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Galvin Bistrot de Luxe

Address:	66 Baker Street W1U 7DH
Tel	020 7935 4007
Website:	Visit Galvin Bistrot de Luxe website
Price: £38.00	Wine: £14.00	Champagne: £40.00
Opening Hours:	Mon-Sat 12N-2.30pm 6.30-11pm Sun 12N-3pm 6.30-10.30pm

Square Meal review of Galvin Bistrot de Luxe:

There are signs that Galvin is becoming a victim of its own success. Now in its third year, the Baker Street restaurant continues to draw huge praise for its ‘exceptionally well-executed’ French food served at reasonable prices. But reports that staff sometimes struggle to cope with the volume of diners won’t go away. Comments such as ‘meals consistently let down by poor service’ & ‘inefficient & inattentive staff’ are too frequent to be dismissed, although there are many visitors who have encountered a ‘smooth & professional’ experience. Still, that’s where the criticism ends: the dining room, heavy on polished wood panels & white linen, is consistently packed & the menu of bistro favourites never less than beautifully cooked. Think cleanly flavoured marinated tuna with a salad of quails’ eggs, rustically flavoured pork cutlet with prunes & pommes mousseline, & perfectly light & fluffy strawberry souffle.

Wine List: This list follows the menu’s good-value French ethos, with masses of choice under £30 & a particularly strong showing from the Loire & the south. There’s also a small but attractively priced collection of ‘de-luxe’ wines if you want to splash out. Fifteen-plus wines by the glass & ‘pot’ (just under two-thirds of a bottle) complete an excellent offering. Best Buy White 2005 Chateau Bouscassé, Pacherenc Sec, France, £23. Best Buy Red 2005 Anjou Rouge, Domaine Ogereau, Loire Valley, France, £19.75.

Chef: Chris & Jeff Galvin

In a relatively short space of time, Chris & Jeff Galvin have gone from employees to burgeoning restaurateurs. Since launching Galvin Bistrot de Luxe in September 2005, they have opened Galvin at Windows on the 28th floor of the London Hilton on Park Lane (earmarked as one to watch by Michelin) & are currently writing their first book. Both have impressive backgrounds: Chris gained accolades while at former Conran eatery, Orrery & at A-lister hangout The Wolesley; while Jeff won acclaim as executive chef at L’Escargot, where he held a Michelin star for five years. Their unpretentious, classic French bourgeois food continues to win admirers & there are rumours of further expansion for 2008, so the Galvin garden looks rosy.