Hix at The Albemarle

I fear a little at risk at repeating myself for another Hix restaurant review, but he keeps to his magic formula of simple food done well, very well in fact.

Calves liver on toast, soft and tender with a rich meaty taste and the lobster tart with cheese and samphire, whilst I thoroughly enjoyed the crisp light pasty, and the succulent chunks of lobster, I could help but think that the taste of the lobster was a little drowned out by the cheese.

Mains we ranged from a safe steak, and very tasty and full of flavour and cooked perfectly, to an adventurous squid and spicy sausage, the spicy sausages were great little juicy bites with a gentle kick. The squid was a little on the overcooked side and was a bit too much and too bland to want to eat a lot of it.

Deserts were sublime, chocolate mouse with honeycomb wafers and a ‘millionaires’ tart, light crumbly pastry, with a caramel and rich chocolate layers.

The bill came to around £60 a head for the food, coffee and service, which was quite reasonable although we easy doubled that with drinks!

Whilst I very much enjoyed the food, perhaps the squid aside (but that was more my bad choice than a bad dish) and the environment was quite convivial the experience was let down by the restaurant being very empty on a Saturday night so perhaps lacked a little atmosphere and the service was quite mixed. Food orders were swiftly taken as did the food swiftly… More

The waiting staff at The Albemarle are trained to a high standard and ooze proficiency from every pore. They were not intrusive yet managed to provide a level of service that stopped just short of cutting our food and hand-feeding us. This degree of professionalism doesn’t come easily and I must doff my Trilby to them.

The food wasn’t quite up to par though. We were dining from the pre-theatre menu priced at £25 for three courses. A starter of cuttlefish and black pudding was a tad off the mark; the cuttlefish was slightly overcooked, injecting an element of disappointment into this otherwise well balanced dish.

A Lancashire Hot Pot for a main didn’t have enough of a potato layer, but the beef, kidneys and mushrooms were deeply flavoured and very pleasing. The accompaniment of pickled cabbage was too acidic for my tastes. The Pollack we tried was plump and juicy but way over salted.

For dessert, a rhubarb tart was quite delectable, as was the buttermilk pudding with blood orange segments. Water, tea and coffees were priced at £4.95 each, so a £25 meal deal quickly turns into £45 a head, and that’s without the wine.

While the food was acceptable if underwhelming, the service surpassed the cooking throughout the evening. The dishes were well thought out but the execution didn’t live up to the standards that I was expecting. If they can raise the bar of cooking to match the service, The Albemarle… More

First time I have eaten there since the recent…ish refurbishment. Fabulous room, classic proportions, contemporary feel and the best size tables in town! It’s a formal style of dining but not stiff, the staff are very good indeed, courteous, well informed and smiley. The set lunch offered interesting choice including the trolley which changes every day, on the day I went it was carrying a terrific looking beef Wellington. The menu is traditional English. Dining companions likely to be mature and well heeled. The food was cooked beautifully, oh and the bread was the freshest I have tasted in a London restaurant.