Occupying perhaps the most lavishly-refurbished conservatory in London, this new restaurant offers a true grand luxe experience, albeit in rather American style; an Italian menu is realised to a competent standard, though rather overshadowed by the setting and the service.
To an extent which is perhaps unique among the capital’s top places to stay, the Lanesborough – marooned at Hyde Park Corner – has never really entered into most Londoners’ consciousness, and certainly not as a place for serious dining. (The ‘fine’ dining room establishment launched soon after the hotel itself was established soon folded.) Unlike such home-grown properties as Claridge’s or the Connaught, the Lanesborough – it appears to us – has always seemed strictly a place for rich people from somewhere else.
This impression is unlikely to be upset by first (or last) impressions of the hotel’s refurbished conservatory (of which the computer simulation above is, it turns out, uncannily accurate, but it looks much more luxurious with tablecloths).
The space is lavish in a way that few central London locations are, and the expenditure which has now been lavished on said space is extraordinary. We suspect that, if Louis XIV were to be reborn today, and sent off by dad to be ‘finished’ at an American business school, he might end up wanting a dining chamber something like this (and with table appointments to match). We found this setting extremely comfortable, without being convinced that – even if we did ever win the lottery – we might personally want to live like this (or, in these eco-conscious days, to dine in quite such redundant splendour at all).
The stylishly liveried retainers, er, staff already flit about efficiently and with great charm, even when dealing with demands that might be considered a little off-piste: ‘an Evening Standard Sir? We’ll send the concierge to get one for you.’ (But perhaps that’s part and parcel of dealing with the very rich.) And even the relentless selling-in – a glass of champagne/sweet wine/port, Sir? – is done so smoothly that you can’t quite help yourself commending the staff’s professionalism, even as you tighten the grip on your wallet.
The menu comes as something of a surprise: the very English name of the dining room, and the very international (and grand-French-heavy wine list) suggest a restaurant of indeterminate culinary aspirations, but it turns out to be a proper Italian affair.
Indeed, even the most obvious dishes often come with at least one not entirely known and unusual ingredient. This might well discourage the less adventurous diner (such, perhaps, as the young lady on an adjacent table, who spent the whole of dinner playing Nintendo). Perhaps the menu will in time evolve to include some more obviously ‘comfort’-style dishes?
The determinedly authentic nature of the menu in place at the moment, however, risks inciting expectations that the actual cooking will be out of the ordinary, and what we ate was pretty consistently one step down from that, which is to say thoroughly competent. It comes as no great surprise to discover that the chef came from Cecconi’s, which – like most Nick Jones establishments – has always been more a ‘scene’ than a destination for culinary pilgrimage.
But at how many grand hotel dining rooms – in London, at least – can the cooking really claim to be the star of the show? If you’re looking for the full Monte dining experience in that particular style, it’s done – overall – better here than at many of the more obvious competitors. And – if you watch what you spend on drinks – at prices which are not that outrageous. Considering.
