Hedone is in Chiswick, west London, and it got it's name after the Greek word that means "pleasure". The chef and owner, Michael Jonsson from Sweden, leveraging his background as a food sourcing expert, puts the ingredients in the focus. After training as a chef many years ago in Sweden he switched career and became a lawyer, but always held on to his passion and interest for food. Besides running Hedone he also writes the influential Gastroville blog and he has advised some Michelin starred restaurants in Europe on ingredient sourcing. Hedone was recently awarded with one Michelin star. The main dining room has beautifully exposed brick walls and a very cool open kitchen, with a few seats at a bar looking into the kitchen in addition to the main dining area. We chose to dine at the bar so that we really could observe the action taking place in front of us with Michael and his team constructing dish after dish. For a foodie, it is wonderful to see how the well-organized team almost seamlessly and for the untrained eye, with little effort, put together creative plates. There is a restroom downstairs with a private dining room, and this is also where the wine cellar is located. As always, when given the option, I went with the tasting menu. The menu started with two delightful amuse bouches. Light, fresh and with a lot of flavors. The service from the attentive staff was very good already from the start, knowledgeable but also with humor. After the starters, I had a rich tomato soup with mustard, complex flavors and very fresh. A wonderful start. It was followed with poached oysters, where the fresh apple made a wonderful contrast to the creaminess of the oyster. The dish was completed by the savory taste of shallots. Well composed and cooked perfectly. Out of the next two course my absolute favorite was the Isle of Mull scallop sashimi, it was extremely creamy and flavorful. I spoke to Chef Jonsson about it, and he said that I should have been there the previous week because then the scallops were even better. It was very hard to grasp that statement, since these were some of the best raw scallops that I have had so far. I felt that the next two courses were hit and miss. The first one was somewhat of a miss. Cevennes onions that had great flavors but it was simply to much onion in this dish. It was overpowering - a smaller serving and it would have been great. The second dish was a smashing hit however. Perfectly cooked sea bass with and amazing black olive infusion. The infusion was so flavorful and didn't taste like black olives at all. I have no clue how the kitchen created this infusion but I am sure that it is a long process in order to get the different layers of flavors. The next course was a wonderful crab dish, where the foam really elevates this dish.Rich, flavorful and with perfect texture. After the crab I was served a liquid Parmesan ravioli, which worked a s fun play on a classic Italian dish. The Parmesan flavors were intense but not overpowering. The dish worked really well. The next dish was an amazing Suckling pig with beetroots, plums and radishes. Not only did it look fantastic, it tasted just as great. And the sauce...I am not sure that you are supposed to lick the plate but I just barely was able to control the urge. Another great dish from the kitchen. The final savory course was a wonderful Scottish grouse with a side-dish of some of the best sweet corns that I have had. They had a smoky flavor which really complimented the bird. The sauce was rich and definitely worked well with the rest of the dish.You are served a breast and a leg, with feathers and claw intact. The dish smells fabulous. I loved the gamey flavor of the grouse, and the other ingredients works fabulously together. What about my wife's vegan dietary restrictions? Chef Jonsson did a tremendous job accommodating her throughout the dinner. We had a long discussion with the Chef about how hard it is for a restaurant to accommodate a pure vegan and still be able to be innovate, use ingredients in a creative way and get the same kind of texture, flavors and variation that you will get in a non-vegan meal. It is even more challenging if you like Hedone changes your menu very frequently based upon the philosophy of always using the best and freshest ingredients. I must say the Chef Jonsson did an awesome job accomplishing just this. And my wife concurred, Hedone is one of the restaurants where she truly feels that she would revisit because she felt the kitchen really tried to be creative and supportive of her restrictions. Above is some of her favorite courses served throughout the dinner. I would also like to add that my wife doesn't really like black olives, but she loved the black olive infusion served with her lentils - another compliment to the Chef. The sweet section of the menu consisted of great cheeses, a fig dessert and a raspberry dessert. It was very refreshing of not ending the meal with the traditional and heavy chocolate dessert. I enjoyed this approach much more - you will not leave Hedone willing stuffed - just pleasantly full. My favorite dessert was the raspberries (I have never seen raspberries this big before) with hibiscus, coconut and cinnamon. Wonderful combinations of flavors and did I mention...the raspberries were enormous. I was very impressed with the attention to details and the quality of the ingredients. Chef Jonsson is ultra passionate about what he does he truly lives and breathes his craft. It was an absolute pleasure to sit down and enjoy our own little trip into the world of Hedone and watch the courses being put together at the bar. Being born in Sweden I was very proud to see a fellow country man put out food that can be held to the highest level. Chef Mikael Jonsson was very attentive to our needs, his staff was personable and very educated in the dishes, the wine pairings worked really well, the atmosphere is laid back and when all those things come together, you can only draw one conclusion. Something great is in the making in Chiswick and I am looking forward to the next time I will come back to London and experience the continuous evolution on one of the most exiting restaurants in London right now.
En middag att minnas, Chef Jonsson (Swedish for "A dinner to remember")!!
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The Ledbury is a beautiful restaurant located in Notting Hill. The corner-positioned building, with a walled-off alfresco dining area on one side and small potted trees on the other, makes a statement in bold black. Chef Brett Graham has built a gastronomic palace and he is dishing out great dishes with tremendous flavors. He has been rewarded with two Michelin stars and he definitely deserves both of them. The Ledbury is also ranked nr 10 on the Pellegrino's list. The food is modern, vibrant, innovative and with generous servings. The wine selections is very good as well, and the staff is both attentive and has great personality. They did an excellent job of catering to my wife's vegan dietary restrictions and I will highlight some of her best dishes later. I went with the full tasting menu of course and it was great - and compared with a lot of other restaurants in London, very affordable. After we have ordered some Champagne from the wine list the menu starts with canapes. Small, bite-sized, mouth-fulls of food awesomeness. If Chef Graham gets bored with serving gourmet dinners he would have a bright future putting together high-end pintxos or tapas. One little canape after another is served and they are beautiful to look at and very tasty. The first course is a salad of green beans but pimped up by grated foie gras. I have never liked green beans, I don't like the texture and the crunch you get when you eat them, but these were amazing. Smaller in size, they were cooked perfectly, and with the addition of the creamy foie gras this became a spectacular started dish. It was followed up by a flame grilled mackerel which was even better. It has similarities with the previous dish in the fact that i historically never liked mackerel either, but this was also so good. It was so good, that I am inclined to say that mackerel might be my favorite fish at the moment. That says a lot about how good this dish was. The next two seafood courses was also spectacular. A playful version of risotto where the Arborio has been exchanged with squid cut to simulate the rice. The shellfish makes the dish rich and with great depth. The next course was a cornish turbot which a thin layer of black quinoa. The quinoa made the dish beautiful to look at but also added some wonderful crunch to it. The complimenting artichoke cream was rich and velvety smooth. The next course speaks for itself, pork jowl, bacon and crackling. Add some walnuts and some mushrooms and you have a gorgeous and very flavorful dish. My wife's vegan menu was exceptional as well. beautiful dishes, her four favorites are depicted above. They were well put together, with many layers and made with the freshest ingredients. The final and main course of the savory section of the tasting menu was magnificent lamb. The dish is stunning to look at, the colors are amazing and when you bite into the lamb you quickly realize that this is lamb perfection. It melts in your mouth and it has an intense and vibrant flavors. The Ledbury served a great cheese platter and the pre-dessert was a good palette cleanser. Not spectacular, but very good. The tasting menu ends with a great raspberry tartlet with enormous berries, jam-packed and bursting with flavors. The Petite Fours are creative, innovative and very good as well. After the dinner we had the opportunity to visit the kitchen and spend some time with Chef Brett and his crew. Even though they were in the middle of a busy dinner service they took time to show us around the kitchen, they were able to recommend some really good restaurants in Belgium (where we were headed next), and we had some really inspiring conversation about why my next kitchen tool should be a commercial convection oven. We spend almost 20 minutes in the kitchen and got to try small samples of new items on future menus. What a wonderful experience!! This great attitude towards customers paired with amazing food and world-class service makes it very easy to recommend the Ledbury. You should make it a must-visit when in London.
I just finished my second dinner at The Fat Duck in Bray and I was worried that I would be disappointed. I have seen the Mad Hatters Tea Party, I have tried the nitro-poached aperitifs, and I know about the wonderful Whisky Gums. Could the food possible live up to the expectations when the element of surprise is gone. I am happy to say that the answer is a huge resounding YES. The Fat Duck is still my favorite restaurant in the world and the food can hold each one against any kitchen and any restaurant. The Fat Duck is located in Bray in the High Street. Chef proprietor Heston Blumenthal has owned the premises since it opened at the location in 1995. The kitchen is now headed by Jonny Lake who is doing a great job of maintaining and even improving the classical Heston dishes. It has three Michelin stars and is ranked on Pellegrino's lists of the best restaurants in the world. The Fat Duck serves a fourteen courses tasting menu where most of these a playful and incredibly fun and innovative. Eating at the Fat Duck is a fun journey and you want it to just keep going forever. First you are served some great Amuse Bouches. It all starts with a delicious beetroot and horseradish macaroon. The beetroot is aerated so it literally just melts away in your mouth. It is wonderful, and very, very tasty. It is followed by a Rocket Lolly and the traditional nitro poached aperitifs. This time I went for Tequila and Grapefruit, which works really well together. You could also go for a Vodka and Lime Sour or Gin and Tonic. In the next course you are served a Quenelle of Pommery Grain Mustard Ice Cream sitting on a bed of perfectly diced onion. Our waiter pours the dark red liquid Red Cabbage Gazpacho into the bowl. The Mustard Ice Cream cut the bitterness of the Red Cabbage Gazpacho leaving a sweet, tangy aftertaste. The combination might not sound great but it is very, very good. The next course is a wonderful journey through the forest. The waiting staff places a bed of oak moss on the table. On the moss is some Fat Duck Films, littel small strips that you are supposed to place on your tongue. While the film tasting of Oak Moss disintegrates in your mouth the waiter pour some water on the moss bed which connects with dry ice underneath the moss. Suddenly a fog covers the table and you taste oak moss and you smell oak moss. It is very rewarding experience. Fat Duck Films. It is followed by the Jelly of Quail, Crayfish Cream, and Chicken Liver Parfait with a Truffle Toast. This dish is one of the best flavor combinations I have ever had in my life. It blends so well together and creates a dish you only want more of. The next course is the infamous Snail Porridge, that I wasn't very happy with the first time. For some reasons, this time is so much better. I don't know if the quality of the snails was better or if the kitchen putting together this dish the last time just had a bad day - But this time, it is really good. A pile of crunchy, shaved Fennel topped a bright green Porridge and strips of Iberico Bellota Ham, and finally perfectly cooked Escargot. My wife was served a wonderful Beetroot Risotto that she gave the highest remarks for. This was followed by the best Foie Gras E.V.E.R!! Just look at the image above. Can you honestly tell me that your mouth is not watering right now. Cooked to perfection, great barberries, and the crab biscuit adds a very interesting dimension to the dish. Next course - The Mad Hatter's Teaparty. A white bookmark where the back of the bookmark describes the Mock Turtle’s story and its popularity in the 19th century. A two layered, clear teapot is placed before each of us and then the waiter appears with gold Pocket Watches which we were to repair by dipping in our tea. When they are dipped they dissolve and create a wonderful and rich broth filled with gold leaves. This is then poured into our teacup below containing Beef, Cucumber, and Turnip pieces surrounding a Mock Egg Yolk made from Mushroom. To accompany our Mock Turtle Soup, a Mad Hatter Tea Stand was placed in the center of the table with toast sandwiches. It is such a fun course that you often forget that it also tastes fantastic. The Mock Turtle soup with its beefy flavor profile is rich and again, something you cant get enough of. The next is the classic Sound of the Sea. This dish is served with additional sensory input, a plate of seafood served with a seafood foam on top of a "beach" of tapioca, breadcrumbs and eel. Alongside the dish, we were given an iPod to listen to crashing waves whilst they eat. Maybe a little but too salty this time, I remember liking this more the first time. Still though, a tremendous dish that I could eat over and over again. The next two courses - a rich salmon with liquorice - a personal favorite of mine. The bite of perfectly cooked Salmon with its hint of Liquorice Gel, pop of Golden Roe Trout, tanginess of Grapefruit pieces, and sweetness of the Vanilla Mayonnaise is truly perfection. The combination of textures and flavours is phenomenal and innovative. And then a vegetarian bone marrow. How they make this dish I have no idea - but it is fun but also again very, very good!!! Pigeon - before this trip I might have had pigeon four times in total, over the last couple of weeks I have already had it five times. This one might lose out to the perfect pigeon at L'Astrance but it is a close call - A great course to end the savory part of the menu. The sweet section is not necessary pictured above in the order they were served. I wanted to highlight two dishes with one full-frame image. These two desserts are probable the most visual appealing desserts I have seen but more important, they are also really good. But before we get to these, we had soem cold and hot tea - a Heston classic which always plays mind tricks on you. Tea that is both hot and cold at the same time. Another classic Heston - Whisky gums and then finally a cornet. All these are good, but the next two....WOW This are simply stunning desserts, visually appealing, full of flavors and with so much depth. Words will not make them justice - so I will only say - you have to try them!! The last course of The Fat Duck Feast was presented as a parting gift. A custom Fat Duck pink striped Sweet Shop bag was given to us with a tiny menu inside that smelled like the sugary sweetness of a Sweet Shop itself. Inside was some Coconut Baccy, Apple Pie Caramel, and The Queen of Hearts.
To summarize, the food is exquisite, fun and tremendously rewarding. They have a great wine list with choices that fits any budget. The Restaurant Manager Dimitri Bellos is a true professional (one of the best we have met) and the service level is impeccable. Jonny Lake runs the kitchen without skipping a beat and it is worth every penny (and you have to dish out quite a few). Important to know that Heston Blumenthal has announced he would be closing the restaurant for renovations for 6 months and temporarily relocating it with its entire team to Crown Towers, Melbourne, Australia. The restaurant will be called The Fat Duck for 6 months before being renamed Dinner by Heston Blumenthal. So take the opportunity to visit it before it moves, visit it in Melbourne, or visit it when it reopens refurbished and re-energized. My message is simply, I don't care how, when or where you visit the Fat Duck - but just do it!!! You will not regret it. It is still the best meal that I have had in my life and now....I have had it twice!! L'Ortolan is Michelin Starred fine dining restaurant located in the picturesque village of Shinfield, Berkshire. With Executive Chef Alan Murchison the restaurant has won numerous awards including a Michelin Star and a place in the Sunday Times Top 50 restaurants in the UK. Alan Murchison also launched a wonderful cookbook, Food for Thoughts, which includes a lot of the wonderful recipes that you can enjoy at the L'Ortolan. The restaurant is located in beautiful house where you immediately feel like a welcomed guest. We had the fortune to go visit L'Ortolan just before Christmas so before getting seated in the dining room, you enjoyed drinks and some pre-dinner appetizers in a very cozy in-house veranda. The restaurant did a great job of accommodating my wife's dietary restrictions and were able to offer a great vegan alternative. The menu started with some great starters that really sets the expectations for the rest of the dining experience. The entrees part of the menu had a couple of great highlights. It started off with a wonderful duck liver parfait - smooth, velvety and with amazing depth of flavors. They also served a wonderful filet of bass - perfectly cooked, and with all the right sides. My wife had salads and vegetable platters - maybe it doesn't sound too exciting, but the flavors are rich, with a lot of depth and Chef Alan has done an excellent job of pairing these vegetables together. I am not a vegan guy - but I could have enjoyed just eating the vegan menu. After the main courses we had a wonderful cheese platter, trying some local artisan cheeses. Nice combination, but nothing that stood out as exceptional. The dinner ended with some great desserts, very light and with wonderful combinations. I sometimes feel that in french-influenced restaurants, the desserts are too heavy - but at L'Ortolan they were at the right level. We left the dinner feeling just perfectly filled. All in all, I was surprised to find this wonderful gem in Reading, but L'Ortolan is definitely worth a visit when you are in town. Great food, good wine line list, friendly staff and a wonderful location. Also make sure that you pick up Alan's cookbook so you can bring some of the L'Ortolan magic with you home. Highly recommended.
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