An Outstanding French Brasserie [Closed]

That's not a French cuff shirt, you know

Jerry Seinfeld (Seinfeld episode “The Strike”)

Traditional French brasserie, opulent, lovely chandeliers, and impeccable decor. That's what you will find in Brasserie Chavot. Classic French cuisine with a modern twist by chef Eric Chavot. One Michelin star and 3 AA Rosettes but surprisingly not too busy on Saturday lunchtime.

The Dinning

For starters we got the deep fried soft shell crab with whipped aioli. It was amazing, perfectly cooked, the aioli was spot on, delicate flavours and a perfect execution. The other starter was the crab mayo and avocado, really refreshing, lovely execution, a great start.

Soft Shelf Times

For main we tried the steak tartare, it was really nice, delicate, probably a bit too much going on, too many components but overall a nice dish. And also the Rib eye with béarnaise, this was the highlight of the meal, it was superb, bone marrow as surprise addition, and the garlic and parsley sauce in top of the marrow was perfect. Beef perfectly cooked, great searing, medium rare, the flavour of the ribeye was amazing, no need of the béarnaise or any sauce.

Tartare

Steak Time

Refined place, great service, spectacular food, classics perfectly executed. Probably the best restaurant I have tried in 2014.

Brasserie Chavot

T: 020 7183 6425

French cuisine

Approx Damage: £55pp

Area: Mayfair

Borough: City of Westminster

Twitter: brasseriechavot

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Another French Brasserie in London

A place creating a lot of talk these days is Brasserie Zedel. Bib Gourmand by Michelin, restaurant of the week Evening Standard, and even Jay Rayner wrote “Zedel feels like a gift to London”. The place is a big complex, with a small street level café upstairs, and downstairs The Crazy Coqs a cabaret and jazz, Bar Americain a cocktail bar, and finally the brasserie. 

Coming down

The places

The brassiere has a huge dinning room, covered by marble and opulence, a true recognition to the Parisian Brasserie. But the most outstanding concept Zedel is implementing it’s how cheap and quality can be married together. Busy place, the menu is changed and printed everyday with a quote, for ours it was that in the day of the visit Gandhi was elected India’s Prime Minister in 1996. 

The Brasserie

The menu

We started with some Endives with Roquefort cheese, nice and simple dish with touches of chives and walnut, clean and nice. 

Endives

I went for a onion soup, good flavour but not as intense as I like it, too mild for me. I really was waiting for a punch of either the onions or the cheese and got nothing at all. 

Soup time

My main Choucroute Alsacienne the sauerkraut, meat, and potatoes French version. This time with cured and smoked belly of pork and frankfurter. It was nice with good flavours. Marisol went for Entrecôte, nicely cooked, good execution, but the flavour wasn’t there. 

Choucroute

Entrecote

Overall a nice diner, good value for money, some lows, a couple high notes, Zedel didn’t blow my mind to be honest but it’s a excellent option in central London, and let’s face it you can’t love every restaurant in town. Expect decent food but not memorable, good service, and a not so big bill at the end. 

The decor

French reminds me the Seinfeld episode “The Bookstore” 

George: They made me buy it. A hundred bucks this thing cost me. How dare they? I got news for you, if it wasn't for the toilet, there would be no books

Jerry: Yeah. I understand Guttenberg used to spend a lot of time in there

George: They're selling coffee, bran muffins, you're surrounded by reading material! It's entrapment!

Jerry: French Impressionist Paintings?

Brasserie Zedel

T: 020 7734 4888

French Brasserie

Approx Damage: £26pp

Area: Soho

Borough: City of Westminster

Twitter: BrasserieZedel

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Tom where is the Kitchen

Two locations in London one in Chelsea the other in Somerset House. Tom’s Kitchen a British brasserie using UK suppliers serving comfort food by Michelin starred chef Tom Aikens. My visit was to the Chelsea place. Noisy even when it was not at full capacity. The decor wood rustic tables, white tiles walls, and B&W pictures of Tom’s suppliers. 

The Place

Literature

Inside

I arrived for brunch, ordered an orange and carrot juice while ran through the menu. The decision was easy a Full English. Really nice, fresh ingredients, the sausage had a nice flavour, the twist of the dish probably was the fried bread that was great, it was so good I ordered another piece. Black pudding had good flavour but a bit dry if you ate it alone, but in combination with the egg and mushrooms played quite nice. The eggs where perfectly cooked and outstanding, basically the hens that produce the eggs are specially fed with grass, herbs and cereals laced with sun-drenched maize, resulting in a more intense yellow yolk and great flavor. 

Full English

The Full English was excellent, great execution, I found myself in the kind of situation where you start to freak out when your plate is coming to an end as you want more and more. 

Satellite view

Coffee time

Finally, to end my brunch I got a macchiato. Nice strong coffee perfect to wake you up, made on a La Marzocco espresso machine, no latte art, and beans from Illy. 

Double macchiato

Love the mirrors

Kitchen reminds me the Seinfeld episode “The Apology”

Melissa: What are you doing?



Jerry: I found a rough spot on the kitchen floor, I thought I'd polish it up with this belt sander I have here

Melissa: No, not that. Why are you naked?



Jerry: I thought naked is good



Melissa: This isn't good naked

Tom's Kitchen

T: 020 7349 0202

British Brasserie

Approx Damage: £30pp

Area: South Kensington

Borough: Kensington & Chelsea

Twitter: TomsKitchen

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McNally NYC French Brasserie in London

One of the most popular French Brasseries in NYC is now in London. Balthazar a place that brings opposite opinions for locals, some flag it as a tourist traps others as a true gem. Keith McNally not only brought the concept and the name, the place is a pretty close replica of the Soho venue in Manhattan, similar décor, layout, and menu. 

The Place

This was my second try to get into the place. At least an hour wait for the walk in tables, around a month for the telephone bookings. The main issue I observed is that they don’t rush anybody there, which is great if you have a table but not as much if you’re waiting. While I was waiting a couple ladies spent at least 45 minutes with a small cheese plate, no more than two small pieces of brie and blue, and then 30 minutes more without anything but tap water to pay the bill. Don’t get wrong but if you have a waiting list of 10 you should at least try to rush a bit some of the tables. Seriously the service is extremely nice and respectful, the problem is if you are waiting for a table the ladies then become in your mind two old tarts that don’t want to leave. 

Seafood

Finally a table near the bar

Finally got the table, checked the menu for a couple minutes, and we went for lobster and black truffles risotto and coquilles St Jacques as starters, and for main steak frites and a grilled lamb T-bone. The risotto had a great flavour, the cauliflower and truffle butter nice but a bit mild. The scallops were perfectly cooked, not the traditional recipe but a nice version. 

Risotto

Coquilles St Jacque

Steak frites, steak perfectly cooked medium rare, nice French fries. The lamb T-bone was nicely cooked, the chorizo, beans, and carrot sauce was too sweet, a little unbalanced. As side got some onion rings I spot while waiting, they were superb, the best ones I have had, the batter was spot on, great seasoning, and a extra touch of salt that put it over the edge, amazing! 

The Lamb Lies Down on Covent Garden

Steak frites

Balthazar is one of my favourite places in NYC, one of the first memories I have of Manhattan. I have to say I liked overall the London copycat version, but I don’t have this sentimental connection with the place as I have with his big sister from Manhattan. If you’re not dying to go just wait until the buzz relax a bit, I will be coming back to try the burger and more onion rings for sure.

The rings

T-bone reminds me the Seinfeld episode “The Maid” 

Kruger: Mary, I will have a chef's salad

Male worker: Turkey sandwich

George: T-bone steak

Kruger: For lunch?

George: Well, I am just a T-bone kind of guy. Love that T-bone. In fact, you might as well call me…

Watkins: That sounds good. I'll have one, too

Kruger: Watkins, you're having a T-bone?

Watkins: I love them

Kruger: Well, then we should call you T-bone

George: Uh, no. No, we shouldn't

Kruger: T-bone!
All: T-bone! T-bone! T-bone! T-bone! T-bone! T-bone! T-bone! T-bone!

Balthazar

T: 020 3301 1155

French Brasserie

Approx Damage: £41pp

Area: Covent Garden

Borough: City of Westminster

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The Finnish Burger

Last day in Helsinki and burger free since two weeks when in Berlin so it was time to go for one. My friend Lauri recommended a place in the Esplanadi. The place Kämp a hotel and a restaurant, with a terrace overlooking the Esplanadi, and their own bakery to create bread and cakes. A rainy day in the Finnish capital, a few hours to kill and craving for a salmon soup was the perfect combination. 

Rainy Day in the Esplanadi

The Place

Got to the place ask for a beer while seeing the rain take over the city, checked the menu, Salmon Soup check, Kämp Burger check, local beer check. 

A local beer

The traditional Finnish salmon soup was excellent, creamy and well seasoned. The Kämp burger two options with mince beef or fillet of beef, I went for the fillet one, in top Dijon, cheddar cheese, and onions. It was an amazing surprise, the burger was top notch, one of the best I’ve had, the beef medium rare cooked as perfection, the balance of the especial Dijon with the onions quite good. The burger came with fries which were good soft inside crunchy outside. 

Awesomeness in a bowl of soup

The Kämp Burger

Last day of an amazing holiday and couldn’t leave Finland without trying one more time the salmon soup and lucky enough to find that spectacular burger. 

The Fillet Burger

Salmon reminds me the Seinfeld episode “The Opposite” 

Waitress: Tuna on toast, coleslaw, cup of coffee. 

George: Yeah. No, no, no, wait a minute, I always have tuna on toast. Nothing's ever worked out for me with tuna on toast. I want the complete opposite of on toast. Chicken salad, on rye, untoasted, and a cup of tea. 

Elaine: Well, there's no telling what can happen from this. 

Jerry: You know chicken salad is not the opposite of tuna, salmon is the opposite of tuna, because salmon swim against the current, and the tuna swim with it. George: Good for the tuna.

Kämp

Brasserie

T: +358 9 58409530 

Neighborhood: Kluuvi
Helsinki

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A cosy dinner in the Campbell’s red tomato sofas brasserie

One place the city is talking about is definitely The Riding House Café. Odd decoration, modern all day brasserie, with a selection of tapas but also well portion mains, and good service. I went with my beautiful friend Ana who confess that she has never read my blog, unbelievable! who needs enemies with friends like these.

The place, just love the sofas

Odd lamps, probably in every blog in town

We shared three starters and ordered a main each. For entrees, we got three tapas, steak tartare, slow roasted pork belly and cumin salt, and Moorish lamb with smoked aubergine. Then for main I got the rack of pork with lentils, smoked sausage and horseradish.

Menu

Moorish Lamb

Steak Tartare

Pork Belly

Rack of Pork

The food is ok nothing special, don’t expect a mind blowing experience, my favourite was the pork belly, and the smoked sausage in the rack of pork. On the other hand, the place invites you to be there, and in my opinion, that’s the reason of all the buzz. Good service, and a unique decoration make you want to eat there even the food is not extraordinaire. I’m sure I will come back, repeat the pork belly and see if I find a new revelation.

Pork reminds me the Seinfeld episode “The Wink” when Jerry is dating Elaine's cousin who is obsessed with eating meat.

Jerry: Hey. What's all this?

Holly: I decided I was going to make you dinner.

Jerry: I thought we were going out.

Holly: Well, after you scarfed up my mutton I had the irresistible urge to make pork chops for you. I said hello to Franco for you.

Jerry: Franco?

Holly: Your butcher, down the street.

Jerry: I bet he acted aloof like he didn't know me.

Holly: A little.

Jerry: That is so Franco.