Galvin at Windows
special offer
Special Offer only available online - please book above
3 courses & a Windows Bellini for £35
Offer Details: .....from a set menu including an aperitif. Plus free entry to bar after dinner. Includes Vat, excludes service. Please note there is a 2 hour turn around on these tables. Saturday tables to be vacated by 8pm.from a set menu including an aperitif. Plus free entry to bar after dinner. Includes Vat, excludes service. Please note there is a 2 hour turn around on these tables. Saturday tables to be vacated by 8pm.
Available: Monday to Friday 18:00 to 19:00, 22:00 to 23:00. Saturday 18:00 to 18:30, 22:00 to 23:00
Maximum people: 8
Terms: Expires 18th July 08
2 courses & glass of Pommery: £19.50
Offer Details: ...from a set menu (3 courses for £25) Includes Vat, excludes service. Order three courses from the a la carte and a glass of Pommery Brut Royal for £50 (normally £58)
Available: Sunday 12:00 to 12:30, 14:30 to 16:00. Monday to Friday 12:00 to 15:00
Maximum people: 8
Terms: Expires 18th July 08
3 courses for £19.50
Offer Details: ...from a set menu. Includes Vat, excludes service. Please note that the tables booked 5.30pm are required back at 7.15pm.
Available: Monday to Friday 17:30 to 18:00, 22:30 to 23:00. Saturday 17:00 to 17:30
Maximum people: 8
Terms: Expires 18th July 08
our comments
IIf you fancy indulging in rich French foods, fine wines and slightly over-fussy staff, whilst at the same time spending a few hours viewing the entirety of London from a great height, then Windows on the 28th floor of the Hilton Park Lane really is the place for you.
Yes, it’s expensive and yes I couldn’t eat each dish, simply because it was so over-the-top and yummy, but my, you could quite happily keep coming back here just because the whole package works so well. Oh, and I helped train the now restaurant manager Michele Caggianese, years ago, so it’s always great to see him again!
By the way, the best time to go is lunchtime, not simply because you’ll be able to see more of London, obviously, but they offer a pretty good value-for-money menu. For £29 per person you can devour a velouté of butternut squash (soup) with tortellini of parmesan and sour raisin purée, a roast fillet of Loch Duart salmon, or the poached Cornish lamb shoulder Primavera, with either a selection of French cheeses from the cheese trolley, expertly talked through by a happy sort of chap who seemed to know what he was talking about, or, a selection of desserts. The chocolate parfait, griotte cherries and pistachio anglaise is a must.
Alternatively, you can go Menu Gormand (£75, excluding wine), or, à la carte (£58 for three courses). Luckily, Michele allowed us to choose at will, and therefore, I presume, so that André Garrett, the head chef, could show off a bit. Nice work too, because it was pretty faultless. One thing I must criticise though was the salmon starter. The cured Loch Duart salmon, crab, lemon and caviar dressing was beautifully presented and tasted great, apart from the spring onion, which rather overpowered the flavours from the sea and made us reach for the wine glass.
For mains, we opted for the ‘house speciality’ – Culotte of Anjou pigeon, foie gras and truffled Baeckaoffa (a stew from Alsace of beef, mutton and pork marinated in local wine with potatoes and onions and cooked for up to four hours) and the tournedos of Scottish beef ‘rossini’, that was cooked to perfection. The pigeon dish André had nabbed from a previous restaurant in Lille and it made me think only of those Tudor dishes Henry VIII might have had. To say rich, was an understatement, to say I needed help getting to lift afterwards, is just me being silly!
The wine list is pretty concise and, if you have time, makes for great reading. It does seem odd though that when opting for wines by the glass with each course why the sommelier suggested two, poured one, and then gave us a glass of the other without letting the other one of us sample it! The Banyuls that was offered to us to compliment the cheese I could quite happily have continued drinking well into the evening. Note to self; I must put that on my wine list?!
Finally, booked in during the next few weeks are a series of private tasting dinners, from the likes of; Krug, Taittinger and Dom Perignon, all being tutored by either the chef de cave, the Brand Ambassador, or, in the case of the DP evening, an MW (Master of Wine). All brilliantly priced and certainly a totally indulgent way of enjoying what is, without doubt, a totally outlandishly, extravagant experience.
T.K-S. - April 2008
your comments review this restaurant and win a bottle of champagne
This place is cool. The fantastic views are something not to be missed, certainly a better way to enjoy the views of London than in a rotating pod; in this scenario you are comfortably seated with a nice snack and a well mixed drink all for the same price. The food is very good, nothing out of this world but I do think that if you go for one of the deals then you’ll certainly get great value otherwise it may be edging on the slightly too expensive. The service is good, but the highlight still remains the view, for this reason alone give it a visit and if you prefer not to eat there is a fantastic bar next to the restaurant offering the views as well. The cocktails are mixed very well. Certainly great place to go with for a romantic evening, or just chill with friends. Beware the cocktails are really expensive you’re looking at paying upward of £12 per cocktail.
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chribson - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating 
Food 7 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 7
Thursday, July 03, 2008
We booked for a special occasion and having read these reviews were really looking forward to it but were very disappointed. I had requested a window table when we booked and again on the day so disappointed to be sat in the second row on the lower level which gave the worst views.
Service was shockingly slow - 30 minutes to order and over an hour for starter. Our hostess introduced us to our waiter but he was rarely the person who came to us and it seemed to be a mix of about 5 different staff which made it very impersonal. There were a lot of people checking the table and not enough actually serving. The exception being the sommelier who was helpful with our choice and very attentive and friendly.
We went for the a la carte and the starters were delicious and my husbands main of John Dory was superb but my halibut was raw and while I do always prefer my food rare, this was difficult to cut. The manager came and took it away telling me they would now pan fry me a fresh one. This took 10 minutes to come by which time my husband and long finished his and the fish was pale and showed no sign of colour or crispness from pan frying and was just dry on the edges which seemed more like it had been put in the oven for 5 minutes as the rest of the dish was much hotter than any of our others which had all been only just hot enough. When I commented on this I was told it was definitely pan fried but that we would not be charged.
Our pudding was fantastic - pear tarte tatin - but by now we were actually more keen to call it a day and were disappointed when we were overcharged on the bill for my husbands food and one of the drinks.
Definitely would not go back. Food quality was mostly fantastic but service was nowhere near what I would expect at this level.
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JR - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating 
Food 7 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 3
Friday, May 09, 2008
My husband took me here for my birthday and I can't recommend it highly enough. We were an hour late because Waterloo station had closed due to problems, but they held our table for us.
The view from the restaurant is cool and the raised seating area in the centre means that everyone can appreciate it regardless of where their table is. The decor is stylish, modern and elegant.
The service is very attentive and friendly.
The food was delicious and beautifully presented. The choice is a little limited for vegetarians (1 choice of main course). The dessert I had was sublime. My husband went for the cheese - a comprehensive selection which the waiter knew thoroughly and recommended the order in which the cheeses he'd gone for should be eaten.
There were some reasonably priced wines on the wine list too.
It is expensive, but well worth it for a special occasion.
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Linda Smith
Overall rating 
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Okay I hold my hands up - We booked a promo meal through another site due to timings alone!...
The meal and service were brilliant. The service a bit too OTT (brilliant) to be honest as I don't like to feel I'm being watched.
28th floor views are quite amazing and obviously the main 'selling point'. The lift is danmed fast too!
Now the nitty gritty bits - One thing I hate about having a promotional meal is the potential reaction of the restaurant staff. I never realsed my friend telling me something untill she repeated it once we'd left. We filled in the questionaire they gave us - I'm guessing for promotional visitors only and I could not understand why she looked at me oddly when I answered 'yes' to 'visit again'. It would appear that she spotted a derogatary look when we were pointed to with regards to the waiting staff. Some comment as 'Promotion' was made which if I'd known at the time would have generated some swift comment from myself. One should never assume that visitors with promotional meals booked are lesser than 'corporate' spenders. I used my own funds for the two of us (as I normally do) and my company is not reimbursing me! In this particular case my MD asked me to search out some 'quality' establishments. Sadly I won't be adding this one to my suggested list for him for this entirely unprofessional manner alone.
Michael
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TwoForFood - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
We went for lunch today. The view was impressive but the restaurant lacked atmosphere - as it was a Monday it was not surprising that it was so quiet.
We decided to opt for the tasting Alsace menu £130 with wine (£80 without). Unfortunately three of the courses came with a frothy conoction that was rather samey. Presentation was good, Service excellent and some nice little extras.
However I was unimpressed by the coffee (which we'd assumed was included). We were offered coffee but the waiter did not ask what style of coffee we wanted. We received espresso at £4.75 each. Staggering. The final bill including service was £338 inlcuding £20 worth of coffer/martini and prossecco. To be honest I found the tasting menu a bit too rich for my palate. I probably would have been happier with the a la carte.
Go for the view.
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AnonAM
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 2
Monday, March 03, 2008
Our visit was not for a special occasion but this is certainly the type of place you would go for one. We hadn't booked but unlike some top establishments there was no embarrassment in that. The staff were attentive throughout but not pushy and what’s more they were easy to talk to and good with recommendations on cheese and wine.
We pushed the boat out on the drinks side and could have trimmed the bill by £50 if we had been careful but then this restaurant is not for careful people! The food was excellent, understated and subtle rather than over salted and flashy as some other reviewers may prefer. The marriage of food and wine was just right and the cheese board was one of the best I have experienced, and when it comes to cheese I have to be the most critical eater! At Windows the French waiter helped me to the selection I wanted and then added some of his own recommendations, superb!
Not a cheap time (indeed the bill summarised it as follows: Food £140, Wine £63, Liquor £31.50, Service £29.31, total: £263.81) but a very enjoyable experience!
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John
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 7
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Though we had an enjoyable time at Galvin At Windows, it was evry expensive for very average food. The service was excellent but though the cheese board and dessert were very impressive, the starter and main left a lot to be desired. At £125 per head without loads of wine & water, it was definetly overpriced for what you received. A great location with awesome views but will not be returning.
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Johnners
Overall rating 
Food 5 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 5
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
There's no denying Galvin at Windows is pricey, but you're not just paying for the amazing views - the food is worth the investment too.
Immaculate and friendly (unstuffy) service allow you to properly relax. It's not often I give 10/10 but in theis case I'll make an exception for the exceptional.
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Charlie - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating 
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Thursday, September 06, 2007
Fabulous place. Much more intimate than I expected, with absolutely fantastic views. Food ranged from good to amazing. The highlights were a perfectly cooked sea trout starter, and the mains of scrumptious cod with a superb salsa verde and the best risotto I've ever eaten (pea and parmesan - but so much better than that sounds). Desserts a little disappointing after the mains (though one did include a gorgeous honey ice cream), but the plates of luscious petit fours we were given after the meal made up for this. Service utterly delightful. Certainly not cheap, but not bad value on a toptable offer. Perfect for a special occasion meal.
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- View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 7
Friday, August 31, 2007
Very good overall. One of the best I have had in London and only behind Manoir Quat'Saisons.
Expensive but v.good for celebrations
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Anon
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 7
Thursday, August 23, 2007
