Boxwood Café at The Berkeley Hotel, London

Has been a good old 7 years since I last returned to London, my familiar home town & this time, I really came with a purpose. People often criticise that England does not have its own national cuisine & some may comment that the national cuisine is Indian as well as the quality of food is poor & I am back to prove all the doubters on this. In fact, I want to point out that London is truly a fabulous culinary city with experiences that one can never have in Hong Kong, either you visit the dirty alleys for a quick kebab or slice of pizza, or visiting your local markets for an authentic Cumberland Sausage or even visiting Knightsbridge for a casual fine dining experience, London has it all! Since there are many restaurants & markets which I visited this trip, I will keep each review nice & short to provide you with my insight & verdict on the restaurants.

For those that do not know Boxwood Café, this is one of the branches under the Gordon Ramsay brand, located in the heart of Knightsbridge. When you hear Knightsbridge, fear
& panic start to arise due to $$$ and a pint of beer at Knightsbridge costs a whopping $5.50 (around HKD70). For those that do not know who Gordon Ramsay is, he is the foul mouthed fella that brings us the lovely & entertaining programs such as The F-Word, Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmare & Hell’s Kitchen (http://www.gordonramsay.com/corporate/theman/biography/). Few of us may know that Mr Ramsay himself has struggled on the world domination in comparison to our lovely Essex Boy Jamie Oliver (read below) & the S Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants list also did not include Restaurant Gordon Ramsay (http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2009/dec/04/gordon-ramsay-new-york-london).

Despite all the doubters, he is a reputable & commercial chef & it is a must to visit one of his restaurants in which I did not fancy his other fine-dining restaurants such as Petrus or Gordon Ramsay’s at Claridges as a laid back & casual lunch without ponsing around too much is much preferred on this rainy day in London, how typical! The moment you set foot in the restaurant, you are greeted by two beautiful blonde Maitre d’of whom resembled the likes of Liz Hurley + Jodie Kidd, you know you are in for a good meal. Simple décor & although meant to be one of more casual restaurants, the place was filled with bankers & lawyers. Food, service & ambiance during our lunch did not disappoint:

Starters – Thinly sliced San Daniele ham, roasted pheasant, pomegranate and a walnut dressing – The San Daniele Ham was thinly sliced & smooth as silk. Beautiful colours of the mixture of fat & flesh was greatly complemented by the walnut & pomegranate dressing  as well as a simple rocket salad at the bottom. The roasted phesant was fresh & with wonderful seasonings. Myself, who has never enjoyed eating Pork gives this a THUMBS UP. The quality of this ham is breath-taking

 

Starters – Fried wild West Mersea rock oysters with fennel and lemon – I loved the presentation of 5 rock oysters placed on top of a pile of sea-salt, although simple but yet elegant. I do not like my oysters deep fried as during the process, it loses some of its freshness & the juice of the oyster itself therefore this was a starter which was ordinary. The fennel was fresh with no bitter taste which was a bonus.

Starters – Seared Scallop with Garlic Butter – Same metal saucepan that was used to present the rock oysters, the 3 seared scallops were moderate size which at 14.50 pounds was very expensive. Scallops were fresh with a sweet flavour to it & with a pinch of the rock salt at the saucepan, they work hand in hand. 

Main – Roasted loin of suckling pig, garlic-roasted potatoes, grain mustard sauce – There is something which they I have to praise Boxwood Café which is the quality of pork. As I confessed about my dislike towards pigs, I tried a forkful of the roasted loin & to my surprise, the dish & the smell of the pork was sensational. Unlike the poor quality of pork in Hong Kong, this was flavourful, succulent, tender, juicy & the crackling was crispy. Special highlight of this dish must be the roasted spuds with the grain mustard sauce, the spuds were perfectly roasted & tender in the middle. Magnificent dish to say the least & I wish we can get such quality of pork in Hong Kong.

Main – Grilled Aberdeen Angus rib-eye chop with beef marrowbone, roasted red onion and whole roasted garlic – The Restaurant Director popped over to our table & HIGHLY recommended claiming this to be the BEST RIB EYE CHOP of London & obviously he is very well trained on the level of ego & arrogance by Mr Ramsay himself. Another massive saucepan arrives with the grilled rib eye & believe me, it was massive. The knive sunk into the steak & it was nice & pink in the middle and the first bite was heavenly. Very juicy, tender & extremely flavourful are the right definition for this piece of steak. The sauce paired well with the steak & to be honest, I am very happy to enjoy this fine slab of meat without the sauce as you can enjoy the natural flavours of the meat. I may not say or agree this is the BEST RIB EYE CHOP in London, but it is definitely on the same grading. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED DISH

Main – Grilled loin of yellow fin tuna with creamed parsnips and black pepper sauce – One of the very best yellow fin tuna in which I have tasted in Hong Kong has to be in AMBER at The Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hotel & was tuna cubes wrapped with crispy chicken skin drizzled in soya sauce. Not exactly a tuna cube which was presented at Boxwood & it was a big chunk of yellow fin tuna which was paired with deep fried parsnips & black pepper sauce. Oh my, oh my, this dish is worth a return to Boxwood Café as the yellow fin tuna was beautifully grilled with grilled marks & nicely seared in the middle in which the technique is pure masterclass. The texture & taste was something to die for & as a self confessed fan of tuna, this is slightly ranked higher than the tuna cubes at Amber. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED DISH

Main – Veal and foie gras burger with cos lettuce, parmesan and chips – This was the signature dish of Boxwood Café & you have to check out what it’s all about. I have had many beef burgers with foie gras in my life & veal + foie gras was the first. As the calves are slaughered at a very young age, veal is relatively more tender & has a wonderful & delicate taste. The veal burger patty was mixed with even & generous chunks of foie-gras & the combination of both were deadly. The 2 deep fried onion rings on the patty was unnecessary and should have been presented on the side. The cos-lettuce was crisp & fresh & the burger bun was beautifully grilled. Can definitely see why this is the signature dish & it is & was mouth-watering. Am getting hungry just by thinking of this burger right now. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED DISH

Dessert – Warm chocolate fondant, salt caramel and mint chocolate ice cream – The best part of the meal is always saved to the last. First comes the Warm Chocolate Fondant which was small in size & with the texture slightly dry which was disappointing. The chocolate sauce was delectable & strong in flavour with the refreshing Mint Chocolate Ice-Cream which balanced out the flavours. Overall, a very ordinary chocolate fondant which was very average.

 

Dessert – Valrhona hot chocolate fondue, marshmallows, biscotti and bananas – Surely, you must be thinking, how stuffed are you fatties after such meal with all this food on the table. Don’t ask me how & why but one of our guests very stupidly ordered the Hot Valrhona Chocolate Fondue which was the ultimate killer. When one has consumed over 1000 calories in one meal, the rest is meaningless & as Johnny Depp once said in the movie of “Blow”, “ Oh F*ck it, let’s do it!”. The sides with the marshmallows, biscotti & bananas are nothing worth a mention but the real dea here is the Valrhona Chocolate. Gently warm not to the level of steaming hot when it arrived on table, we very Asianly dipped our fingers into the fondue, now talking about hygiene. The chocolate fondue was extremely rich & this is the sort of dessert that can seduce any woman in the planet. Purely sensational & decadent & by my third attempt at the fondue, I was already taking spoonfuls of the chocolate fondue which was just marvelous. Life cannot get any better than this & I am sure the waistline must have expanded by a few inches after this course. HIGHLY RECOMMDNED DISH 

The Restaurant Director, Joeness Amara Bangali came over & greeted us & this man has a beautiful smile & is a crowd pleaser. He also talked us into the Angus Rib Eye which in all fairness, was a great recommendation. What happened next just got even more exciting as we were pleasantly invited on a tour of Mr Ramsay’s Kitchen whereby not many people have the privilege to do. We also met up with the Executive Chef of Boxwood Café, Simon Gregory, a very mean looking Aussie Chef (http://www.gordonramsay.com/boxwoodcafe/chefs/headchef/) of whom is a wonderful & passionate person towards food. We chatted about his signature veal & foie-gras burger as well as the wonderful roasted pork loin which I honestly told him that such quality of pork does not exist in our part of the world which is a real shame. The kitchen tour was full of heat & I was personally amazed they would let us into the heart of the operation during a busy lunch service & the team of chefs are all hustling & bustling away with plates & plates of hot food firing out to the public. Wonderful scene for a foodie to enjoy for sure.

Overall, a wonderful experience at one of the less reknowned restaurants of the Gordon Ramsay brand & I thoroughly enjoyed this casual, laid back dining style in Knightsbridge. Shame that Gordom Ramsay himself was not at Boxwood on the day, or else it would have made my visit very special! Writing this review has not been easy as the thought of the food in my mind is purely orgasmic!

Happy Eating!

Geoff

Upcoming Review: Jamie Oliver’s Fifthteen on Old Street

Address: The Berkeley, Wilton Place, Knightsbridge, London SW1X 7RL

Tel: 020 7235 1010

Food Quality (5* the highest): 3/1/2*

Price for Lunch (5$ = very expensive): $$$$ (Around 200 pounds)