The USP: Pickett’s residency is all about pretty dishes intended to pack a punch with creative flavour combos. And the Sanderson collaboration makes sense; this is fine dining that suits everything we’ve come to adore about the trendy, Philippe Starck-designed hotel – from the wonderful service to the eye-catching interiors.

The food: Starters of delicately-flavoured sea scallops and the cornish crab with pressed watermelon are  gorgeous on all levels. But it’s the mains that really win. The poached and roast guinea fowl has been a diner’s favourite since the menu launched in June. This winning dish of tender gamey slices served with asparagus and leeks could’ve been a fancy Sunday roast, which is made all the better with a slathering of roast chicken gravy.

Guinea fowl with the poshest trimmings #allenpickett #sandersonLDN

A photo posted by Matilda (@mstillytilda) on Jun 25, 2015 at 1:28pm PDT

Another highlight is the eclectic combination of seared red mullet, razor clam, oxtail and onion, served with a saffron rouille sauce.  Thankfully, both mains leave enough room for dessert, which you’d be a fool to pass up – especially as the lemon and raspberry sponge is as delightful as it sounds.

Budget: Post pay-day. Set aside £100 for two if you’re going for the full works (starters, sides, mains, desserts and wine or cocktails)

Good for: A midsummer’s night, fabulous mains, yummy afters and plenty of Instagram likes

For more pics, check out our Tumblr.

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Although last year’s winner was the indomitable Noma in Copenhagen, which has won on three previous occasions,  Spain’s El Celler de Can Roca deservedly regained the 2015 title for continuing to push their limits and thrive creatively after nearly 30 years.  Read my report for Reuters to find out the other winners, and check out a few of my pics from last night’s glittering reception.

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“It takes time for a restaurant to be there, where I have it in my head,” Becker said, sitting in a corner of the 32nd floor restaurant in the Shard – the London skyscraper that looks a bit like a castle from the “Lord of the Rings” films.

“I think the first step, we achieved. It’s busy and successful but there’s a lot of detail work to be done that most people don’t see, but I see.”

The award-winning, German-born chef opened OBLIX in May 2013 in a departure from the Japanese tradition of the iconic Zuma and renowned Roka restaurants that made him famous at the turn of the new millennium.

After training in Michelin-starred restaurants in Germany, his love for Japanese food was established when he lived in Tokyo for six years working at the Park Hyatt hotel. He moved to London in 2002 to open Zuma in Knightsbridge with business partner Arjun Waney.

The launch of OBLIX came after 11 years of rapidly expanding the Zuma and Roka brands across the globe, so the plan was to venture into New York-style urban dining that would offer Becker a lunchtime alternative.

“I eat too much Japanese food every day,” he said. “Japanese food is my passion because I lived in Japan. But I didn’t want to do a Japanese concept. I like simple food and New York is one of my favorite cities.”

“They have great restaurants and they’re very multicultural, like London. We said, ‘Let’s do something where you can’t pinpoint what we’re doing’, so it’s not American cuisine. Like London, there’s not really a London cuisine. It’s multicultural.”

On a weekday, the stylish restaurant, with its stunning views over the British capital, is buzzing with businessmen, tourists and young couples, including a famous footballer and his TV presenter girlfriend. It is a mixed clientele that Becker believes is one of the advantages of being based in the Shard.

“It’s a tourist attraction and a destination, so we have a very broad audience,” he said.

MENU TWEAKS

The menu has gone through a number of tweaks since the opening, although the flavorsome duck with mango chutney has become a signature dish. Another big draw is an interactive sommelier station which allows guests to try new and vintage wines and match it with their meals. Wine-tasting classes may become a larger part of the dining experience.

Pic: Touchfood

Becker says he has learned a few lessons since OBLIX opened, which have inspired the changes. This includes ironing out the teething problems before the critics experience the venue.

“Every restaurant opening is tough but a lesson is, ‘Don’t let the critics come in the first week’. How can you deliver a product in the first week to the best possible standard? We’re not machines, it’s all human beings,” he said.

“Guests come at the same time and then they wait half an hour for starter. That’s the way it is. But three or four weeks down the road, everything is much smoother.”

Despite the restaurant’s popularity, he said it’s too early to plan another one.

“I think it’s very unique to the Shard,” Becker said. “If there’s another building in a European city where you have similar aspects coming together, maybe there’s an opportunity.”

In the meantime, he’s working on planting another Roka in Aldwych in central London in September after opening one in February in the up-market Mayfair district.

He is also taking Zuma to New York and Abu Dhabi as he enjoys launching new venues, which he compares to the adrenaline rush he gets from car racing, one of his favourite pastimes.

“Besides cooking, I always love the aspect of understanding how (business) all functions and works together,” he said.

“When you expand you cannot do everything yourself anymore and naturally you have to look after the business aspect, probably more than the other aspects if you have the right people doing the other things. Then you grow more into that field. But the balance has to be right.”

With 14 restaurants under his belt by the end of year, he is also determined to keep the quality and experience of his restaurants as high as possible.

“The bottom line is, when you go to a restaurant you want to have a good time.”

This interview was first featured in Reuters on 17th June 2014. 

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Hawthorn – hawthorn tea with chili, mandarin orange sorbet and lemon grass meringue

The desserts are just as playful, with “beans on toast” turning out to be a delicate butter toast panna cotta, red bean foam, soy bean ice cream, chocolate coffee beans and edamame.  The style and theatre of it all is amazing, we have to say – but with a £80 price tag per person, we wouldn’t have expected anything less for such fine dining that’s guaranteed to leave you mind-blown by the end. For more info, visit: www.bolondonrestaurant.com. 

See more pics from our experience below:

White garden – spring onion, avocado and lime mousse, morel mushroom crumbs, dehydrated Enoki and ginger powder

Bed and Breakfast

Cloud – cured mackerel, compressed cucumber, black sesame, “Chinkiang” vinegar and mist of rose

Steak and Kidney – steamed steak and kidney dumplng with smoked herring roe

Three tomatoes – Braised tomato in Chinese glutinous rice vinegar, cherry tomato baked in Chinese filo with Chinese olive tapenade, tomato marshmallow and green onion oil

Toad in the hole

Pigeon – with shittake mushroom cake, wild garlic and Chinese almonds

Beans on toast

Coconut – palm sugar brulee, sour Marello cherry compote, coconut milk

Petit dim sum

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Throughout the night, we spot waiters dressed as teachers,  order drinks from menus printed on ruled paper, watch classical “assembly” performances and  notice other wry references to those wonder years – yet the school setting is a minor novelty. The “dinner”, for instance,  is a fancy four courser featuring modest yet delicious dishes like salmon tartare and beetroot, (the starter) and chicken with elderberry glaze served with squash puree, kale and sorrell (the main).  Even the green apple sorbet ice-pop cleanser was a worthy prelude to the  chocolate brownie and plantain ice-cream that finished off the meal – so on the food front, School Dinners was delightful.

The entertainment had its highlights too.  Run Dem Crew’s Charlie Dark was a brilliantly sharp host,  prepping the stage for engaging performances from guests such as poet Mark Grist and singer-songwriter Eska.  However, ‘Bad Pharma’ author Ben Goldacre’s rapid fire monologue on the subject of drug trials might have been 10 minutes longer than necessary, while Sophie Heawood’s celebrity interview anecdotes – as funny as they were –  might have worked better at a dinner party for likeminded peers. Still,  all this is forgivable for a debut event which is not only a great concept, but with a few tweaks, might be in line to becoming the next best night in the capital.

The next School Dinners takes place on November 30th.  For more info, visit: www.schooldinners.info

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Coming from a long history of chefs and restaurateurs – including his famous father of the same name – Mr Michel Junior has evidently always had both a love of food and business running through his veins.

That’s why in recent years he’s opened two more in London under the family name serving the French haute cuisine he is synonymous with.

I was recently at one of these restaurants – Roux at Parliament Square – for a visit to its brand new bar, Roux at the Pembury. It was a night of Ron Zacapa® infused cocktails created ‘off menu’ by the bar’s über skilled manager, Abdulai Kpekawa. Up for grabs were the ‘Zacapa Cerveza’ with lime, beer, honey syrup and a malt and nutmeg foam and the ‘Mayan Martini’, featuring Zacapa, gewürztraminer wine and orange, not to mention a variety of sophisticated little treats modeled on the dishes served downstairs.

With beautiful leather armchairs and bookcases galore, the bar has the feel of a sophisticated gentleman’s club or a private smoking room in the TV series Mad Men (though naturally enough, without the smoke). However, the secret here is the prices are really not what you’d expect. The snacks and light dishes are priced between £5 and £15 and the cost of drinks is not astronomical, considering the well-to-do surroundings. No doubt there’s definitely the option to spend a small fortune here if you want, but equally you could happily while away an hour or two with a couple of glasses of the house wine and some good company – provided you arrive looking the part.

If you’re after a spot to impress an out-of-towner after a touristy trip to the Southbank or Big Ben, then this could quite possibly be it. It’s tranquil, sophisticated and elegant – not entirely unlike the man himself. (Words: Aoife Moriarty, Photo: Paul Winch-Furness / www.paulwf.co.uk) 

For more info, visit www.rouxatparliamentsquare.co.uk

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The first two stylish courses are kinda “ooh la la” – and not just because the lady who serves us looks like Lady Gaga, either. There’s a creamy risotto for starters, followed by a tender loin of beef served with a potato cake, and a decoration of mushy peas and greens. In between courses, we’re given performances from the legendary Crazy Horse Paris dancers – and if you look beyond the frequent of display of T&A, these women are remarkable. The avant-garde collective have celebrity fans in Kanye West, Beyonce and Sting, and such is their appeal, the 3rd course – an okay-ish frozen-cream something – is practically ignored by everyone in the house. The contortionist is something else (wow); the upside-down leg display, clever. And although my inner-conservative wants to start hissing at the excited men who’ve suddenly crowded my perfect-view table once things border on erotic, it’s hard to deny this is creative cabaret – and they’ll be at the Club until June 26th. Otherwise, expect a wild array of events and fine dining, determined to whip you out of your comfort zone (!) (Words: Matilda Egere-Cooper)

Dinner is usually £45, but £69.50 for a three-course meal and The Crazy Horse cabaret. For more info visit www.supperclub.com.

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They actually do food here too – and ever since restauranteur Mourad Mazouz opened Sketch’s doors to the London glitterati 9 years ago, it’s been catering for us vegetarians and meat eaters alike with creative and occasionally palate challenging cuisine. I opted for the Spring starter that consisted of asparagus, fresh peas, and an unusually icey poached egg in the centre – accompanied with a side of sorrel sorbet (bonkers- but good). Next up was Udon and Tofu in a Miso broth, a classy complex dish which sounded a bit dull on paper but the liquer was quite something, hitting perfect notes of citrus and spice.

My fellow diner went for Lobster Bisque and halibut main (cooked to perfection). The dessert consisted of chocolate gateaux and sketch lemon. A little disappointing, particularly since the head chef is Pierre Gagnaire, (and we know the French are usually so good at puds). It’s not cheap, coming in at approximately £120 for two (3 courses and a bottle of wine). But you’re paying for more than the top end brasserie food. The atmosphere and surroundings are relaxed and quite friendly, there’s electronic music pumping in the background and a 360 degree video art installation playing around the dizzy heights of the dining room. There is also hand painted chairs by Julie Verhoeven. And lets not forget, those toilets as well. This is experience dining and the experience, as it happens, is quite good. (Words: Laura Thornley)

Price: £££££

For more information, visit www.sketch.uk.com

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