Dinner by Heston Blumenthal at the Mandarin Oriental (London)

 

 It was the first time that I had dined at a Heston Blumenthal restaurant so I was very excited about the evening. I knew that there would be less theatrics than the Fat Duck, but I was certainly interested about the concept of Dinner, and the ingredients that were used in the courses. Apparently Blumenthal spent years exploring Britain's gastronomic past, and consulting with food-historians, in particular focusing on fifteenth and sixteenth century cookery. As a historian, I was intrigued by this, and certainly enjoyed the historical background of the dishes being explained to us.

Starter

Frumenty (c.1390) (Grilled octopus, smoked sea broth, pickled dulse & lovage)

I really liked how unique this starter was in terms of taste and textures. It was cooked beautifully- octopus is easy to over cook, but this was still soft and not at all rubbery. I felt that the broth and dulse worked perfectly, adding depth and texture. For me, this was the best course of the meal.

Main:

Fillet of Aberdeen Angus (c.1830) (Mushroom ketchup & fries)

The flavours were nice, but I felt that this dish was average. No wow factor in terms of taste or presentation. For £42 for this dish, I expected more.

Pre-dessert

 A chocolate ganache with a nice biscotto. The friend I was dining with does not eat chocolate so I had 2- very rich indeed.

Dessert

Chocolate and orange dessert. It was beautifully presented and very tasty.

After this course we had the ice-cream that was made at our table using liquid nitrogen. I guess a meal at Heston's has to have a bit of theatre. Nice to watch, but the ice-cream melted very quickly and therefore it was very difficult to eat in a refined manner. Moreover, I felt that £8 for an ice-cream was a little bit steep- we only realised the price once we got the bill.

Quality & Presentation of  the Food

The quality of the food is good. The starter had lovely, unusual flavours. I wasn't impressed by the main and dessert. The portion sizes were good.

The presentation was good for some courses.

Service & Ambience

I was not impressed by the service. We had several different waiters who dealt with different aspects of the meal. This meant that we were disrupted several times. I felt rushed as we were asked a few times whether we had made our mind up about the courses we wanted. You certainly realise quickly that this restaurant has many covers a night, and therefore I felt like we did not have time to really relax and enjoy the food and ambience.


Value for Money

For 3 courses and a glass of wine the bill came to £100. I'm glad I went, but I would not go again.

Mark's Restaurant, Mandarin Oriental (Munich.)

Last Christmas we thought it would be a nice idea to visit Munich to enjoy the Christmas Markets and get us into the festive season. However, rather than sampling the markets we sampled the food, and it turned into a gastronomic holiday. On our final night we dined at Mark's Restaurant at the Mandarin Oriental. (A Michelin starred restaurant in the centre of the city.)

 

Before we got our starter we were treated to three amuse bouche. They were delicious, and actually better than the dessert, something I thought I would never hear myself say. My favourite one was the second one, which had wonderful Asian flavours. The sushi was delicious and I liked the wasabi and crème fraiche in a crispy cone.

 

 

 

Starter

I'm not usually too keen on soup for a starter but this soup was rich in flavour, butter nut squash and truffle, a beautiful colour and a nice wonton (which I think was lobster) on the top.

Main

The beef was cooked just how I liked it. The sides, potato, mustard, onion was okay, but did not really excite me or add to the dish. I did however like the French beans wrapped in ham and fried so the bacon was lovely and crispy. This was a good main, but not an excellent one.

Dessert

The poached pear had chocolate ganache running through the middle and toasted sesame seeds on the outside. The ice cream was sandwich by light biscuits and the dessert was finished with cold leaf. I was disappointed by the dessert. It could have been enhanced with a sauce, perhaps a rich caramel one, or some of the poaching juices. The dish needed to be sweeter. The 3 biscuits could have been filled with different flavours of ice cream. At the end of the dessert I was still craving something sweet.

The favours

They were nice, but I have had better.

 

Quality & Presentation of the Food

 

The savoury food was good, the desserts were average. The amuse bouche and the starter was the highlight. The food was beautifully presented. I had a delicious non-alcoholic cocktail followed by a glass of red wine. The red wine was really unpleasant; at 16 Euros I had hoped for something better.

 

Service & Ambience

 

The service was excellent. The waiting staff were all very friendly and helpful.

 

It is clear that they have thought carefully about the ambience of the restaurant. There is plenty of space between each table and therefore you feel that this is an intimate experience. We certainly did not feel rushed. The décor of the restaurant is nice.

 

Value of Money

 

For 3 courses, a non-alcoholic cocktail and a glass of wine, it came to about 90 Euros. A nice experience for our trip to Munich, but it is not a restaurant I would return to.

**