Brett Graham hardly needs an introduction from us. But in case you have spent the last few years on another planet, Brett's restaurant, The Ledbury has 2 Michelin stars, it also entered the San Pellegrino World's 50 Best list this year at number 34 (making it the highest new entry) and earlier this month, he won the Chef Award at the Cateys 2011.
And insignificant against the backdrop of above awards (but we'll mention it anyhow), we reviewed The Ledbury back in March this year and said in the post that "our meal at The Ledbury today might just be the best meal we've had in London... ever." It really was that good.
It will be no surprise then that Brett's dinner was amongst the most requested of the dinners we're hosting here. What's more, chefs that cook in the Chefs @CriticalCouple series are invited back as guests to another dinner here as a way for us to say thank you, and amongst these chefs, it was Brett's dinner that gave rise to the most excitement, hence the high proportion of chefs around the table for the night. Brett therefore really is the 'real deal'.
What's more, Brett came to the Chef dinners by a different route to most. Earlier in the year, Brett helped put on the Fire & Floods charity dinner in aid of the Australian Red Cross supporting victims of the recent natural disasters in Australia and had offered himself for auction with proceeds going to the charity. We were lucky enough to win the auction, and holding our dinners in aid of Action Against Hunger, it seemed a great way to double up, supporting two fantastic charities in one action, all wrapped with an incredible meal.
With Brett being the draw that he is, we raised a record amount for Action Against Hunger from one of our dinners with help from an incredibly generous donation by Twitter wonder person @sausagemaking who receives our special thanks.
In the anticipation of wonderful food, the equally wonderful Tom Harrow, better known to many as @winechapUK helped select and pair the wines for the evening. Sadly Tom was unable to join us for the night but he passed on five short videos describing his wine choices that are included in the blog below which are golden nuggets in the their own right.
And insignificant against the backdrop of above awards (but we'll mention it anyhow), we reviewed The Ledbury back in March this year and said in the post that "our meal at The Ledbury today might just be the best meal we've had in London... ever." It really was that good.
It will be no surprise then that Brett's dinner was amongst the most requested of the dinners we're hosting here. What's more, chefs that cook in the Chefs @CriticalCouple series are invited back as guests to another dinner here as a way for us to say thank you, and amongst these chefs, it was Brett's dinner that gave rise to the most excitement, hence the high proportion of chefs around the table for the night. Brett therefore really is the 'real deal'.
What's more, Brett came to the Chef dinners by a different route to most. Earlier in the year, Brett helped put on the Fire & Floods charity dinner in aid of the Australian Red Cross supporting victims of the recent natural disasters in Australia and had offered himself for auction with proceeds going to the charity. We were lucky enough to win the auction, and holding our dinners in aid of Action Against Hunger, it seemed a great way to double up, supporting two fantastic charities in one action, all wrapped with an incredible meal.
With Brett being the draw that he is, we raised a record amount for Action Against Hunger from one of our dinners with help from an incredibly generous donation by Twitter wonder person @sausagemaking who receives our special thanks.
In the anticipation of wonderful food, the equally wonderful Tom Harrow, better known to many as @winechapUK helped select and pair the wines for the evening. Sadly Tom was unable to join us for the night but he passed on five short videos describing his wine choices that are included in the blog below which are golden nuggets in the their own right.
The evening started with champagne and canapes including foie gras tartlets, a tartare of mackerel and avocado with oyster leaves, Parmesan tart, and wild rabbit and pine. At the Australian Fire and Floods, Brett had prepared as a canape popcorn chicken that was widely loved and much joked about in the context of a well know chicken orientated fast food outlet. The reworking of this amuse with wild rabbit provided a great start.
First up on the main menu we have Hand picked crab with Wakame oil, thinly sliced courgette and frozen Parmesan. There's also some parsley, dill, chives, and citrus on the crab. I was clearly too excited to remember to take a picture but dinner attendee The Skinny Bib did a better job than I, and he has kindly let me use his picture for this post.
Seeing Coeur de Pigeon on the menu for the next course, I was all prepared to sit down to a plate of pigeon hearts but Coeur de Pigeon is, as I'm sure you all know, a variety of tomato, as is Noir de Crimee and Pineapple Ribbed, so we have a tomato salad, but the best one ever. There's a dressing of tomato juice, olive oil, dried olives and shallots, a green tomato juice dressing, and the beads on top of the tomato are a mix of bonito stock, dried bonito and tomato juice. Brett explains that these tomatoes are French (as they're superior); I later ask native Frenchman Mickael Weiss why French tomatoes are better than English ones and he succinctly replies 'sunshine'; can't argue with that as the rain currently pounds our roof.
The tomato dish is superb and at the end of the evening when everyone is comparing notes, it comes up time and again as a memorable dish. Why? Because like the Potato dish at Simon Rogan's L'enclume, the flavours are so vivid it's like a rediscovery of tomato.
The last of the early trio is the Warm curd of Hampshire Buffalo milk with grilled onion consomme and truffle toast. Those familiar with The Ledbury will recognise this dish where it's a firm favourite, not least because of the cheese/truffle toast which here used Australian truffles and is blow away fantastic.
Seeing Coeur de Pigeon on the menu for the next course, I was all prepared to sit down to a plate of pigeon hearts but Coeur de Pigeon is, as I'm sure you all know, a variety of tomato, as is Noir de Crimee and Pineapple Ribbed, so we have a tomato salad, but the best one ever. There's a dressing of tomato juice, olive oil, dried olives and shallots, a green tomato juice dressing, and the beads on top of the tomato are a mix of bonito stock, dried bonito and tomato juice. Brett explains that these tomatoes are French (as they're superior); I later ask native Frenchman Mickael Weiss why French tomatoes are better than English ones and he succinctly replies 'sunshine'; can't argue with that as the rain currently pounds our roof.
The tomato dish is superb and at the end of the evening when everyone is comparing notes, it comes up time and again as a memorable dish. Why? Because like the Potato dish at Simon Rogan's L'enclume, the flavours are so vivid it's like a rediscovery of tomato.
The last of the early trio is the Warm curd of Hampshire Buffalo milk with grilled onion consomme and truffle toast. Those familiar with The Ledbury will recognise this dish where it's a firm favourite, not least because of the cheese/truffle toast which here used Australian truffles and is blow away fantastic.
Crab with Wakame oil (picture courtesy of The Skinny Bib)
Salad of tomatoes
warm curd of Buffalo milk with grilled onion consomme
as above
truffle toast
Now, with a Montrachet in hand, Broccoli stem with grilled lobster, natural yoghurt and Indian spices in brown butter is set before us. The lobster is cooked for 4 minutes to order, and though Brett feels constrained here by the domestic kitchen environment, there's no dissatisfaction round the table with the lobster cooked from the guest perspective very well indeed.
The broccoli stem meanwhile comes from Brett's neighbour's garden with Brett having swapped half a dozen eggs for it the previous day. The yoghurt is derived from the lobster roe while the Indian spices are sweated down with onions and garlic, ground to a powder and mixed with brown butter. There's beautiful balance to the dish while offering taste, aroma and texture.
Last of the seafood plates offers up some fantastic turbot, with elderflower, wild fennel and mousserons. Simple, elegant, lovely.
The broccoli stem meanwhile comes from Brett's neighbour's garden with Brett having swapped half a dozen eggs for it the previous day. The yoghurt is derived from the lobster roe while the Indian spices are sweated down with onions and garlic, ground to a powder and mixed with brown butter. There's beautiful balance to the dish while offering taste, aroma and texture.
Last of the seafood plates offers up some fantastic turbot, with elderflower, wild fennel and mousserons. Simple, elegant, lovely.
Broccoli stem with grilled lobster and Indian spices in brown butter
Fillet of turbot with Elderflower
The next dish is another absolutely superb Ledbury dish from the tasting menu - jowl of pork with spices. The cooked jowl arrives whole at the table for everyone to inspect before plating (picture 1 below) leaving some confused as to why we're playing a game of pass the parcel of pork. Brett comes out and explains that jowl is cooked for eight hours and below a big layer of fat is a thin slice of meat (see picture 2) which Brett suggests is the tastiest part of the pig.
When the individual plates arrive (picture 3), the jowl comes sliced with carrot purree, a reduction of dried chicory, pork sauce and crackling. We were lucky to eat this at The Ledbury on our March visit and we fell in love with it then; here it was equally brilliant. Few if anyone around the table can claim to be more involved with the cooking of pork as Johnnie Mountain, Chef Patron of The English Pig and the chef behind an earlier in the year pig-fest, he described the pork jowl as 'mind blowing: even jaw blowingly good'.
Apologies now to Winechap (who paired the Castello del Terriccio wine for the original planned final savoury of lamb) but our last main was Best end of Roe Deer baked in Douglas fir with white beetroots baked on charcoal, smoked bone marrow and black currants; the wine was still greatly enjoyed however. This is last of the season deer, cooked on the bone and served with black currant kernel oil (which is actually the green oil you can see) which Brett says is something he's just come across. Again, despite Brett having to cook this in a domestic kitchen, the deer pulls apart beautifully with one guest commenting that the deer was so good it could be served alone with nothing else on the plate.
When the individual plates arrive (picture 3), the jowl comes sliced with carrot purree, a reduction of dried chicory, pork sauce and crackling. We were lucky to eat this at The Ledbury on our March visit and we fell in love with it then; here it was equally brilliant. Few if anyone around the table can claim to be more involved with the cooking of pork as Johnnie Mountain, Chef Patron of The English Pig and the chef behind an earlier in the year pig-fest, he described the pork jowl as 'mind blowing: even jaw blowingly good'.
Apologies now to Winechap (who paired the Castello del Terriccio wine for the original planned final savoury of lamb) but our last main was Best end of Roe Deer baked in Douglas fir with white beetroots baked on charcoal, smoked bone marrow and black currants; the wine was still greatly enjoyed however. This is last of the season deer, cooked on the bone and served with black currant kernel oil (which is actually the green oil you can see) which Brett says is something he's just come across. Again, despite Brett having to cook this in a domestic kitchen, the deer pulls apart beautifully with one guest commenting that the deer was so good it could be served alone with nothing else on the plate.
Pork jowl with spices for inspection at the table
the thin layer of pork can be seen below the fat
Pork jowl plated
Roe deer baked in Douglas-fir
Strawberries and champagne is of course a classic combination, but the best wild strawberries require the best of champagnes also: both Brett and Tom agreed the Dom Perignon Rose 2000 was perfect as Tom describes below. On the plate then we have Wild and cultivated strawberries with whipped ewes milk, verbena meringues and hibiscus. With wild strawberries from the New Forest, this did for strawberries what the tomato salad earlier did for tomatoes; heavenly.
Finally, we were served Chocolate pave with milk puree and lovage ice cream. Brett tells us that his pave is slightly different from the usual oven baked eggs, butter, cream and chocolate all mixed together, rather, his version takes away 'a lot of the eggs, all of the butter and all of the cream' so that you're left with chocolate, a skimmed milk anglaise, use of a blender, pour onto the base and it never sees the inside of an oven. Regardless it was beautiful and just seeing that picture below makes we want to eat it all over again.
Others adored the lovage ice cream, a savoury ice cream flavour suggested to Brett by one of his staff that he initially dismissed but now thinks is 'one of the nicest things I've ever eaten'. This was a truly brilliant way to end the meal.
Finally, we were served Chocolate pave with milk puree and lovage ice cream. Brett tells us that his pave is slightly different from the usual oven baked eggs, butter, cream and chocolate all mixed together, rather, his version takes away 'a lot of the eggs, all of the butter and all of the cream' so that you're left with chocolate, a skimmed milk anglaise, use of a blender, pour onto the base and it never sees the inside of an oven. Regardless it was beautiful and just seeing that picture below makes we want to eat it all over again.
Others adored the lovage ice cream, a savoury ice cream flavour suggested to Brett by one of his staff that he initially dismissed but now thinks is 'one of the nicest things I've ever eaten'. This was a truly brilliant way to end the meal.
Strawberries with ewes milk
Chocolate pave with milk puree and lovage ice cream
With the food eaten, we settled down to the 'normal routine' of a large glass of Glenfarclas whisky (this time a 21 year old), a lucky dip for the wonderful Chroma knives which have proven a real hit throughout the dinners, and donations to Action Against Hunger. We then turned our attention to discussing the food.
People were hard pressed to pick favourites because everything was so good. When forced to choose, the tomatoes, the pork jowl, the strawberries and the lovage ice cream were mentioned by most. Other descriptions in our 'round table' (albeit after the whisky was long finished and the champagne was again flowing) provided the following ideas: pure, honest, what you'd expect from Brett, innocent, genuine. Less innocent, one chef said 'not great fireworks but fucking good, really really well conceived and well produced food'. The official record notes much slurring of words at this point also.
Everyone had a great night. A more lucid and word clever Bruce Palling, described it as 'the very best meal I have EVER had at a private house anywhere on the planet' (his capitals) and a real compliment from someone who has eaten some great meals, while Chris Pople on Twitter kindly described it as 'fucking amazing. Seriously'.
I have only one thing to add and that is what a genuinely nice person Brett is. He was utterly amazing from start to finish, not just in his cooking and his food, but in everything he did that day, with me, with our guests and with his staff. He is one of the truly great ambassadors for the industry and it was an honour and a privilege to have him here. We thank Brett and his team for a truly memorable night.
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Related posts: The Ledbury
Related posts: Alyn Williams
Related posts: Johnnie Mountain
People were hard pressed to pick favourites because everything was so good. When forced to choose, the tomatoes, the pork jowl, the strawberries and the lovage ice cream were mentioned by most. Other descriptions in our 'round table' (albeit after the whisky was long finished and the champagne was again flowing) provided the following ideas: pure, honest, what you'd expect from Brett, innocent, genuine. Less innocent, one chef said 'not great fireworks but fucking good, really really well conceived and well produced food'. The official record notes much slurring of words at this point also.
Everyone had a great night. A more lucid and word clever Bruce Palling, described it as 'the very best meal I have EVER had at a private house anywhere on the planet' (his capitals) and a real compliment from someone who has eaten some great meals, while Chris Pople on Twitter kindly described it as 'fucking amazing. Seriously'.
I have only one thing to add and that is what a genuinely nice person Brett is. He was utterly amazing from start to finish, not just in his cooking and his food, but in everything he did that day, with me, with our guests and with his staff. He is one of the truly great ambassadors for the industry and it was an honour and a privilege to have him here. We thank Brett and his team for a truly memorable night.
Return to homepage
Related posts: The Ledbury
Related posts: Alyn Williams
Related posts: Johnnie Mountain
