insideKENT Magazine Issue 81 - December 2018 | Page 87

LAURENT
AT HOTEL CAFÉ ROYAL
IT’S HARD TO STAND OUT FROM THE CROWD IN A LONDON DINING SCENE FULL OF FINESSE,
NUANCES AND CRITIQUE. INTERNATIONALLY ACCLAIMED CHEF LAURENT TOURONDEL HAS
DONE JUST THAT, IN A FEW SHORT MONTHS, AT HIS NAMESAKE OPEN KITCHEN AND GRILL
AND SUSHI OFFERING LAURENT AT HOTEL CAFÉ ROYAL. by Samantha Ready
Tourandel has accepted the baton passed by
his successful resident predecessors, including
renowned chefs Albert Adria, the Roca brothers
and Paco Roncero, and made his own
permanent mark on his stunning newly
opened first-floor restaurant, another result
of the pristine restoration and renovation
programme at Café Royal.
Ensconced across a grand balcony mezzanine
level with its gilded columns and beautiful
arched windows, dark wooden tables with
wooden bucket chairs and leather bench
seating, diners are afforded views to the lobby
below or London outside, depending on
which table you bag. The other side offers a
rare and intriguing view straight into the
kitchen with its roaring open parrilla grill and
chimneys. Beyond this, past the open sushi
station, where we were momentarily
mesmerised by the amazing knife skills on
display, lies the more intimate dining room.
There is a feasting table at one end and a
variety of cosier tables for two or four; some
with low-level sofa-style seating mixing the
Far Eastern style of dining with a decidedly
luxurious Anglo-French feel.
Our end table for two offered views down to
Regent Street, and to the stunningly lit bar
with its superb cocktail menu and exceptional
old and new world wine list with a decidedly
French feel. Tables afforded intimate dining
but were also close enough to strike
conversations with neighbouring diners,
sneak peeks at passing plates of wonder, and
take in the buzz that seemed to radiate across
the restaurant.
In the week that my guest and I dined at
Laurent at Hotel Café Royal, it had been open
just three months and was ranked that evening
in the Top 20 of 18,000 London restaurants
on Tripadvisor; that is the top 0.1%... mind
blown and expectations set.
And then we met Nikos, the charismatic food
and beverage manager who made running a
top 0.1% restaurant look entirely effortless.
Friendly with the right degree of formality, he
knew his restaurant and his menu inside out,
oozed charm and confidence and we (and
our neighbouring diners) were soon under
his spell of menu recommendations carefully
chosen through thoughtful acknowledgement
of our personal dining preferences.
Before we knew it we had drinks lined up,
wines carefully matched by the equally
efficacious sommelier, and had selected a
range of dishes across the sashimi, raw fish
sushi, delectable appetiser and grill focused
main course menu.
And then began our culinary dream parade
of dishes: the far from humble popover – a
huge yorkshire pudding-cum-bread-cum-
melt-in-the-mouth taste of heaven with
house-salted butter; the downright amazing
crispy Wagyu beef nigiri with its tender meat,
truffle aioli and delicate crispy rice rolls; my
guest’s punchy, spicy and crispy shrimp sushi
with chilli, lime and avocado; his grilled
octopus with ratte potatoes and divine ‘nduja
and cured olives; my new favourite starter
ever – the parmesan-prosciutto custard, the
best cheesy smooth souffle-esque dish ever.
I was persuaded to veer away from my
standard fillet cut choice, and instead tried the
Aberdeen Angus onglet; the richer, rippled
cut was a delicious follow up to my previous
courses, especially when teamed with salt and
vinegar chips and ginger ketchup; although
my guest stole the main show with his Wagyu
beef short ribs with pickled jalapeño
chimichurri and gratin potatoes.
As regular readers and my team at iK HQ know,
I am never one to turn down dessert, but for
the first time I was totally enthralled by my
meal and matched drinks that my dinner felt
complete. My guest, however, was totally
swayed by the final recommendation of the
milk chocolate peanut butter croquant, which
transpired to be a smooth, rich and clever final
triumph from the Laurent team.
We reluctantly left, hours later and only then
with plans to return. I implore you to dine here
as soon as you can.
020 7406 3310
www.laurentatcaferoyal.com
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