Ormer Mayfair

Hidden gems in Mayfair

Canapes

I first encountered Ormer back in 2016 when it just opened, it was headed up by Shaun Rankin, a talented chef who has a Michelin star in his Jersey restaurant. 8 years later, many things have changed, with head chefs coming and going. In the last 3 years, the platform belong to Sofian Msetfi. A British chef with Moroccan heritage who appears to have a habit of mixing Japanese elements into his modern European-style cuisine. Ormer landed a Michelin star in the 2024 guide and I was interested to see how much has it changed since my last visit. The restaurant offers a tasting menu and for dinner occasions only.

Endo at the Rotunda

The London sushi benchmark?

Trio of tuna

I rarely splash my cash on Japanese fine ding as it is the most expensive cuisine in London, and most places would set you back more than £250 per person when factor in service. For that very reason, I would need to make sure if I do go for Japanese, it has to be worth my dosh and my time. I had an excellent meal at Roketsu in 2022 which specializes in kaiseki cuisine, but also a really underwhelming sushi meal at Roji. Among the foodies' community, Endo is supposed to be the peak of sushi in London and I would love to test that theory. It serves an omakase blind-tasting menu only, you would not know what to get till you get there.

Galvin La Chapelle

 Classic French charm revisit

Dorset crab raviolo Dashi “beurre blanc”, braised fennel, Baerii caviar & trout roe

I have been eating my way around London for over 10 years, seeing so many new restaurants opening and closing at such a fast pace. I got to a point where now I understand it is not always about the next hot new opening, why wouldn't you want to visit amazing, reliable places that would guarantee you great food and a good time? Lately, I have been going back to places that I have enjoyed in the past. Galvin La Chapelle is one of those places that I always wish I would visit more often as I had some great memories there, so once I found out it had a revamp back in early 2024, it was a good excuse to head back.

Sollip

Modern European cuisine with a light Korean touch

Dongchimi

I have to admit the Michelin star guide does have an impact on me when searching for a place to eat. Without it, I would never have come across Sollip, a 1 starred restaurant run by a Korean couple in London Bridge. I have never had upmarket Korean food in London before, nor have I come across a modern European restaurant with Korean influences, so I was eager to see what Sollip could bring. It is a tasting menu only venue, with a short one for lunch and a longer one for dinner.

Restaurant St. Barts

Totally British to the core

BBQ turbot

There are many restaurants in London these days that focus on local ingredients, trying to source as locally as possible to ensure the freshness and condition of the ingredients. However, few like Restaurant St Barts take that to the next level. It would only use ingredients from the UK and refuse to touch anything beyond that. For example, it won't use lime at all given the temperature of the UK is not able to grow lime to the desired quality the restaurant seeks. It offers a tasting menu only format, with fermentation and aging methods to produce flavours you normally would not find from British ingredients.