I went to the restaurant on day three after its opening.
We were told to come at 12 noon which seemed a bit early. It was infuriating to arrive and then see an empty restaurant, so I hope this wont be a typical ploy for two eating sessions.
We were seated next to the windows giving a lovely view of Hype Park.
My husband had a vodka martini which at £15 I guess is standard hotel price.
The waiter was very attentive — in fact there were dozens of staff members with few customers so you felt a bit ‘watched’ as you ate.
I opted for the price fixed lunch — three courses for £28 (only available at lunch) which sounded like good value.
The starter I chose was a lemon and goat's cheese salad – plain but much too much lemon.
My husband had ala carte — the ‘rice and flesh’ which was like a risotto with calf tail and red wine. It was excellant.
For the main course, I ordered salmon – again off the price fixed menu — which was, as it said, salmon with beetroot. Nothing special. My husband ordered the pork chop (the turkey pudding which he would have ordered was not available). It was a bit on the tough side and again, nothing out of the ordinary – a grilled pork chop. he ordered french fries on the side which were nice and crispy.
They were pushing the tipsy cake for desert but it had to be ordered in advance so I opted for an orange buuter loaf cake with orange sorbet which was excellant and my husband had a lemon and caramel pudding with cream which was very good.
I think Giles Coren in the Times was a bit OTT – he worked with heston so I guess he is biased. I felt the meal was fine, nothing extraordinary, and certainly not the best new restaurant in London or anywhere else. I can't say any of it was a sensation on the tastebuds.