It is Angela's second last day in London, and today I took her to one of my favourite restaurants in town for a last fine meal. Not exactly easy to score a table here, but I persuaded the reservations lady over the phone to give us a late lunch sitting, and we got lucky!
The first thing I noticed was the number of new faces since my last visit barely four months ago. Most prominently, Stephen the manager and face of The Ledbury since its opening, had returned to Melbourne in the meantime, and in his place (and very much to my surprise!) was Darren, a former manager at Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley. We recognised each other immediately and exchanged a couple of pleasantries. It would be silly, I suppose, to reject a personal job offer from the chef patron of the 13th best restaurant in the world! Stephen will be missed though; he was a truly warm and amicable character who always made his customers feel at home. By contrast the service environment at Marcus Wareing is rather more formal, and from our initial reception I did get the impression that the new manager was still finding his way within the current organisational culture. Not any worse to be sure, just a different feel.
Anyway, back to the food - we went for the set lunch as we weren't really looking to splurge today.
Canapé: turbot roe cream and apple jelly on squid ink biscuit.
Very tasty and pleasant way to start. The light textures of each component were a lovely contrast to their intensity of flavour. The sweet-savoury combination between the smooth turbot roe cream and delicate apple jelly was a clear winner, with finger lime garnish for a touch of refreshment. The squid ink biscuit base is a typical component in this restaurant's canapés and one of my favourites, with its feather-light crispness and mild briny taste that went very well with the predominantly seafood-based toppings.
Both starters to follow were Ledbury classics that I've reviewed previously so I won't say too much about them. (They were the only choices from the set menu and we were unable to substitute any of them with new items from the à la carte menu without paying full price, which is reasonable I suppose).
Starter 1: Hampshire buffalo milk curd with deep fried onions, Saint-Nectaire shavings, wild mushrooms and a broth of grilled onions. Served with summer truffle shavings, truffled mayonnaise, chives and Mornay spread on toast.
My choice, and still as good as ever. Loved the delicate silky texture and mild taste of the buffalo curd - almost like tofu! - which formed a pleasant, unobstrusive base for the stronger toppings above. The full-on aromas of onions and wild mushrooms were intoxicating, and the choice of Saint-Nectaire on both the curd (shavings) and the toast (Mornay spread) was surely no accident, with its earthy and nutty flavour. The truffle toppings on the toast were simply lovely (how could they not be?!).
Starter 2: ceviche of hand dived scallops with Tokyo turnips, seaweed oil and frozen horseradish.
A refreshing Peruvian/Japanese-inspired raw cold starter for Angela; firm and juicy scallops were paired with crunchy fresh turnip slices and apple jelly caviar for further textures and a delicate touch of sweetness. A topping of horseradish snow (playing a similar role to wasabi) enhanced the subtle flavours of this dish with an invigorating spicy kick to the palate, and the dish was finished with a lovely umami from the surrounding ring of seaweed oil. Incredibly light, crisp and tasty.
Main course 1: roasted Cornish turbot on a bed of diced asparagus, pear and morels, with turbot roe cream, boiled fennel and fennel purée, morel jus, shellfish emulsion and elderflower garnish.
What a satisfying dish combining some of my favourite (and surprisingly premium!) ingredients in a somewhat unusual but effective manner. I had a very similar dish as part of my first tasting menu experience here last April. At first glance this might seem too sweet for a main course, with the asparagus, pear and elderflower coming together all at once, but fortunately the kitchen had achieved a precise balance between the ingredients, and the end result was both complex and incredibly tasty. The sweetness and juiciness of the aforementioned components enhanced the natural moisture and delicate taste of the fish in the background, whilst allowing the latter's substantial and meaty texture to be matched simultaneously by equally intense sauces of morels and shellfish. The fennel accompaniments provided a nice crunch and fresh anise-like aromas to the already intoxicating fragrance of morels. For a main course within a 'budget' set menu, one really couldn't ask for more.
Main course 2: haunch and belly of Middle White pork with apricots, girolles and fresh almonds.
(For more information on the exclusive Middle White breed of domestic pigs native to the UK, click here. Middle Whites are currently listed as an endangered breed by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust so pork production from them is strictly controlled.)
The exceptionally well-marbled pork had a truly rich flavour and succulent texture that are largely absent from most commercial breeds today (which are mainly for the bacon market after a post-war government directive). It's great that specialist pork breeders are now on the rebound after having people recognise the excellent quality of their pork, though the significantly higher prices mean that they are still not as popular as they should be.
Firm and sweet slices of caramelised apricot complemented the leaner pieces of haunch perfectly. On the other end of the plate was a pork belly medallion with a surprise black pudding centre; this was indescribably tasty and melt-in-the-mouth - truly the height of sinful indulgence! Enthralling earthy aromas from a generous amount of girolles (both on top of the pork belly, on the 'dividing line' and in puréed form) permeated and enhanced this luxurious dish. The pieces of crackling were feather-light and perfectly crisp. Fresh almonds, much more rarely encountered than their crunchy toasted counterparts, had a very interesting gelatinous texture that resembled hard jelly. Their gentle bittersweet taste also helped somewhat to temper the sheer intensity of the belly half of this dish. Needless to say, the overall execution was absolutely flawless.
Dessert: Alphonso mango with citrus curd, mandarin granita, lemon verbena ice cream, burnt meringue and dash of olive oil. Served with a side of warm kaffir lime beignets.
We both decided to have the same dessert as the only other option of 'selection of sorbets' seemed pretty commonplace to us. What a delightful way to finish! The mango was incredibly sweet and juicy, and the predominantly citrus-based accompaniments left our palates completely clean and refreshed. The dash of olive oil, with its fruity and mildly bitter flavour, was a truly inspired final touch. The warm beignets on the side, pleasingly contrasted in temperature, had a lovely crusty surface and the fluffiest texture within, and their subtle citrus flavour was the perfect companion to the main dish.
The usual petit fours were served soon afterwards. I was slightly disappointed that there were no extras this time (such as an amuse-bouche and/or another dessert to share), as has always been the case with my previous visits. Might it be too much, as a good repeating customer, to expect more than the bare minimum even when on a 'budget' set menu? Nonetheless, the restaurant did deliver what it was supposed to, and to ask for anything else would be to risk looking awkward and impolite.
One thing that did brighten my day very much though - towards the end of the meal when things were much less busy in the restaurant, my favourite server Laurens came over to chat, despite not actually being responsible for our section. His characteristic friendliness and charm, despite the long and demanding hours of the job, are what people in the service industry should aspire towards. I will be asking specifically to sit in his section on my subsequent visits, I think!
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