Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester

But since when AA Gill is writing good reviews about a restaurant? honestly?
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Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 6
Friday, January 18, 2008

I suggest you read AA Gill's review of this place in last sunday's Sunday Times he puts it far more eloquently than I could.

This restaurant is just overpriced rubbish.....
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Alfie
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 0
Tuesday, January 15, 2008

To the person who can't even sign his name to his comment about me.

Firstly I regularly eat in three star restaurants and have eaten everywhere from The Fat Duck to my local chippie so I do know what I'm talking about, unlike you.

Have you not heard of the growing rejection of bottled water because it's totally mad transporting the bloody stuff all round the world when perfectly acceptable water comes out of the tap.

Is your score based on a visit yourself or are you, as I suspect either an employee or just an ignoramous.
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Chris - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 4
Thursday, December 27, 2007

With all the media hype, Ducasse has managed to make a reasonably good restaurant highly disappointing. I wouldn't be surprised to see D at the D earn a star in the next Michelin guide, but to view that as a success would be missing the point.

When one of the best chefs in the world opens a restaurant in one the greatest cities in one of the most famous hotels, you expect to tast some serious food. I wanted to taste the quality of Ducasse, as seen in Monaco and Paris. Instead, I got standard 1* food.

There's some chat that this restaurant is relatively cheap compared to Paris and Monaco, so to expect 3* food is silly. At £75 a head for 3 courses, this restaurant is absolutely priced at the 3* end of UK restaurants.

My gut feeling is that Ducasse will be embarrassed at the inmitigated ribbing he's got in the press over this restaurant and will up his game. It's just a shame that he will have disappointed so many if and by the time that happens.

Decent, but hugely disappointing.
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MJN
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 4
Friday, December 07, 2007

Dear Mr Chris,

How on earth can you order tap water in a restaurant of such a high standard

I am sure you are used to dining in pubs and pre cooked food outlets.
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Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Friday, December 07, 2007

Oh dear I wonder how M. Ducassase got his Michelin Stars because if this restaurant is typical of his organisation then there is something very wrong with Michelin.

Katie and I went there last night with high hopes of a memorable meal. The restaurant itself is very attractive with a lot of nooks and crannies breaking it up. There is one mad table that is in the centre of the room and is hidden from view by a crystal curtain that surrounds it looking like something out of the Tardis.

So we were shown to our table feeling happy with our choice and remarking on how friendly the french staff were which is so often not the case with french restaurant staff.

We were given the menus and the wine list and asked if we wanted "fizzy or still water" to which I gave my standard reply "tap please", this did not go down well and when it eventually arrived it was almost warm with no attempt to chill it with ice. First bad point.

Whilst we were ordering, a bowl of crudities arrived with some dipping sauce and a couple of other items together with some butter. To be frank we didn't notice the butter until we'd finished munching on the vegetables and sorting out our order. We decided to go for the tasting menu and that's when the rot set in. Firstly it was very short and certainly not what I would describe as a tasting menu, more a set meal of reasonable sized portions.

We had to ask for the somelier three times and when he eventually arrived so did our first course. I asked if we could have glasses of wine matched to the dishes only to be told "we don't do that sir". a rather bizzare conversation followed, half of which I didn't understand, which ended with us being offered "some wine that would be suitable from already opened bottles". To be fair the resulting wine was very good but this has to be way up there with the most surreal encounter with any somelier ever.

Spotting the untouched butter we asked our waiter what it was there for only to be told "to go with the bread". When I saked where the bread was he looked non plussed and disappeared only to return with a basket of bread with no explanation or appology for it's late arrival.

The food is best described as unadventurous but very well cooked. There was not one single dish that drew gasps of pleasure only a regular odd grunt of satisfaction. There don't seem to be problems in the kitchen with the food preparation but front of house is barmily chaotic and seems to lack any disipline. The very pleasant staff seem to be bumbling amiably through life with no real direction. Very nice for them but not so good for us.

To sum up. Would we go back again? Frankly no. There are many much better restaurants providing much more exciting food at a much more reasonable price. Much as I dislike G. Ramsay and his f*****g F words he can do better than this with one hand tied behind his back whilst sorting out another Kitchen Nightmare at the same time. On the evidence of this restaurant M. Ducasse is trading on his name. No doubt because of his name, his clutch of Michelin Stars and the location of this restaurant he'll do ok. He'll probabally even get another star for this restaurant but it won't be for the food or service. Remember the Emporer's New Clothes?
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Chris
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 3
Thursday, November 29, 2007