(menu)

Hibiscus

Address:	29 Maddox Street W1S 2PA
Tel	020 7629 2999
Email:	enquiries@hibiscusrestaurant.co.uk
Website:	Visit Hibiscus website
Price: £85.00	Wine: £19.50	Champagne: £47.00
Opening Hours:	Mon-Fri 12N-2.30pm 6.30-10pm

Square Meal review of Hibiscus:

Hibiscus’s chef-proprietor Claude Bosi has uprooted not only his Michelin-starred restaurant from Ludlow to London but also many of his staff, including wife Claire, who looks after front-of-house. It’s been a successful transplant: the wood-panelled, green-grey dining room has an intimacy lacking from other restaurants operating at a similarly elevated level, while on the food front Shropshire’s loss is most definitely London’s gain for diners looking to have their senses challenged by ingeniously inventive cooking. The delicate flavour of lamb sweetmeat (aka testicle) croquettes is thrown into sharp relief by the strident brininess of an oyster tartare, while the sweet & sour stickiness of an apple tart is paired with the almost earthy-tasting smoothness of lentil & ginger ice-cream. It’s not all so arresting: grilled rack of rose veal has the velvety softness implied by the name & is accompanied by a homely vegetable fricassée. The wine list, which runs to over 500 bins, holds equal interest.
Wine List: This is an excellent & extensive list, running to 46 pages. It concentrates on the classic fine wine regions, with Bordeaux & Burgundy having some particularly good choices. Australia & the USA stand out in the New World. There is an impressive range of wines by the glass & half bottle for precise food & wine matching while there’s plenty to choose from around £30. Best Buy White: Château Bouscassé 2004, Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh, France, £27.50. Best Buy Red: 2005 Domaine Jean-Charles Pivot Beaujolais-Village, Beaujolais, France, £25.

Chef: Claude Bosi

Claude Bosi & his wife Claire relocated their two Michelin-starred Hibiscus restaurant from Ludlow to London at the end of last year & Bosi’s powerful French cuisine is quickly making its mark in Mayfair. Born in Lyon into a restaurateuring family, Bosi completed his apprenticeship in his home city before moving to Paris where he worked first at the celebrated Le Chiberta, then at Alain Passard’s L’Arpege, finally transferring to Alain Ducasse before moving to England in 1997. He established his reputation in Ludlow, as head chef at Overton Grange where he was awarded a Michelin star in 1999. During this time he met Claire & in 2000 they opened their own restaurant. It was awarded its first star in 2001 & its second two years later. The Bosis sold the Hibiscus site in Ludlow in March 2007, but they still own the Bell Inn in Yarpole near Ludlow, which is managed by Bosi’s brother Cedric.