Any restaurant that undergoes a sizeable building extension is doing something right, and Gaucho in Richmond is no exception. One of our favourite restaurant chains in the UK, we’ll never turn down an opportunity to review a Gaucho and the finest steak money can buy.
Gaucho Richmond is one of the latest restaurants to join the chain and is nestled bang on the riverside within an absolutely idyllic setting. The restaurant itself is glass roofed and fronted, which allows for a cracking view of the Thames, it’s ducks and some rather athletic runners and rowers pretty much wherever you sit.
Once you’ve parked up somewhere along the main road you’ll simply need to make your way down to the river and you’ll see it – just looked for the huge’ glass house’ and you’re there.
The restaurant comprises the familiar furnishings and dimmed lighting to the other Gaucho restaurants – the cow hide chairs, long bar, delicious smells and extremely friendly and welcoming staff. However, we felt that there was an absolute elegance to Gaucho Richmond that surpasses the others we have been lucky enough to review to date.
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“Forget the House red or white, bring me the whisky!”
This kind of opening request to the sommelier would normally bring on fear and slight disgust, but not at the excellent Plateau restaurant in Canary Wharf….
The Plateau - Canary Wharf
Allan Picket, head chef, has joined forces with Johnnie Walker to create a unique three course tasting menu that highlights the key expressions in the single malts which combine to create Johnnie Walker Blue Label.
Blue Label is Johnnie Walker’s premium single malt. Only 1 in a 1000 barrels make the grade to Blue label. The quality shines through, backed with a smoothness and a strong depth of flavour. The price of Johnie Walker blue label is all too irrelevant once tasted.
Johnnie Walker Blue Label Whisky
This whisky orientated tasting menu starts from September. Upon arrival, guests will be guided through the specially crafted seasonal menu. Each course, such as a terrine of ham and parsley with pear chutney or Bitter Valrhona chocolate tart, is paired with a single malt or other expression of Johnnie Walker.
Guests will be introduced to each whisky as it arrives at the table and appreciate its versatility by trying each liquid straight, chilled, iced or with water to understand the complex flavours and varying strength before finally matching it to their own palate and enjoying the food.
To culminate, diners will be presented with a perfect serve of Johnnie Walker Blue Label and they will be able to draw on the knowledge acquired throughout the evening to appreciate the deep and varied flavours present in each sip.
An entertaining and educational evening. A dedicated whisky expert will guide you through each course. For whiskey tasting London can offer no better venue.
Allan Pickett, Head Chef at Plateau: “Few people think of whisky as a drink to accompany dinner, but it can be an incredible match with the right dishes. Our whisky expert will explain how and why I created this special menu, in what promises to be a fascinating evening.”
As I have said, the incredibly reasonable cost of Johnnie Walker blue label (http://www.johnniewalker.com) is irrelevant. The cost of this rather special evening is priceless, but just for you, details are below.
The Johnnie Walker Blue Label exclusive tasting experience will be available from 1 September 2010 in Plateau’s private dining spaces for £95 per head. Reservations must be made in advance (http://www.plateaurestaurant.co.uk)
We recently visited Wyndham Grand, Chelsea Harbour for a spot of lunch on the terrace overlooking the delightful harbour. Luckily the sun was out for the occasion so we celebrated with a delightful glass of white.
The restaurant (named Restaurant and Lounge TwentyTen) has recently undergone an impressive revamp, along with the rest of the hotel offers a very modern yet tranquil setting for a meal.
There’s a little more to this restaurant however, it is in fact a unique pop-up up restaurant concept, which means that whilst TwentyTen has a permanent space – the concept and name will change every year (i.e. TwentyEleven etc). As with all top class restaurants the menu changes on a seasonal basis and includes featuring fresh seafood, prime cuts of meat and fresh produce as you’d expect. All ingredients are sourced from regional farmers and are entirely free from nitrates and additives.
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Posted by Chantelle on Mon 19th July 2010 at 03:50 PM, Filed in Fine Dining
In keeping with my theme of finding luxury restaurants with lovely outside spaces, my search leads me to Aylesford in Kent to Hengist. Aylesford is a tiny cutesy oldie-worldie village with picturesque features and having walked through it from beginning to end must have taken less than 5 minutes! Consequently, I must say we were surprised to see a restaurant of this calibre located in such a quaint sleepy village. However, there were no complaints in the slightest, its charm leapt out and we loved what we saw.
Hengist exterior
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Posted by Chantelle on Mon 19th July 2010 at 01:32 PM, Filed in Fine Dining
With this glorious weather we’ve been lately, as I’m sure you’ll agree it’s too nice to dine inside so my quest to find luxurious alfresco fine dining restaurants started with a smart establishment Quo Vadis. Conveniently located right inside the hustle and bustle of London’s Soho district Quo Vadis has a lovely outside terrace where you can sit and watch the world go by!
Restaurant exterior and terrace
Private dining room
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