Little Social is the new new restaurant by Jason Atherton, over the road from Pollen Street Social, on a site that used to be a restaurant but has been derelict for about a year now (though it was difficult to tell exactly when that transition happened, it was so perennially empty even when open). In its new guise of Little Social, it's broadly a brasserie, but not in the Balthazar kind of way. If Pollen Street Social aimed to fuse fine dining with a more relaxed social approach to eating, Little Social actually bigs up the social element further and is the kind of place where you meet friends, not business colleagues, and where you might drop by after a day's shopping on Regent Street and recharge with a hearty plate of food and a glass of red. While then it is less of an occasion restaurant than Pollen Street Social, and while the food has moved more towards accessibility, it is still a Jason Atherton restaurant, so in both quality and flourish, expect to be happy diners.
On the main courses, the first item on the menu is actually a beef burger, while the special menu highlighted the available steak selection; it doesn't get more down to earth than that. Elsewhere on the mains, there's braised Irish ox cheek with roast bone marrow (the table next to me had that and it did look good) while I opted for a pork chop with pine nut dressing which was pretty massive and pretty impressive. Also delivered with my main as a surprise was a side of Poutine. Indeed, "what's that?" was my reaction too. It's basically fries with cheese and gravy, here with chorizo & jalapenos also, and is a 'fast food dish that can be found across Canada' according to Wikipedia. The head chef is, I am told, Canadian and introduced Jason, and now us, to its delights. Chips, gravy, cheese and sausage, it's not hard to love; who knew it had it's very own name though (other than Canadians)?
Starters are slightly less commonplace, there's a slow cooked egg on there with Parmesan and squash soup, and fans of Pollen Street Social will know that the slow cooked egg (in it's all day breakfast form) was an opening dish at Pollen Street Social also. I desperately want it but know that I will love it and should try something else if only for variety. There's crab salad, pork head and foie gras terrine, and beetroot cured sea trout. I opt for more comfort, a cauliflower and crayfish risotto which, with a some roasting juices also, is a great way to start any meal.
For dessert, there's a crumble, a rice pudding, rhubarb, but why would anyone ever choose anything other than the hot chocolate moelleux, together with sea salt and almond ice cream. It's hot, gooey, and with the salty addition of the ice cream, it's one of those perfect desserts that on a cold wet March day, made the world seem a slightly better place.
It's not a big restaurant, it's not a glitzy restaurant, but it is relaxed, it does have charm, and the food is appealing. Most starters are just under £10, most mains around £20, and desserts universally £7. It aims at a slightly different market to Pollen Street Social, which is smart, and Jason has his new restaurant in Poland Street opening shortly also, which int urn will offer something slightly different again, but in the brief that Little Social seeks to deliver, it does it very well. On the edge of Mayfair, and all those Michelin stars, when you want something a little more relaxed but with hearty food, Little seems Social just perfect.
On the main courses, the first item on the menu is actually a beef burger, while the special menu highlighted the available steak selection; it doesn't get more down to earth than that. Elsewhere on the mains, there's braised Irish ox cheek with roast bone marrow (the table next to me had that and it did look good) while I opted for a pork chop with pine nut dressing which was pretty massive and pretty impressive. Also delivered with my main as a surprise was a side of Poutine. Indeed, "what's that?" was my reaction too. It's basically fries with cheese and gravy, here with chorizo & jalapenos also, and is a 'fast food dish that can be found across Canada' according to Wikipedia. The head chef is, I am told, Canadian and introduced Jason, and now us, to its delights. Chips, gravy, cheese and sausage, it's not hard to love; who knew it had it's very own name though (other than Canadians)?
Starters are slightly less commonplace, there's a slow cooked egg on there with Parmesan and squash soup, and fans of Pollen Street Social will know that the slow cooked egg (in it's all day breakfast form) was an opening dish at Pollen Street Social also. I desperately want it but know that I will love it and should try something else if only for variety. There's crab salad, pork head and foie gras terrine, and beetroot cured sea trout. I opt for more comfort, a cauliflower and crayfish risotto which, with a some roasting juices also, is a great way to start any meal.
For dessert, there's a crumble, a rice pudding, rhubarb, but why would anyone ever choose anything other than the hot chocolate moelleux, together with sea salt and almond ice cream. It's hot, gooey, and with the salty addition of the ice cream, it's one of those perfect desserts that on a cold wet March day, made the world seem a slightly better place.
It's not a big restaurant, it's not a glitzy restaurant, but it is relaxed, it does have charm, and the food is appealing. Most starters are just under £10, most mains around £20, and desserts universally £7. It aims at a slightly different market to Pollen Street Social, which is smart, and Jason has his new restaurant in Poland Street opening shortly also, which int urn will offer something slightly different again, but in the brief that Little Social seeks to deliver, it does it very well. On the edge of Mayfair, and all those Michelin stars, when you want something a little more relaxed but with hearty food, Little seems Social just perfect.
Disclosure: we were guests of the restaurant