All reader reviews by grobelaar

Le Gavroche

Le Gavroche has long been a restaurant on my radar of places to eat, anyone who is reading this page will doubtless be aware of its great heritage and reputation.

So when an old friend and fellow gastronome flew in from Finland , an opportunity arose for that first visit. There was no particular occasion other than a love of great food (and slimming wallets). My friend has a little professional interest as he's training to be a Sommelier. Our table was booked for 7pm on a Tuesday night. As we neared the restaurant I was actually getting quite nervous : I had already spent the morning hunting for a pair of trousers having realised I'd not packed anything other than blue denim and a cursory search of various reviews revealed that despite them being very nice designer jeans - this would not do.

Boy was I glad I'd made the effort and got those trousers, because I think I would have felt I'd let down the effort put in by the restaurant if I'd turned up ill attired. Entering Le Gavroche is like entering into a cosy hidden den of fine dining. We were led downstairs to the dining room, which I'm sure for some is old fashioned , but it has a classical charm : it's homely, warm and comforting - yet oozes with class. From here on in, it felt like we were now on a gastronomique adventure par excellence. The front of house staff were marvelous and what followed can only be described as an almost balletic like performance. Cutlery arrived, wine was poured, chairs promptly pushed in, napkins folded, food unveiled - it was the very essence of attentive without being intrusive... everyone was polite and friendly.

As for the food ? It is almost a week since eating there and I can still remember every dish and every detail - which is unusual for me, having a brain like a sieve. We already knew that we were going for the Menu Exceptionnel with the accompanying wine (£150 with wine, £95 without). In the first instance the included wine saved us from picking from the tome like wine list - I think there is something like 2000 wines on it - where they're stored I don't know - I suspect an underground nuclear bunker must be below the restaurant itself. The wines were explained and poured by the Sommelier, a very polite and quietly spoken chap he was, and they did not skimp on the wine either. When the first glass was poured it wasn't exactly a lot of wine, but faced with another eight courses it didn't bother me. Of course when they started giving you a top-up here and there, I soon realised that the wine and food were in full-flow. I think generous is a very good word to describe our night - nothing was too much and I felt we were treated like Kings for the evening.

As for the marks: I've looked down the various reviews on this page many times and apart from the odd apparent bad day or lofty expectations , there's a lot of tens across the board - it almost seems like a cliché, but I can't think of anything out of place or that could have been better, so it's all tens for me too.

All-in-all this was probably one of the finest food experiences I've had. The food is exceptional, the service and atmosphere are refined and classy. I simply cannot wait to return here (I would go tomorrow if I could) and have high hopes of a return visit with the better half (she promises she won't ask for the ketchup) as soon as is humanly possible.

Be warned it's an addictive experience.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10