Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley
This Little Piggy went to Marcus Wareing - Knightsbridge - London
An intriguing course next in the guise of ' Veal Belly, Frog's Legs, Snails, Wild Garlic'. The generous chunk of veal belly was lovely and soft yet encrusted with a kind of nut which gave it a bizarre crunch. The frog's legs were slightly overcooked so didn't have alot of flavour but the scattering of dorset snails and wild garlic sauce gave a suitably robust taste to the veal belly.
Following the recent renovation of the restaurant space at The Berkeley, myself and piglet were keen to pay another visit to do a true comparison. The immediate difference was how light and airy the dining room was and better use of space although we weren't keen on the same-side banquettes which was how most tables were set so we went against the grain and sat opposite each other instead.
Every member of staff we encountered from the maitre'd, sommelier and bread waiter were friendly and genuine, relaxed and knowledgeable with generous touches such as extra home made cheese bread balls being provided when we had devoured the first portion quite quickly and topping up of the matching wine when we were waiting for the next course to be delivered.
The tasting menu had the biggest appeal for us with it's interesting variety although we asked to substitute the foie gras course for moral reasons and we're so glad we did as we were presented with a beautifully creamy buffalo mozzarella like cheese, radicchio and with nettle pesto which had a lovely amount of fresh lemon juice in. Perfect refreshing first course.
Next up was the main dish of 'Lake District Lamb, Beetroot, Barley' which was displayed as a pink round cannon of lamb fillet, crispy slab of lamb skin and beets that looked like pink root vegetables. The cannon was as soft and tender as it looked and with the minted beans was extremely good. The pea puree wasn't as tasty and had the consistency of soft plasticine but you could tell was made with very fresh ingredients. The hit of the dish was undoubtedly and unsurprisingly the lamb skin.....sublime.
From perusing the dining room it was obvious there were regular customers who keep returning for the overall outstanding experience and service and i hope to become one of them.
This Little Piggy Approves
@ Ali Twidale. All Rights Reserved on Images and Texts.
The next course, Scallop, Cauliflower, Cucumber' which was the dish i was looking forward to the most and it didn't disappoint. Beautifully plump grilled scallops with a cauliflower puree that tasted like the best cauliflower cheese in the world and small cubes of cucumber in a vinaigrette dressing really was the stand out dish of the tasting menu.
The description for the next course of 'Mackerel, Onions, Egg' makes you think how can three simple ingredients be transformed into a Michelin star dish but i needn't have wondered. The mackerel was so fresh it tasted like it had been caught an hour earlier but eaten with the dehydrated onion and egg mousse it really was delightful.
I only tried one of the remaining desserts, 'Lemon Meringue, Iced Tea Sorbet' which was a welcome and light refreshing dish with a creamy and piquant lemon type mousse and crisp pastry rectangles sandwiching it. A small quenelle of the iced tea sorbet was delicious.
