For a three-Michelin-starred restaurant, The Fat Duck is an unassuming-looking place & its discreet entrance & simply furnished dining room give no hint of the dazzling nature of the
cooking. Chef-proprietor Heston Blumenthal is the UK’s most famous practitioner of molecular gastronomy (though he prefers simply to call it ‘a scientific approach’) & his tasting menu is well
worth its £150 price tag for the rollercoaster ride of sensation it delivers. Every one of the 18 dishes is fascinating, from the first palate-cleansing mouthful of nitro-poached green tea &
lime mousse to the last bite of a wafer-thin carrot & orange lollipop. In between, there are extraordinary flavour combinations such as grain mustard ice-cream with red cabbage gazpacho,
sardine on toast sorbet & a new dish that sets out to evoke the essence of autumn: diners are asked to place a tiny, oak-flavoured film on the tongue & to alternate between mouthfuls of
truffle & oak-buttered toast & parfait of foie gras & matsutake (pine mushroom) puree: utterly delicious. It may all sound daunting but helpful staff explain everything & time the
gaps between dishes to perfection. What’s more, if you don’t fancy the idea of snail porridge, a classically inspired a la carte menu (£95) offers the likes of ballotine of foie gras & sole
Veronique. On the drinks front, wine matches are suggested for each course or there’s an extensive global list that includes big hitters as well as lesser-known labels. The Fat Duck has that rare
combination of serving superb food in a light-hearted way.
Chef: Heston Blumenthal
When not dishing up snail porridge, the man widely regarded as Britain’s most avant-garde chef found time in 2008 to bring out a magnum opus cookbook, selling for a lofty £100. Blumenthal opened
The Fat Duck in Bray in 1995, initially serving classical French cuisine, but slowly developing the scientific approach for which he is now famous. His individualism paid off with the award of his
third star in 2004, the same year he bought the Hind’s Head pub in Bray, where he showcases more traditional British cuisine. He was awarded an OBE in June 2006 for his services to the hospitality
industry.
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