Last year we went to Le Gavroche, which fulfilled a longstanding dream of mine and didn't disappoint.
This year, we decided to try Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley in Mayfair. I've been a fan of MW for a while, as he's a regular feature on MasterChef and Great British menu, 2 of my favourite shows. His 'how to cook the perfect.....' cookbook is one of my staples, and is how I've perfected my risotto, scallops and scones!
From the moment we entered, it was lush. The staff were attentive, but not annoyingly so (and one of the hosts had the most gorgeous scottish accent!)
We decided to start to a glass of champagne to add to the treat, which was lovely. I learnt that the Ruinart bottle (which is shorter and fatter than conventional champagne bottles) was the original shape of champagne bottles and all other suppliers moved to the now conventional bottle shape apart from Ruinart. Always good to learn something new! We were then greeted with a fish croquette which was really yummy. Following that we were given some homemade bread and butter, yum yum!
It was at this point that I remembered I was supposed to be taking pics of everything - so there will be visual aids for the rest of the blog.
We ordered off the set lunch menu, with the matching wines. Our Amuse Bouche was a cold Watermelon soup with ginger cubes. Now before today I would said that I didn't really like ginger, and would not have chosen to eat a cube of it, but who knew how much I'd like it!
Starters for us both were Dorset snails with garlic and a cream sauce. Wow. Neither of us were sure about snails but through we should try something new. So pleased we tried them - literally melt in the mouth, deliciously garlicky! And the charred brioche - beautiful!
Then we both ordered the sole. It came on a bed of pomme purée, fried capers and spring greens. Like ginger, I've never been a fan of capers. I've always found the taste quite harsh, but fried they taste so different. The fish was so moist and soft, and they were by far the best potatoes I've had in a while -I'm guessing you get them that smooth by adding lots of butter and cream!
During this time, we'd polished off our fizz and wine, 2 nice glasses of white wine, not too dry.
Our dessert orders taken (Carole - popcorn, yoghurt, caramel. Me - raspberry, chocolate caramel). We weren't really sure what we were getting but if the other courses were anything to go by, we knew it would be good. Then in front of us appeared 2 slices, generous slices, of custard tart and passion fruit sorbet. Compliments of the chef. This is the place where you get pre-dessert. Brilliant.
(I will add here - MW is famous for his custard tart, and I made this from his recipe a few months ago. And failed miserably. It was gross).
Custard tart devoured, we were both starting to feel very full. And then the real puddings arrived. Mine was just pure indulgence. Lots of chocolate with crumble and raspberries. Devilishly naughty!
We orders mint teas - somehow it has the power to make you feel clean and fresh when you have full tummy. And with our tea arrived the chocolate trolley. Unbelievable. Choices of chocolate - madasgacan or Ecuadorean salted caramel. Salted caramel it was! Perfect scrummy end to an amazing meal. And if that wasn't enough, we each got a gorgeous bag of chocs when we left. Suppose I'll have to give those to the hubby, to save my waistline if anything else.
The atmosphere was quite formal (anywhere with tablecloths is posh to me), but still managed to feel relaxed and the service from the staff was amazing. I knew it would be good, but lunch at the Berkeley definitely exceeded my expectations and we had a lovely time. Before we knew it, we'd been there 3 hours - sign of a good time! Thanks Marcus!
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