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Category: Restaurants [Edit]
Claridge's HotelBond Street (Central, Jubilee)
Oxford Circus (Bakerloo, Central, Victoria)
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If you are a foodie, you sort of have to experience Gordon Ramsay's fare while in the UK, and Claridge's is about as high end as it gets.
The food is indeed exquisite. My wife ordered al a carte . . pork belly appetizer, roasted duck for the entree, chocolate with pear and vanilla sorbet for dessert. I decided that the best way to enjoy the experience was to do the 6-course tasting menu. Each course was delicious, and provided a nice progression . . didn't even know there was such a thing as beetroot ice cream. Everything was seriously good.
The sommelier recommended a very decent wine based on my preferences, which was ironically the cheapest of the reds sold by the glass.
The service was generally impeccable. The maitre d' and our waiter had both spent time in the states, and were very personable. My only criticism is that the sommelier wasn't attentive to my empty wine glass . . maybe that is a Brit thing, as I've found that wait staff generally seems not to follow up like they do at home.
And the sommelier wasn't the most proficient at English, noting that we wanted to split a glass of port, but instead each got our own full glass. Not that big a deal, since we got what we paid for, but not necessarily what we asked for. Be aware that most wait staff in London are not native Brits, and many don't exactly speak (or understand) the King's English.
Ramsay is a tyrant on TV, but after sampling his cuisine, I supposed he is entitled. Surprising based on other reviews, we got a reservation just a day in advance, which is probably one of the benefits of traveling during the off-season. Bottom line . . awesome food and service, and prices to match.
I was very excited to eat at Gordon Ramsays, and made a reservation as soon as the plan ticket to London was booked. We had the set lunch menu, which was great. However, if you do not have hours to lounge around for lunch, this is not the spot for you.
We waited about 30-45 minutes in between each course, and after we were through our bill failed to show up for another 30 minutes.
Aside from this the staff was overly attentive, and the food was cooked well. Everything from the bread to the chocolates at the end of the meal was seasoned well. The raspberry panna cotta was to die for! and a perfect ending to our meal.
Overall, I would love to come back and try the 6-course meal, I just need to schedule enough time!
Went for lunch and really enjoyed it. Didn't have time to sit around, so it was a little hurried and wasn't wearing a coat (I don't think that I own a coat), which is recommended, but not required. In spite of all of this stuffiness, my experience was quite good. The waitstaff was great - very attentive.
They had 3 prix fixe menus offered, it didn't appear that you could order off the menu. Went with the waitstaff's recommendation and finished with a delicious cheese plate.
For a being the only 3 Michelan Star resturaunt in London, this lives up to it's quality. Even though we went for lunch, it's still expensive (100 pounds = $160 USD)
Gordon Ramsey, although you are nuts on "Hell's Kitchen," it boils down to perfect execution and details...this was the meal of my life!
This was set to be a pre-fix 3 course menu, it ended up being up to 6 (love it!)
Bread: Black olive bread w/ home-made whipped butter
Pre-appetizer: Duck wonton with butternut squash soup
Appetizer: Liver pate with bone marrow and black truffle
Entree: Stewed Ox cheek (sizable portion and utterly British!)
Dessert: Expresso ice-cream encased in a cubed dark chocolate shell
Post- Dessert: Silver Truffle Tree
Post-Post Dessert: White chocolate in liquid ice
Service is very attentative, bread selection amazing....and yes, you need to reserve (we made our reservations two weeks ahead while we were in the US and once we landed from Heathrow, went straight there)
Nearly had the opportunity to go to his main restaurant, but GR @ Claridge's seemed a pretty good backup to get a taste of what the whole Ramsay experience is like. Claridge's is the most famous of his offshoot places in London, and proudly bears his name.
The interior looked a bit too high-class for my taste, although service wise, they did a great job at keeping tabs on everything. Perhaps a bit too much, though. It felt like there were eyes on us at all times from the wait staff, which makes actual relaxation a bit more difficult.
For a shot of the dining room - http://www.flickr.com/...
Decided to go with multi-courses instead of the tasting menu, due to the heaviness of seafood items in the tasting menu.
First course, butternut squash soup w/ truffles. Good, but pretty laughably small portion size, and wasn't amazing, either from a taste or texture side. Good, but reliant on the truffles for hits of flavour.
For a shot of this course - http://www.flickr.com/...
Second course, pork belly and scallop. Nicely done scallop, but the pork belly was too well done on the outside, leading to a dry, tough crust. Due to this, was difficult. Dish did have a flat, counted piece of pork as a side, which looked like a little bacon rainbow. +1 style points.
Intermission. Hey, they make a pretty good Old Fashioned. I indulged x2.
Dessert. Basil flavored custard and ice cream with blackberries. BASIL flavored. Surprisingly, not too bad, even with the heavy basil influence. Nice, but not a "wow" dessert. Solid, tasty, but not extremely satisfying. Hey, did did throw in some madelines and pate de fruit and various other sweet things, so overall worked out fine. Decent espresso, too.
The bill through. Dang. Sadly, not worth it in the end, although it is a good experience to have under one's belt.
One of the first things that was done in preparation for my trip to London, was to make a reservation to eat at one of Gordon Ramsay's restaurants. It sounds like a very touristy thing to do, I know, but after watching Hell's Kitchen a couple of times on Fox (or Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares on BBC America) I had to see what all the hype was about.
My friend Stephanie and I read the set menu probably a dozen times before we went to Claridge's for lunch and they had apparently changed the menu before we got there so now there was a whole new selection to pick from.
The first thing that got my attention was the service. The place ran like clockwork. Everyone was dressed immaculately and there seemed to be at least 4 or 5 people who came by our table to provide us with different things and take different orders, yet we still knew who our actual waiter was since he checked on us quite frequently. I couldn't have possibly wanted anything for more than half a second and someone was there to take care of it. Spectacular service.
I fully admit, I expected spectacular food and I'm happy to report that I wasn't disappointed. I ordered a chicken dish for my main course and it was the most amazing thing I have ever put in my mouth. Well it was the most amazing thing I had ever put in my mouth... until dessert came.
For dessert, I ordered the honey creme brulee on a hazelnut cookie with a scoop of raspberry sorbet on top. Never in my life could I have imagined that anything could taste so delicious. It seemed like an odd combination but I figured that after the appetizer and main (and a salad that was "compliments of the chef") that the guy knew his stuff. He does. I have dreams about that dessert -- surely that's not healthy.
Everyone says that Gordon Ramsay is kind of... well, kind of a jerk. What I've seen of him on TV doesn't really dispute that but if the food I made tasted that delicious, I wouldn't accept anything less either.
Listed in: Places that I just adore!, LONDON!
I was so disappointed! The food definitely did not live up to my expectations. Though the restaurant is beautiful, the tables are set too close to each other for my taste and the restaurant was too loud for a fine dining, 1-Michelin-star restaurant.
Food-- The dishes were consistently too salty for my taste. The scallop with corn, langoustine risotto, and the rabbit lasagne were all just OK -- not the best things I have eaten. The entrees, lamb and veal dishes were the worst lamb/veal dishes I have ever tried. The dishes just didnt work-- lacked balance and most importantly soul. My food tasted like it was just thrown together and the chef just didn't care how he prepared the dish.
Though, it's Gordon Ramsay's restaurant and despite the beautiful decor of the restaurant, I will not recommend this place.
1 star for the decor, 1 star for the 1/2 friendly wait staff.
I had the good fortune to have a friend who was staying at Claridges and invited us to dinner. And it was QUITE the dinner!.. A 4.5 hour long dinner that was leisurely and filled with delicious courses and good booze, of course.
Be warned, men are required to wear a suit jacket to dine here... luckily for us poor people of the world, H&M exists everywhere in London so we ran over, picked up a shirt and tie to go with the Hot Topic blazer M had brought on the trip... and he looked snazzy!!
We started off the evening in the Fumoir Bar in Claridges - this is a MUST. Apparently this was Winston Churchill's fave place to get liquored up ... can't say I blamed him, really quite a stunning art deco vibe and classy all-around..
After cocktails, the 3 of us ventured into GR and were seated at a table large enough for 6 people... a little odd but most of the seating setup were large round tables... no booths that i remember.
We started off with the chefs menu, i believe it was 6 or 7 courses.. I have to say i enjoyed every course. there was a tiny little soup of watercress as one of the starters and it was really really good... you wouldn't think so but it was....
The standouts to me were the quail and the scallops. I also enjoyed the fish course.. so good.. the sauce was amazing...
Our sommelier was AMAZING... funnily enough we only drank champagne but this guy, he knew his champagne!
Great guy, i wanted to take him on the rest of our trip with us!!!
The main annoying thing i have to remark about is that my gracious host wanted to order a side dish of potatoes dauphinoise to go along with the diner. Our waiter said NO you cannot have that. We thought he was kidding and said Haha, no really can you please put in an order?
His reply was you have to order a $40 main course to get a side dish.. Okay, we obviously had already ordered very expensive meals and were pouring champagne down our throats at rapid speed AND our host was staying in the freaken hotel! Cant you give him a damn small side of potatoes and not charge him $40???
The waiter huffed away and i caught they eye of a girl refilling drinks and explained our dilemma. She must've have recognized our host as she said NO PROBLEM and then went to tell the maitre'd to bring us the side... hehe... although by the end of our very filling meal we then realized they never brought it!
After many delicious desserts and the cart of cheese which our host picked the cream of the crop from, friends joined us for coffee and to eat the scraps of our dessert.. Around midnight our waiter came to offer a tour of the kitchen.. we politely declined as we thought it could be a setup to get hit over the head with a blackjack or something!
Anyways, the desserts were awesome and overall, the meal a huge hit. Would i go back there? Well, I don't know.. It was a perfect evening, the food great, drinks great and company was spot on... I'm glad to have been there but I think I'd try somewhere different before returning to the scene of the crime... next on my review list... NOBU in Berkeley Square, stayed tuned!
I never eat at restaurants of this caliber (or rather, I can't afford to), but being a big fan of Gordon Ramsay's TV shows, I knew I had to eat at one of his London restaurants while I was in the city to make the most out of my trip. My girlfriend called about a month in advance and all we could get was a 2:45 lunch reservation, which goes to show you how popular this place is.
In fine dining, service is what seperates the best from the rest and Claridge's exceeds every expectation I could ever have from servers at a restaurant. To say that they are punctual would be an understatement; I can recall several instance where I looked up to scan the room for our waiter, only to find him already approaching with whatever it was that I wanted. They obviously take pride in their work and they treat you as respected guests at their establishment, which really sets apart the typical dining experience where the customers are just streams of revenue flowing in and out.
Of course a restaurant like this can't float on service alone; the quality of the food has to be outstanding as well, considering the stratospheric prices on the menu. Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's will not disappoint here either, but I will be honest and confess that the seabass my girlfriend ordered was much better than the lamb that I had picked. The menu is everchanging and to get the most out of your dining experience, I would suggest asking the waiter for his recommendations. I was slightly disappointed that they didn't serve crabcakes during lunch as that is the de facto Gordon Ramsay appetizer, but at least I was able to order some very delicious and rich risotto.
Overall, the 3-hour lunch was more of an experience than just a meal. The excellent service and top-quality food in a beautiful location makes it worth every penny (although it's not something I can induldge daily). And to top it off, I have admit that I felt a bit elite being the youngest people there by at least a decade. If you are a traveler bound for London and you have the means, I'd highly recommend trying this place just to see what the fuss is about.
I was so fortunate to get a reservation at a Gordon Ramsay restaurant. I originally wanted the one on Royal Hospital Rd, but it was completely booked. I didn't know that I needed to make a reservation TWO months in advance. However, I was extremely delighted in their communication with me via email (Valeria was her name) and accomodating us at the Claridge's location. They even called me in California from London to confirm my reservation! And let me tell you, I wouldn't have traded my experience for any other.
My husband and I were the first guests to arrive that evening. At first, it was awkward because all eyes were on us. I thought to myself, we're just gonna eat and run and this place won't even get packed 'til later at night when we're already gone... boy was I wrong! Apparently, it was a good thing we got an early reservation (6pm) cuz it was a 4hr dining experience. At one point, I even joked with my husband, "wouldn't it be great if we could see the kitchen?! "
We decided to go with the Prix Fixe Menu. I can't remember anything I ate, but it was DELISH! The staff was extremely attentive and courteous. The brits are such welcoming people. Almost every person that stopped by our table chatted with us, from the busboy to the restaurant manager. And you can tell they were genuine, not like LA/OC people who just want a fat tip later.
When we were finished with our meal, we were about to ask for our bill. The manager actually came over to us and asked if we were in a hurry to leave. I thought that was strange and of course we had no where to go, besides back to our hotel. The manager then asked if we would like to TOUR the kitchen! OMG! I was like, YA! Are you kidding?!
He lead us to the back. It was such a clean kitchen too! No one yelling or screaming or throwing stuff across the room. Well, Gordon wasn't actually there (he was busy filming in LA, of course). We also saw the little alcove (Chef's Table) where a group of four were. The manager took a picture for us and it's one of my favorite from our whole trip. All in all, it was probably the best dining experience I've ever had.
Wow! What a dining experience this place was. I made reservations about a month ago, and the best seating I could get for two during my stay in London was a Sunday at 9:45pm. My party grew to three people and they were able to seat us 15 minutes earlier.
Gordon Ramsay is located off to the right of the Claridge's lobby. Without a doubt, this is a formal restaurant based on the quality of food, the level of service, and the Art Deco-esque setting inside a grand London hotel.
One minor quibble. The restaurant itself doesn't really serve cocktails although they can get you one from the Claridge's Bar. The wine list is huge (and heavy physically), but there is a sommelier at your disposal. My dining companions and I ordered by the glass instead of a bottle. A glass of champagne at the lowest end is £11 and the glass of Pinot Noir I had was £12, if I remember correctly.
You have a choice between a three course menu for £70 and a Menu Prestige with a few more courses (the number which escapes me now). The amuse bouche was a turnip and mushroom soup. I normally don't care for turnips, but this soup was fantastic! For my starter, I had the quail. This was my first time eating quail outside of a Chinese restaurant. What a difference the preparation makes. There was no gamey taste at all. For my main, I had the pork belly served with langoustines. The pork belly was incredible and I just knew, slicing into the perfectly crisp layer of fat, that it would be. This meal was also my first time having langoustines. The best way to describe them are mini-lobster tails.
After the main came the palate cleanser, a blackberry cheescake. This could easily have been a dessert by itself. Speaking of dessert, I had the Valrhona chocolate fondant. The sweetness of the chocolate was perfectly balanced with the tartness of the accompanying passion fruit sorbet.
Just when I felt I had had enough, the runner brought out a plate with some truffles and a mini lemon meringue pie. A great ending to a wonderful meal!
While the website indicates that a jacket is preferred for men, I noticed a table with some diners dressed somewhat casually in sweaters and jeans. With that said, I recommend that you get dressed up and make a night of it, especially if you're a tourist. Afterall, you're in London and dining inside Claridge's!
I have never given a bad review before. And, I just want to say before I start, that I love, scratch that, am infatuated, with Gordon Ramsay. I watch all of his shows, was toying with being a contestant on Hell's Kitchen, and overall, think he is the best chef ever. Which, is the main reason, it pains me to have to write a poor review for this restaurant.
My friends and I decided to go to London for a long weekend. I immediately tried to get a reservation at one of Gordon's restaurants. I found a 7pm spot at Claridges on Sunday, 15 Mar. The reason I gave the review 3 stars instead of 2 (or 1) was because of the food and the Sommelier. Both were EXCELLENT. But, as for the rest of the service, that is what deserves a poor rating.
Everything was fine as we waited before dinner in the lounge for the rest of our party, etc., but as soon as we were seated, things went wrong. One, we were seated right next to the kitchen, which was not a big deal...but, our waiter, who asked us if we have dined with them before, went on to tell us how the restaurant prided themselves on service, etc., he immediately seemed like he was full of himself and I started to get a bad vibe. He turned out to be a real twit.
After looking at the gigantic wine list, we still didn't know what to order for drinks but had a good idea of what we wanted to eat. The waiter tried to talk us all into getting the prix fixe menu like a used car salesman. He actually made us uncomfortable and upset one of our diners. (Mind you, this was her first time to London, and was really looking forward to this dinner and was planning to order a la carte almost a WEEK in advance!) She was really upset into being pressured to not ordering what she wanted to. We had a couple other quirks with another diner's entree choices (he was allergic to seafood) and overall, it really seemed that we were just putting our waiter out.
Saving grace was our Sommelier, he was talkative, friendly and we REALLY enjoyed his choice in the bottle of wine and thought he was very professional and a pleasure.
Then the food came. We didn't see our waiter again. Someone else, who wore a suit instead of uniform, and another secondary waiter, served the rest of our meals. But, the food was wonderful, and exceeded my expectations. Since our waiter was gone, we could relax and enjoy our meals.
Fast forward to after dinner....not sure where the disconnect was, but we waited for an hour for our check. Many tables have come and gone at this point and we really were concerned that no one brought us our tab. We finally asked the Sommelier if he could inquire about the check and after about 15 more minutes it finally came. We were splitting the bill amongst credit cards and I happened to be in the bathroom when it came. I was told that the girl who brought the tab, stood there waiting for me to return and asked my dinner guests "if I knew that I needed to sign this" and "I REALLY need to sign this" and stood there the entire time when I was in the restroom. After waiting over an hour for a check, I'm surprised that someone was so impatient for a signature for the 10 minutes I spent in the loo.
Overall, after spending over $700 USD on dinner, I would have thought we would have been treated a little bit better. I'm very disappointed that my evening was such a bummer. It really upset me that my dining experience as one of Chef Ramsay's restaurants was such an unpleasant experience. Again, the Sommelier and the food quality was a saving grace, if it weren't for them, the restaurant would not have received 2 stars. :(
This place was not more than OK. I can say with certainty that I have had much, much better. An addition to my disappointment is that anyone that has watched TV would know and expect a lot from a chef of such calibre as Gordon Ramsay.
The service, though friendly and helpful, was slow. The ambiance was elegant and tasteful, but that is not what a restaurant is all about (I could say I enjoyed myself more at the Hiramatsu in Paris or a saimin joint in Hawaii). So we get to the food: it was fine. I remember a pork belly, which was actually good if you don't mind the fatty texture. The side was good, too, but aside from this I cannot remember anything too memorable (oh, and there was an excellent appetizer). The dessert was actually very good and innovative, but the overall experience was little more than mediocre. Again, especially for the status of this chef and the price.
If Ramsay had been there, I would most likely have heard him throwing a fit.
The decor was very relaxing, maybe too relaxing as I wanted a nap afterward. We had the tasting menu which was excellent except for the salmon and lobster ravioli. It was more of a Chinese dumpling than a ravioli and all I could taste was the "dumpling-y" flavor and the lemony sauce used. But besides that it was worth the trip and I'm still craving the truffle butter served with the bread.
A culinary experience unlike many others. This is dining at its finest, so prepare yourselves. Expect the meal to be well paced with fresh and creative ingredients, and believe me you will be taken care of. GR will bring a well presented, gourmet meal that is worth every pound-literally and figuratively. You simply prepare yourself for a special occasion, and please do dress and act the part. If you are not celebrating some special occasion, someone sitting right next to you sure is. Every single person on the staff was dressed in suits, so please don't let them outdo you. I do not think there are jacket requirements, but please be a gentleman and again dress the part.
After making our way through the gorgeous lobby of Claridges, we arrived at the host who welcome us and led us to our table with seats right next to each other. It was easily large enough for four people and we took in our beautiful surroundings and settled back for the meal we had looked forward to. Dinner is Prix Fixe, with selection of three courses, or a six course degustation. There were also several amuse bouche between courses and our selection of three courses was more than enough for us. This is gourmet dining at its finest and I had vowed to eat everything that graced our table and that's just what I did. Our first amuse was a potato salad, topped with a poached Quail egg and Parmesan foam, which could not have been more flavorful. We had selected a nice sauvignon blanc from the bible sized wine book which paired nicely with our entire meal. A sommelier will appear if you simply raise your head from the list for questions and you are in capable hands. Our first courses were a lobster and shrimp ravioli in lobster bisque and sea scallops with poached pheasant eggs. The enormous ravioli had more seafood in it than many entrees I've had and absolutely no filler. It swam in a tasty lobster bisque that was pure heaven. My wife enjoyed the scallops, which were also great.
The entrees we selected were the Scottish salmon on lobster mashed and the John Dory filet served with prawns and beets. These again were very large portions that could not have been better prepared or presented. We enjoyed both of them very much. Our dessert amuse was a pineapple cheesecake parfait. We concluded with the apple tartan for two which was served tableside in a nice display. This was delicious as well.
This leads me to the service. Which, as expected, was top notch. Tableside serving of the Wellington and desserts held every guest's attention. Everyone was well dressed, personable, and knowledgeable. More than a few times I called staff over to inquire about what was gracing my plate and I think even the poor guys that seemed to do little more than hold the serving trays knew the answer to my query. That is a nice change from several other nice restaurants that we've been to where simple questions were met with dismissive and clueless shrugs. Clearly GR is on top of every facet of his operation. For this it pains me to have even a minor gripe. Coffee was not included with the meal, which is ridiculous at that price. We also waited a good 30 minutes after finishing our dessert with nothing more than water in front of us before I finally asked one of about the three dozen people on staff if they would like to bring me a check so that I could pay for our meal. I don't know if it is considered rude to ask for the bill or rude to deliver it. I could have done without this standoff, as I expect to pay for my meal. By the time we had finally wrapped up and departed it was close to a three hour experience. They ask that people enjoying coffee and cordials adjourn to their lounge and I don't think that it is too much to expect equal respect of our time as well.
An unrivaled experience. Make reservations as far out as possible (two months for a weekend) and enjoy the evening with someone special. Your meal certainly will be!
Listed in: The Best, Jerry. The Best., London calling, Top Chef Stalker
At around 200 quid/person, I had high expectations for this dinner. Unfortunately, I was really underwhelmed with the dinner. We got the tasting menu. Everything was as advertised, and the service was decent but not good, but I was really disappointed that the food was just not good. Maybe I am spoiled after sampling many of the fancy dining in New York, but there was just not anything interesting or delicious and some of the meat actually seemed overcooked. It was overall a nice experience, but not worth the pricetag. If I am gonna put on a suit to go to a restaurant, I expect more.
Had the tasting menu at Claridge's this summer and loved every dish - starting with consomme and ending with the chocolate desert. I have to take a different position with another reviewer who stated that he might have been spoiled by fine dining in NYC - as someone who have dined at many of new york's top restaurants - I find that Claridges can easily hold its own. We had a late reservation and we were the last ones out of the place - but we felt comfortable there - just enjoying the ambiance and relaxing. It is a restaurant well worth trying.
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