Le Gavroche

Last Friday (3rd August 2007) my partner booked a table at Le Gavroche to celebrate our anniversary. We were both very much looking forward to the evening since we read some nice reviews about the restaurant and this restaurant has been on my list for a very long time. We are food lovers and we don’t like gimmicks or novelty food, so when we read in one of the reviews that the décor of the restaurant was a bit dated we perversely thought it was a good thing, assuming that Le Gavroche is a temple for food lovers and not a trendy place to be seen etc…not that we would mind if the décor was a bit more stylish. Our evening at Le Gavroche turned out to be a real disappointment. We chose the ‘Menu Exceptionnel’ with matching wine in order to sample dishes that reflect the chef’s skills and the restaurant’s reputation. We chose to have the menu with matching wine as we had several superb experiences at the Orrery, discovering nice wine that would match with the meal. (In fact, on a couple of occasions, we even bought some wine that we like to take home). When we saw that the first wine on the menu wasn’t actually a wine but Kriek Cherry beer, we thought that the wine menu looked promising as every wine was chosen carefully to match with each course and in this case the Cherry beer was chosen as a good match for the first course. Anyway, throughout the meal, we discovered that the wine selected were pretty ordinary apart from the desert wine. Not only that, the sommelier and the kitchen were not very co-ordinated: the wine often arrived 5-10 minutes after the food which is not very impressive for a restaurant of this standard. Furthermore, I found it very sexist the fact that the sommelier only addressed to my partner when he described the wine. As for the food, it was rather very ordinary (if not mediocre) comparing with tasting menus that we had at Petrus (Marcus Weiring obtained a very well deserved 2nd Michelin star this year), Orrery and Angela Hartnett at the Connaught which always reflected the chef’s skills and talent.

Here are my comments for each course:

1) Thon Mi-Cuit, Vinaigrette au Gingembre Pimenté: the use of sesame oil is very Asian and reminded us of some kind of fusion food.

2) Pointes d’Asperges Vertes, Parmesan, Jambon ‘Pata Negra’ et Vinaigrette de Truffes; this combination was a waste of very good ingredients. The Cured Iberian ham is the king of ham and is very good by itself but not with the overwhelming truffle dressing. ‘More is not always more’

3) ‘Petit Pave de Saumon Sauvage Roti et sa Peau Croustillante’, we thought the salmon was a bit overcooked (dry).

4) ‘Escalope de Foie Gras Chaud et Pastilla à la Cannelle’: the foie gras was OK but the crispy pancake of duck was far too salty & stodgy and the combination of flavours did not work at all.

5) Carré d’Agneau Roti, Jus a l’Echalote et Estragon: This dish was competently executed but ordinary comparing with meat dishes that we had in other tasting menus (i.e. Petrus, Orrery and Angela Harnett). The meat dish that we have in other tasting menus usually has three different cuts of meat cooked in three different ways so that the chef can show off his/her talent.

6) Le Plateau de Fromages Affinés: When I saw the cheese trolley from far I was excited to see the wide variety. However the cheese experience at Le Gavroche was also big disappointment. Due the layout of all the tables at the restaurant, the waiter couldn’t push the trolley close enough for us to see what cheese selection was available. The waiter only asked us two questions before serving the cheese: a) whether we like goat cheese, b) whether there is any cheese we don’t like. Then off he went to randomly cut 4 pieces of cheese for each of us. When he gave us the plate of cheese, he didn’t even tell us what cheeses were on the plate and in what order we should eat them (this is the normal practice in other restaurants we’ve been to). We eat a lot of French cheese at home and when we go to restaurants with a big selection of cheese, we are keen to taste something we haven’t had before. Unfortunately, because we didn’t get to see and choose the cheese, one of cheese that was given to us was something we usually eat at home.

7) Gâteau Opéra et son Sorbet Chocolat: The chocolate sorbet was very nice but Gâteau Opéra was rather ordinary (we’ve had better elsewhere).

8) Oeufs à la neige, Crème Vanille et Compote de Fraises: this French classic was very well executed and we like it very much.

To complete our experience at Le Gavroche, when the bill came we were overcharged (a bottle of wine at £144 was added by mistake to the bill), again not very impressive for a restaurant of this standard.

The 2 star Michelin for Le Gavroche is not justified comparing with other Michelin starred restaurants tha we've been to (namely Petrus, Orrery and Angela Hartnett at the Connaught)
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Kim - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 1
Monday, August 06, 2007

Great restaurant - good cooking - agree with all posts below. Not sure why it took me so long to try this restaurant, now that I have, it will certainly be a favourite for treats and special occasions....Additional comments:

Positive: one of the best cheese boards in London - all the cheeses in perfect condition and it must have the best selection of French cheeses around - can't wait to go back!

Negative: the rooms really quite dated - looks like part of a Marriot hotel - strange green walls and Austrian blinds?

Also the "Gavroche" themed cutlery???

But these are minor points - go for the food!
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London
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 9
Friday, July 20, 2007

This was my first time at a Michelin Starred restaurant. I'm not in London very often so myself and my 2 friends went for the taster menu with the wine (£165 per head).

Service was excellent - no snooty waiters. The atmosphere was great. The restaurant was full but not noisy or distracting. I have no means of comparison but the food was very tasty and well presented. The wines also went down very well, were varied and were a good match for the food.

Overall a very satisfactory experience. Highly recommended.
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Martin Jones
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 7
Sunday, July 08, 2007

I have been to many michelin starred establishments in London including Pied a Terre Gordon R at Royal Hospital Road and others and I must admit of all of them this was the most expensive (£350 whereas I paid £210 at Gordons) and it was the one that dissapointed the most.

Whereas I would agree the food was consistently good it wasnt amazing both in flavour and presentation, dont get me wrong the taste was great but was it worth £350? No!

I had the cheese souffle which was light and tasty but £19 for flour, eggs and cheese ,a bit much isnt it? The Veal at £32 was tasty but again NOT worth it and the Assiette of desserts was ok but not the best Ive had, as I recall Gordon at RHR was much much more exciting.

The only slight consolation was the waiting staff who were extremely efficient and professional and meeting Michel Roux Jnr , he was a very pleasant man but it still didnt constitute paying such a ridiculous price for 3 courses ,1 bottle of £40 wine and water.

I wont be returning.
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Sel, East Dulwich
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 4
Friday, June 08, 2007

My husband has just taken me to Le Gavroche for my 30th birthday and I can honestly say that it was the best gastronomic experience that I have ever had.... simply divine.

Everything aspect of this gem of a restaurant is delightful. The food is exceptional and the staff are polished and efficient and their passion for the food and excellent service is clear but without being overly fussy or intrusive.

Michel Roux even made the time to sign a menu for me, despite being very busy in the kitchen!

Do not expect to eat here on a budget, but I firmly believe it was worth every penny and I had the most fabulous birthday as a result. I would not hesitate to recommend Le Gavroche to anyone and I very much look forward to returning for the next celebration!

Superb!
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Carina Craske
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Monday, June 04, 2007

This is out of this world. Incredible food, great wine, perfect service. And no hype, no spin, no fuss in sight. A total gem in the posers' London.

My guest's starter was a tower of artichoke heart, salmon mouse, two poached gull egs on top of that, about three spoonfulls of caviar and a sliver of smoked salmon to crown the glory. I had a gratin of crayfish and snails, an utter heaven. We both thought the starters were the best things we had ever eaten. The beef with foie gras and truffle macaroni was excellent. The turbot with chick pea fries and veg canneloni was great. The deserts are to die for, the petit-fours are brilliant.

We really liked the service, seamlessly attentive and relaxed.

Le Gavroche is pure quality. And no, I have not been paid to write this.
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Beatrice
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Over- hyped, over-priced and over-rated. Went a couple of weeks ago and the bar lacks atmosphere, while food was good service was below par considering half the place was empty!

Give this 2 star place a miss and head straight to Petrus, where you are made to feel welcome, great ambience and in fact better value for money.
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Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 4
Thursday, March 29, 2007

Wonderful ! I really don't understand S Gover's review. Actually, not only do I not understand how they came to such a conclusion based on my visit, I'm having trouble decifering what they have actually written.

Anyway, Le Gavroche was wonderful for us, every dish sublime, perfectly timed and a pleasure to eat. Snotty waiters never bother me, I think the snottier the better, adds to the fun!, However this was not the case here, all the staff were wonderful!

I've eaten in many Michelen starred establisments and this one trumps them all for now.
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Ingers
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, March 27, 2007

I had another wonderful dinner at this place again. The food is excellent and the service are nice. I can't wait to come back again.
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Lau
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, February 27, 2007

I went here for my birthday last year, and i have to say that i thouroughly enjoyed myself. The food was superb and the waiters very kind and attentative without being annoying. I would absolutely recommend anyone to go here, you will not regret it!
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Sonia
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, February 27, 2007