank, rolled shoulder, and braised lamb wrapped up in a leaf of cos lettuce, all accompanied by a quinnel of mashed potatoes, a roasted shallot and a red wine lamb jus. To try and put the taste of all this into words is near impossible, all I can say is that the shank was perfectly pink and the most tender I have ever consumed, the shoulder melted in the mouth like butter in an oven, and the braised lamb was beyond superlatives! This course was the highlight not just of this meal but of my culinary life - better than Le Gavroche's famed cheese soufflé, Gordon Ramsay's Lobster Ravioli, Le Tour D'Argent's famous duck, my mum's Jam Rolly Polly - it was that good! After we had closed our awestruck jaws, wiped our brows and tried to comeback to reality we had our first desert - a lovely mini trifle, not trifle as Aunt Mildred would make, but consisting of a passion fruit jelly with a creme chantille and lemon sorbet topping, accompanied by a vanilla cake. The second desert was a pineapple capriccio with coconut ice cream and lime liquor. This was a perfect end to the meal as it refreshed the palate while not being overly obtrusive so you could still taste the rest of what had gone before it. Along with the deserts the sommelier chose an exquisite muscat desert wine (£9 per glass) which had a slight fizz but which was a perfect accompaniment to the food. With the bill came a selection of petit fours including frozen, white chocolate covered raspberries, Turkish delight, and lavender flavoured chocolate. What you have just read is why I give the food 10/10, but the quality of the service was equally as good. Not only did they satisfy my table request, choose excellent value wines, describe each dish perfectly, and keep us merrily entertained throughout, they went further. Halfway through the meal I enquired as to whether it was just Jason Atherton on site or if the big scary Scottish monster was in our midst. They replied that it was just Mr Atherton on site and followed up by asking if we would like to see the kitchen to which I blushed, and said o.k. in a rather giggly fashion. I then thought nothing more of it as I assumed this would be forgotten and we would leave at the end of the night forgetting what we were ever offered. But no, at about 11pm (after the heavenly lamb) our waiter came to our table and introduced us to the Maitre d' who had a brief chat to us and then offered to take us round the kitchen. And so off we went into paradise. Not only did we go in but we stayed for 15 minutes, first of all being shown by the Maitre d' all the different areas and introduced to various chefs (while they were still cooking), and then we were introduced to Jason Atherton himself who then tolerated our company for five whole minutes in the middle of what was still a busy service. What a gent! I wish I had thought up some decent questions but no I got tongue tied in the presence of greatness, but boy what a pleasure it was. So all in all a perfect meal? Not quite. The atmosphere as with all Ramsay restaurants was slightly too formal even with piped music playing and the younger than average waiter service. While it is undoubtedly on its way to its first Michelin star in January (and possibly two) there were no canapés or amuse bouches which you would expect from such an establishment. It was like Gordon Ramsay in his days when he was at his experimental peak at Aubergine, not three stars but infinitely more exciting than where he is now at Royal Hospital Road. To round off, get a table before it gets it's first stars (after which you will be very lucky to get one), try and forget about the money (our meal for two including all the drinks and service came to a VERY reasonable £180), do what they suggest, don't think of it as tapas, and most of all enjoy! Mr Bojangles - Thursday, October 13, 2005