Chez Bruce has won more awards than we've had hot dinners. The venue also has history, a loyal clientèle and owners (Bruce Poole and Nigel Platts-Martin) who really know restaurants. We have never been there before, which admittedly feels something of a gap in our line up, but with the restaurant located on Wandsworth Common, it just seems like a trek starting from anywhere north of the river; we've known for some time though that it's a journey we need to make.
Then, at the end of August, Harden's London Restaurants 2012 was published and Chez Bruce again ranked first in the category 'Favourite' restaurant. But the awards didn't stop there, it also ranked equal third for 'Top Gastronomic Experience', tying with The Ledbury (and beaten only by Marcus Wareing and Le Gavroche). This is result is slightly strange though as The Ledbury also won the category best food, in other words, despite The Ledbury offering higher rated food (according to the survey), they offer an equally well thought of gastronomic experience. We're intrigued.
But we are also excited (once we recover from the journey there) at the prospect of finally eating at such a well regarded establishment. Staff greet us pleasantly enough, and remain pleasant throughout the meal, though initially, in a currently empty restaurant, the table we're offered is so small we ask if we can have the better sized table for two next to it, a request to which they willingly obliged. In the Paris style, tables are quite densely packed and towards the end of the meal, when the sommelier was pouring a glass of wine for the adjacent table, his elbow was a mere three inches from MrsCC's cheekbone leading to a moment of heightened excitement as we lay odds on whether he would fully connect on the pull back. He didn't.
Food wise, we started with Veal salad with Jerusalem artichokes, leeks, truffle and hazelnuts, and the Roast turbot with a blanquette of coco beans, bacon and chestnuts (£5 supplement). Both starters were generously proportioned and little would need to be added to the turbot to turn this dish into a main course. The starters, mostly due to the turbot, formed the highlight of the meal. The turbot arrived looking the part, a beautiful topside crust of orange and gold, pulling easily apart in big meaty chunks. Worth the supplement and a starter worthy of the venue's reputation. The veal salad offered good textures and dressing but the veal itself, though cooked well, was ultimately somewhat bland.
Then, at the end of August, Harden's London Restaurants 2012 was published and Chez Bruce again ranked first in the category 'Favourite' restaurant. But the awards didn't stop there, it also ranked equal third for 'Top Gastronomic Experience', tying with The Ledbury (and beaten only by Marcus Wareing and Le Gavroche). This is result is slightly strange though as The Ledbury also won the category best food, in other words, despite The Ledbury offering higher rated food (according to the survey), they offer an equally well thought of gastronomic experience. We're intrigued.
But we are also excited (once we recover from the journey there) at the prospect of finally eating at such a well regarded establishment. Staff greet us pleasantly enough, and remain pleasant throughout the meal, though initially, in a currently empty restaurant, the table we're offered is so small we ask if we can have the better sized table for two next to it, a request to which they willingly obliged. In the Paris style, tables are quite densely packed and towards the end of the meal, when the sommelier was pouring a glass of wine for the adjacent table, his elbow was a mere three inches from MrsCC's cheekbone leading to a moment of heightened excitement as we lay odds on whether he would fully connect on the pull back. He didn't.
Food wise, we started with Veal salad with Jerusalem artichokes, leeks, truffle and hazelnuts, and the Roast turbot with a blanquette of coco beans, bacon and chestnuts (£5 supplement). Both starters were generously proportioned and little would need to be added to the turbot to turn this dish into a main course. The starters, mostly due to the turbot, formed the highlight of the meal. The turbot arrived looking the part, a beautiful topside crust of orange and gold, pulling easily apart in big meaty chunks. Worth the supplement and a starter worthy of the venue's reputation. The veal salad offered good textures and dressing but the veal itself, though cooked well, was ultimately somewhat bland.
Roast turbot with a blanquette of coco beans, bacon and chestnuts
Veal salad with Jerusalem artichokes, leeks, truffle and hazelnuts
From the main course options, little from the menu really jumped out at us. We opted for the Pot roast pig's cheeks with honey, soft polenta, cavolo nero and crisp pancetta, together with Grilled halibut with wild mushroom sauce, boulangere potatoes, celeriac and iberico ham, the halibut also coming with a £5 supplement though it is less clear to us what justifies that here. Both dishes had problems, the pig cheeks were good but the polenta was too hard and by the end, the dish became quite dry. The halibut suffered from being overcooked, so also dry. The wild mushroom sauce offered little more than a regular jus. The dishes then seemed 'steady Eddies', reliable(ish) but in no way differentiated enough to mark out the dish or the restaurant as being special.
Maybe this is where expectations are playing a part but for a restaurant that is said to offer an equivalent gastronomic experience to The Ledbury, the mains were, let's be really honest here, a huge disappointment. We would rate venues like Bistrot Bruno Loubet or Koffmann's as offering a similar style but delivering more satisfaction, and much more taste. The fish course meanwhile was put in the shade by our last meal at The Hand & Flowers where they served an absolutely brilliant (and differentiated) plaice with lardo main. Now that's what we're talking about.
Maybe this is where expectations are playing a part but for a restaurant that is said to offer an equivalent gastronomic experience to The Ledbury, the mains were, let's be really honest here, a huge disappointment. We would rate venues like Bistrot Bruno Loubet or Koffmann's as offering a similar style but delivering more satisfaction, and much more taste. The fish course meanwhile was put in the shade by our last meal at The Hand & Flowers where they served an absolutely brilliant (and differentiated) plaice with lardo main. Now that's what we're talking about.
Grilled halibut with wild mushroom sauce, boulangere potatoes, celeriac and iberico ham
Pot roast pig's cheeks with honey, soft polenta, cavolo nero and crisp pancetta
Desserts were least impressive, a Hot chocolate pudding with praline parfait again suffered from the chocolate pudding itself being dry so that lashings of the sauce were needed to carry it through, while the Iced blackcurrant and white chocolate gateau sounded intriguing but came in our view awkwardly presented on the plate, neither deconstructed or layered, just sort of stacked; nor did it come together as a pudding.
Hot chocolate pudding with praline parfait
Iced blackcurrant and white chocolate gateau
If we lived locally, we would surely frequent Chez Bruce for a decent local meal when central London itself seemed too much of a trek. Our verdict was the same with sister restaurant La Trompette (which served a meal that was more or less the equal of the one here). But Chez Bruce, favourite restaurant in London? The third best gastronomic experience in London? On a par with The Ledbury? That in our view makes little sense and if taken to heart before visiting the restaurant can only lead to disappointment.
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