The Square

This was our first visit to The Square having seen Philip Howard on Saturday Kitchen; we were not disappointed. We were booked in for an early dinner; to start we had langoustines and smoked venison tartare, both were excellent, the langoustines in particular is a signature dish and was sublime; followed by Salmon and saddle of Hare, both were good but the Hare was exceptional. To follow we sampled the extensive cheese board and the banana souffle with rum and raisin ice cream both were excellent. Throughout the service was attentive, what you'd expect from a 2 MS restaurant, and the sommelier very helpful. Our only [minor] criticism was that we were slightly rushed, with starters served before we'd finished our canapés, but overall we had a really special gastronomic experience; we will be back.

Faultless.

Once again The Square exceeded expectation. Stunning dishes and delighted both diners. Wine list, as ever, amazing and advice given for wine choice matched the result – amazing!

What a huge disappointment. Great service, and delicious amuse bouche, but shocking a la carte dishes. Starters of langoustine and the signature dish of chicken wings with vacherin were bland. The chicken wing skins were pale and fatty – particularly unpleasant when combined with the rich cheese. A main of turbot and dessert of banana souffle were equally tasteless. The opposite was true of ox cheek with smoked onions and mash which was so overpoweringly rich we both felt pretty ill after a couple of mouthfuls. It was also rather unbalanced with a huge amount of mashed potato. And a dessert of pear with macaroon and ice-cream could only be described as disgusting due to an intense vinegary flavour. So flavours were either bland or over-bearing, and many of the dishes were virtually monochrome – a sea of pale colours, or caramel, or brown, unlike the much prettier and tastier freebies that arrived between courses and after the meal.

Our sommelier, despite being very attentive and helpful recommended an unpleasantly sweet viognier for our starters, she was however on the mark with a decent pinot noir for mains.

The bread was lovely, as were all of the amuse bouche but the quality of the rest of our meal was certainly not what you would expect of a restaurant with one, let alone two, michelin stars. In our experience, you're likely to experience a better balance of flavours and more attractive plates of food in a gastropub.

In my teens, my father introduced me to fine dining with dinner at the Square and what an introduction it was! Fifteen or so years later, I went back to see if the reality lived up to my memories and I was not disappointed. The Square has certainly not lost its touch and anyone who wants to see how fine dining should be done, should visit the Square. You simply cannot fault this restaurant on any aspect; the food is sublime, the service phenomenal and the atmosphere is smart, sophisticated and educated without an iota of pretension. My only request to Mr Howard would be to bring back the square plates and cuttlery; quirky, I know but a highlight from my childhood memories!

We went to the Square a couple of weeks ago on a Thursday evening. First impressions were of a nice looking restaurant, but very corporate in terms of clientele and the acoustics make for a very loud ambience.

What I personally love about the poshy type of restaurants is all the extra courses that are thrown into the meal, transforming a three course A La carte dinner into an extra special tasting menu experience. In this respect the Square really hit the spot, with a couple of pre-starters, a pre-desert and petit fours.

The meal itself, whilst good was not that memorable as I am having to revert to their web site as an aide-memoire for what I had. Starter was a crab lasagne, which was very nice however. Main was a… actually I can’t remember even looking at the crib sheet, so that probably says it all. My dinner companions went for the wagyu beef which was very pleasant though. But who could forget the dessert, warm fondant with 100’s & 1000’s; a perfectly cooked fondant with extra sauce on top and crispy and tasty sprinkles, don’t worry the 100’s and 1000’s were a home made concoction rather than those found on the end of a Fab lolly!

Service was in keeping with the overall experience, good but not amazing. Service between courses dragged a little and we had to have our petit fours as a carry out as we had to get back to our baby sitter. The other gripe about service was when the waiter poured sparkling water into my glass of still, an easy mistake, but the problem was when he raced off saying he was going to get me a fresh glass, well I’m still waiting for him to come back with it.

The bill for the 3 of us was £430 of which about £150 was drinks and the 3 course menu priced at £90 per head including the service charge.

My over all impression, a pleasant experience but not amazing, worthy of two stars probably not in my opinion, but certainly worth one.

The Square is elegant, the service and the food are flawless, and it should be on every foodies list to visit at least once.

I've been several times and am constantly wondering why I don't eat here all the time – it has that effect of slipping from your memory. I think this is really down the the atmosphere in the restaurant – it feels a little too brightly lit, the clientele tends to include a high proportion of ‘suits’ too.

Having said that, if you can ignore those around you, the cooking is absolutely faultless, if a little unchallenging.

I am very hard pressed to fault The Square. From the moment we entered the staff were a complete delight and this continued throughout the evening. They were friendly but not intrusive, knowledgeable but not arrogant. Every mouthful of food was simply exquisite and the wine pairing- utter perfection. The hushed tones and excited murmurings of the evening set a wonderful atmosphere. I would quite happily recommend The Square to the most captious gastronomers.

Gastronomic perfection. Every mouthful was utterly delicious, and the sommelier's advice gave us the perfect accompaniment. Not cheap but well worth every penny.

AWFUL. I won't write a bite-by-bite analyis of the meal, as it wasn't memorable enough. All I will say is that my husband and I have eaten in many two michelin star restaurants and neither of us can understand why/how this restaurant achieved the accolade. If you compare The Square to places such as Le Gavroche and Gidleigh Park it is amazing that they are supposedly of the same standard: they're not. The ambience at The Square is bright and noisy, like a Pizza Express. The food was worse than many restaurants without Michelin stars we've been to, and the service was terrible. It took two of us four hours to get through a three course meal on a Friday night, the service was that slow. In the end we went to the desk to pay the bill because we were so bored of waiting to pay. They didn't even ask us if everything had been alright; I guess they were scared of the answer! So, if you're looking for somewhere dark and romantic with impeccable food and flawless service, then please, please go to Le Gavroche instead.

Possibly one of the most indulgent and exquisite meals I've ever had in London. The Square delivers perfect morsels of beautifully crafted ingredients, dish after dish after dish.

Our party opted for the tasting menu which in itself was a mouthwatering list of delicious sounding combinations all bound together. The signature dorset crab with shellfish cappuccino and champagne foam was delightful and left you wanting more, equally enticing was the dish of langoustine tails, parmesan gnocchi and truffle and potato emulsion which followed at a perfect pace. There were a few exceptions which stood in the way of a 10/10 score which included a bland fillet of halibut and an overly sweetened raspberry souffle, but these were minor irritations in the grand scheme of things.

Additionally, the entire meal was delivered with observant professionalism beyond that of any other restaurant I've ever had the pleasure of visiting, which made the whole experience a right royal treat. At £100 for 10 dishes I''d say its a win win situation for gut and wallet alike!

We went to the Square with great expectation having read great reviews of this restaurant. Unfortunately it was one of my our most disappointing restaurant.
experiences I have had. we had the tasting menu and although some dishes were very good, the crab lasagne came with big pieces of crab shell in them (3 out of 6 of the dishes)
Big enough to be a real danger. The halibut was overcooked and dry and the lamb was chewy and tasteless. There are much better restaurants in London at this price so do not waste your money going to the square. To top it off they charged for water on our bill that we did not have.

i have been a few times now and i find the square is not consistent, sometmes its great othertimes very dissapointed, portions are on the small side, i had the Sauté of Scottish Langoustine only got 2!! thats pretty poor for the money they charging. deserts are not good at all, pretty boring really. pls put some chocolate on the menu!! service is good and has nice atmosphere, but the deserts just put a downer on the rest of the meal.

One of my favourite restaurants in town. The set lunch is probably the best value for money lunch anywhere, the food is never anything less than sensational, the service a little formal and old school, though this is one of the reasons why The Square feels a little lacking in atmosphere. Since Jacques (the maitre d’) left, front of house has slightly lost its way, but I am sure that will improve. Phillip Howard is a thoroughly charming man who should, in my humble opinion, try and find the time to come out and say hello more often to his customers; his food is spectacularly good and unlike many chefs Phillip doesn't carry an ego the size of a small planet.

18/01/09

Having received a Xmas card from Phillip and his staff – old fashioned but a nice touch – I felt it was important to show my face. Somebody else was paying, which always makes the food taste better. The set lunch has got even better: the kedgeree starter was out of this world, with large flakes of beautifully smoked fish. The cheese board remains solid, although I was disappointed that there was neither a Vacherin or a Reblochon.

20/10/09

It just gets better and better! My good friend Mr Jones thinks its a bit old and stuffy and he has a point, at lunch time it is the canteen for the mature end of the property market, but the food is sublime! If there is a better value set lunch on London then let me know.

I returned to may favourite restaurant in London but came away feeling rather let down. My guest and I arrived ten minutes early for 12 o'clock lunch booking to be told (in slightly less than charming tones) that tables were still being set. Once we were seated the amuse bouche arrived, was placed on the table, but no explanation was given as to its origins. Nonetheless it was very good. We chose from the well priced set lunch menu. Unfortunately the beef in my first course salad while perfectly cooked was rather chewy. For my main course I chose halibut which was accompanied by a very creamy sauce which was too rich and bland.
On my previous visits to the Square I have been so impressed with the standard of cooking and the depth of flavour of the food that I was very disappointed on this occasion.

I hope this was a one off and that normal service will be resumed next time.

Wow, just wow. The Square really does tick all the right boxes. From the fabulous canapes to start with all the way through to the puds, I don’t think there was a thing they could improve on with the food. The black rice crisps with taramasalata as a canape was a winning combination. I will never go back to the glaring pink stuff that we normally get (and, by the way, can I please have that recipe???). The other 3 canapes were also excellent, and this was followed by an amuse bouche of mushroom with a pumpkin veloute (well, I think that’s what the waiter said), which was delicious. Then onto the menu proper !

All of us had the lasagne of dorset crab, and I fully understand why this is one of the dishes that they are renowned for. Seriously, if I’d had that plate at home I would’ve picked it up and licked it clean it was that good. We did all contemplate doing so anyway ! My husband and I had the grouse as a main. He loves game, I’m not a convert but decided that if ever I was going to try it, this should be the restaurant to do so. Needless to say, I might give it a bit more of a try in future. The beef also looked excellent. This was followed up by a pre-dessert of tiny beignets on a shot glass of something. Really, by this time I’d stopped listening to the descriptions the waiter was trying to tell me, far to busy with the spoon, ready to dive in……

Onto the dessert – again, hubby and I both had the same the – chocolate caramel pavé with chocolate sorbet, rock salt, olive oil and espresso. (I was beginning to suspect by this time that we were both ordering the same dishes so we didn’t have to share). Whilst I couldn’t taste the olive oil in the dessert, maybe it was one of those things that you would have missed if it wasn’t there. However, the salt worked really well with the chocolate and caramel. Yum.

About the only slight hitch for the evening was the service. They were obviously training a brand new member of staff, who did make a couple of small errors. However, this was very quickly rectified along with profuse apologies. I’ll forgive them that.

The best indication of how good this was ? 2 of our party are going back again this week for the tasting menu. Sadly, I’m not invited to that one !

My husband rates this the best restaurant in London, I have to agree. I have been 3 times lately, taking advantage of the stunning value set menu. The service is fabulous warm and helpful, the food amazing. I think it is represents the best value for money. The table are well spaced out and huge which I love. Its a real treat to have this establishment in the city that I live in, if you have nt been yet I think you ought.

Had lunch recently on their set menu. Fantastic value, pièce de résistance was the dessert – passion fruit souffle with quenelle of lime sorbet inserted at the table my mouth is watering just remembering it! Service hits just the right level attentive but friendly and not too formal. Wine list heads for the sky, however asked the sommelier for a recommendation for under £50, she gave a couple of options and the one we chose was the best pinot noir I've tasted in a long time.

One of the best restaurants in London in my opinion. Food is fantastic, Service is impeccable. The staff are incredibly attentive without being over-bearing.

The small touches make this place one of my favorites. Ordering an additional course to share, and it coming on two plate already, the leg of lamb coming out before being carved make the service feel special.

Also found the service to be adapted per table, making us more relaxed as it was a personal dinner, without the level of service dropping. Remembering my wife's birthday and having a cake ready was also an unexpected surprise.

This place is fabulous – went as a party of 3 and we had the tasting menu and chose to have the accompanying wines.

Everything about the meal was great, balanced, well presented and the wines were carefully selected and absolute compliments to the food.

The wine waiter was slightly eccentric and had an outrageous French accent a la Clouseau but that added to the event really.

Not cheap but for this quality you wouldn't expect that – for me, amongst the best I have ever been to.

Excellent, some of the best food in Europe. Not with standing that the sommelier thought Veneto wines were from the south of Italy!

My wife and I used to be regulars at The Square in its former location in St James. However, when it moved, it lost a certain humanity, not to mention gaining a few pounds, and we never felt sufficiently at ease to include it among our regulars. The last time we went was probably a year ago – I only recognised one of the staff and none of them recognised us.

However, when we arrived, precisely on time (it was Sunday and the traffic was light), we were greeted in a friendly manner by the receptionist. This was the friendliest of any that we came into contact with, the rest being correct (mainly) but distant. One table containing two young(ish) casually dressed men attracted much more attentive and friendly service to the extent that I suspect those two men were members of staff.

My wife ordered her usual, which came without any fuss. I had a glass of German riesling (£9) and a bottle of sparkling water. The riesling was pleasant but a somewhat ungenerous glass. I followed that with a bottle of Cornas Reynard 1996 at £95 – pleasant, as it should be.

We were each presented with a wooden block bearing canapés, which were nice enough, but not memorable.

Not being a lover of fish, I had very little choice of starter – one vegetarian option, some fried fois gras or a parfait of fois gras and chicken livers. The vegetarian option looked boring, as it often does, and so, although I am attempting to cut down on fois gras, I had the parfait. This came in three parts: a Kilner jar bearing an inch or so of parfait; a medium size plate bearing a salad; and a couple of slices of toasted Poilane bread. The salad had some Jerusalem artichokes, pickled onions and several sweet dollops, which, once I had established what they were, I left. My wife was afraid the onions would wreck the wine, but they were so lightly pickled and so mild that they did not. The parfait was a sloppy deep beige mixture coated on top with salted peanut crisp, which added a contrast in texture but little else. However, the parfait was superb, almost as good as the similar stuff they serve at Chapter 1.

My wife had the scallops, which were ……….scallops. Nothing more to say.

We chose to share the leg of lamb. We were not asked how we wanted it cooked, and it came medium rare, which suited me well. The entire leg (a rather small one, but plenty for two) was brought to the table and shown to us, whereupon it was taken away and did not reappear for several minutes, when it came served up and plated.. It was accompanied by little pots of potato dauphinoise, which was good but not exceptional. The lamb was delicious.

My wife asked for a fruit salad as dessert, and this presented no problems. I chose a cocoa crème brûlée which was quite pleasant.

All in all, the food was good, as it should be.

The wine service was irritating. The decanter was placed on the far side of the table, out of reach of me or my wife. Several times, my glass was allowed to get empty or nearly so. Once, it was refilled by someone I took to be the restaurant manager in as brusque a fashion as I have ever seen. Once, when I was lifting some food to my mouth a hand appeared a few inches in front of may face as the sommelier poured the wine – he did a similar trick once when I had a glass of water to my lips – that is inexcusable.

The bill, including service at 12.5%, came to £300.66. I am disinclined to return.