Bar Boulud, London

Once again taking a bit of inspiration from LondonEater, and then following up with a couple of the earliest reviews here and here since it’s opening a few weeks ago, we rushed to make a booking at the new Bar Boulud in London. We were hoping to catch a glimpse of star chef Daniel Boulud before he heads back home to his already well-established restaurants in New York, including the 3-starred ‘Daniel’ restaurant, and we were not disappointed.

Having enjoyed food and drink in close proximity to a number of well known celebrities, I’ve never found myself easily star-struck. But I suppose for a foodie, there is just something special about being in the presence of culinary greatness. Perhaps because it is something we can aspire to, in a more real way than, say a sports reporter might dream to dunk like Jordan or putt like Tiger. And if you can grasp for a moment that shared appreciation and love of good food, it becomes personal.

The service at Bar Boulud is outstanding, and it is clear that there are still a number of the staff visiting from the New York branch – familiar American accents compliment french ones. The hostess finds our appointment and takes us to our table in the second room, in the back half of the restaurant. We pass the first room, which is seemingly a bit more lively and shares a space with the cocktail bar. On this Tuesday evening, the bar in particular, and the restaurant more generally, is decorated with a mix of 3-piece suited businessmen, intermingled with a bit more casually dressed couples, perhaps guests of the 5-star hotel to which the restaurant is attached. We have arrived relatively casual, but the environment is relaxed, so we don’t feel particularly out-of-place, even wielding the camera in bag. Looking back, I do not recall a particular genre of music, or whether there even was music, or perhaps simply quiet voices carrying on private discussions. We are seated in between two other sets of patrons: to the right, lovers with a slight head start in front of us on the meal, and to the left a pair of businessmen discussing the syndication of a well-known fashion magazine. The second room is quieter, and includes the spectacle of the open kitchen. We gazed throughout the evening at this heavily staffed, yet immaculately clean and tightly run workshop.

It was not clear which waiter was principally responsible for our table, as several different waiters (and others who were apparently managers in suits as well) were all very attentive to our table throughout the night. We were brought a wine list, but not a cocktail list. The wines were well presented, with a proper table of contents organizing wines by colors, regions, and tastes, and I regret not having been able to order at least a glass, as I was just recovering from a cold and didn’t want to do anything to prolong the recovery. Without access to the cocktail list, and only having heard the description of the one ‘special’ cocktail of the day, my companion ventured to give it a try.

Cucumber martini

The drink had a very fresh and intense flavour of cucumber, and I suppose to a big fan of cucumber (which sadly I am not) this drink might go over quite well. It was sipped but never actually finished. So if we would have to highlight a single disappointment of the night, it would probably be this cocktail, which simply didn’t suit our tastes, and well, objectively I would say it did not seem to offer much more complexity than the overpowering taste of fresh cucumber juice. But we were aware of the risky gamble when we took it.

The menu is organized in a unique way – or perhaps this is the normal way for real country-style french bistros, I’m not sure – but we enjoyed the fact that it seemed to offer several different alternatives for the entire path of the meal. It’s not just “choose your starter, then choose your main” – it’s more like “which Boulud’s do you feel like this evening? Soup and burger? Pâte and fish? Sausage and braised meat?” There are many ways to put together a combination to suit your mood, and between two people those combinations multiply. Or of course you could skip past all the options and go with the set menu. We opted for a la carte, first for a couple of starters from different parts of the menu.

Tourte De canard

The tourte de canard is found on the Charcuterie de Gilles Verot section of the menu, where we find other pâtes and meats. It is served as a single thin slice from a large tourte, in which I counted about 8 or 9 layers, which consist of duck, foie gras, figs, and pastry crust. I tried eating it both ways – first by getting a nice thin vertical stripe across all the layers – and these complimented each other well; and then by tasting individual layers and combinations of layers. The foie gras on its own was spectacular, and I couldn’t resist grabbing a piece of bread and spreading it on. The fig layer was sweet and fruity, and made a nice complement to the fatty duck layer. I’m afraid I haven’t sampled enough tourtes from the charcuterie in my lifetime to have a good base for comparison here, but I will certainly be thinking of this one the next time I visit the patrie-mère. This was served with a spoonful of coarse mustard, which I hadn’t had for a while – I suppose it’s not that common in London?

Rillons croustillants au poivre

The crispy and tender pork belly with cracked pepper, as this dish is subtitled, is listed in the “Warm Specialties” section. This is the most memorable of the savory dishes of the meal for me, and the “cracked pepper” aspect of it did not leave as much of an impression as the accompanying Dijon mustard – a bit too strong for my companion, and really only the slightest dab was necessary to add a bit of kick to the chunks of pork belly. I particularly enjoyed the way this dish was served – on a piece of chef’s paper, really giving the dish that “country-style” feel. The four slices of pork belly each had about 5 distinct layers, a couple very meaty, one white and leaner, and one of just pure fat. It was a whole new dimension on pork for me, and quite delicious.

Coq au vin

On to the mains, my companion ordered what I probably would have otherwise selected, described as red wine braised chicken legs, with lardons, mushrooms, and onions, served with spätzle. Now, I knew I had heard the word before, but we weren’t quite sure what spätzle was – but we were pleasantly surprised when we tasted the gnocchi-like egg pasta served separately in a little pot on the side – very nice.

I’ve only really had the coq au vin from Bluebird as a comparison, but I feel secure in saying this one was equally amazing, and my only complaint might be that we were able to finish it in one sitting, while the Bluebird one was at the same time so filling and so good that we requested a doggie bag (yes, a doggie bag) so I could have it for lunch the next day. But I suppose serving correctly sized portions is not a bad thing, and admittedly I did have to finish half of it off for my companion, which I was happy to do, after finishing my own dish.

Gigot a la cuillère (?)

Well, this was a daily special, and we were really only told in English that it was a dish of “slow-cooked lamb” – so I’m only guessing that the actual French title might be Gigot a la cuillère. The name means “a joint that can be carved with a spoon”, presumably referring to how tender the meat is and how it falls off the bone after cooking for up to 7 hours. I’m going to try to describe what this dish did while I was eating it, but I’m afraid I won’t do it justice, so use your imagination. When the dish first arrived, there were a number of distinct components, as you can see in the photo. Although they were all in the same dish, it was almost as if it were served “decomposed” such that you could sample each ingredient individually, and reconstruct the combination of flavours by getting each bit on your fork. Even the sauce underlying the lamb was deconstructed into a creamy almost bechamel-like portion, and a separate brothy, meaty portion. The cherry tomatoes were cooked but still intact, and the other flavoring components – artichokes, olives, legumes, etc. all layered on top. The lamb itself was tender and delicious. Now, as the consumption of this dish proceeded, and we mix the ingredients and burst the cherry tomatoes into the creamy brothy sauce, it transforms into something like a thick soup. At this point I was tempted to beg the waiter for a big spoon, in order to get all of the ingredients in to my mouth along with the soupy sauce and the chunks of lamb. The combination was just brilliant. After finishing the dish I did what any polite foodie should do to show gratitude and appreciation in a fancy restaurant – I wiped the plate clean and soaked up any of that last remaining soupy sauce with a piece of bread, so as not to let it go to waste!

Halfway through the meal we began to study the movements of the kitchen staff, and no sooner had we started asking ourselves where Chef Boulud might be hiding, than he was approaching our table to introduce himself. Having noticed the camera, he asked if we were writers, and when it was revealed that we dabble in food blogging, he mentioned that just the evening before he had received a visit from a table of food bloggers. This has been evidenced by their reviews, promptly posted the same day we made our visit, here and here. It was an amazing experience to meet such an accomplished chef, and even better to sense the confidence and pride he has in his product – he has no fear of publicity. He did not wait for the waiter to bring around the dessert menu, and indicated that he would send a few things for us to try. Now, I assume for foodies that have been in the business for a while this happens all the time – but this was a first for me, so it was a very special gesture indeed.

We had indicated that we were both fans of chocolate, and so after the departure of the chef, and upon arrival of the menus, we were contemplating which one of the three different chocolate desserts we might want to try. Before we had a chance to choose one of the three, the waiter took our menus and presented us with three different desserts, selected by Chef Boulud himself. One was of course a chocolate selection, while the other two would tempt us into unexpected territory. At this point I’ll have to excuse myself for the poor job I’ve done at capturing the appropriate lighting for the dessert photos – but with three desserts being prepared in front of us in rapid succession, I really had no time for experimentation.

Coupe peppermint

Well, I should save the best for last, but as we must do with dessert, we indulge and do not hold back. And to say this dessert is the “best” might not actually be accurate – it is really the most interesting of the desserts. The description of flourless chocolate sponge, hot chocolate sauce, mint ice cream, and chocolate sorbet does not really do justice to this creation. I have always loved mint ice cream – as a child, a scoop of mint chocolate chip and a scoop of coffee was one of my favorite duos. So, on seeing the familiar green-shaded ice cream at the bottom of this cup, I was prepared for something familiar, and not prepared at all for the sensation that hit my tongue. Instead of the overly sweet, childlike thing that we grew up learning to call mint, something much more “adult” hit my palate. My first thought was of the mint tea you have in a Lebanese restaurant, and then of picking fresh mint from my father’s garden as a child. This mint ice cream tasted of actual fresh mint. Now, this might be completely obvious to a chef, but it was an amazing revelation to me and my preconceived notions about mint ice cream. I was so fascinated by this that I barely noticed the triple-layers of hot and cold chocolate on top and surrounding the mint, and I found myself digging to the bottom to get more spoonfuls of the glorious ice cream. This is one of the most unique and special desserts I can remember in a long time or maybe ever, and it is a must have.

Soufflé grand mariner

This was what I would guess a traditional soufflé is, which is then broken in the middle in front of you at the table and then warm crème anglaise is poured into the middle. The amazing thing about this one was the taste of the soufflé itself. I personally could have done without the cream, as it simply diluted and hid the amazing taste of the soufflé, which was buttery and rich and sweet, and certainly moist enough on its own to be eaten without more cream poured into it. But in any case, very good. If I were a soufflé person, I imagine this would rank as one of the best.

Gâteau basque

This was a custard cake with brandied cherries, with a spoonful of crème anglaise. It seemed almost boring and forgettable in comparison to the other two desserts, but on its own was of course quite yummy and notably light and fluffy for a slice of gâteau. It is much more subtle than the other two desserts.

Amidst this fanfare about dessert, I note that we may have missed out on a masterpiece which was described in another review, the Gâteau Chocolat-Framboise. Along with the Boudin Blanc sausage and the burgers, this will certainly warrant a return to what must be the best new French country bistrot restaurant in London.

There is no doubt we will be returning to Bar Boulud in the near future, and the other Boulud establishments will be on the top of my list for my next visit to New York as well. The combination of stellar service and brilliant food make this one a winner. Clearly desserts are one of the shining points here, and I would say go just to sample some desserts, but honestly you really need to try the full package. And I must say, the prices are amazing, considering the quality of food – this has got to be one of the best values in london for higher-echelon cooking. My total bill came out to 70 pounds including service, for the two of us. If you consider that 10 pounds of that was for the risky cocktail we would have done better without, then 60 pounds for a dinner of this caliber is just exceptional.

Bar Boulud
Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park
66 Knightsbridge
London SW1X 7LA
http://www.barboulud.com/barbouludLondon.html
Tel: +44 (0)2072013899

The original set of high-res photos is here.