Martin Williams: A wine-lover’s guide to London restaurants
Having enjoyed many of the finest restaurants across the globe and my fair share of city breaks since leaving Gaucho and M in October, I can confirm that London’s restaurant scene continues to deliver in silver-plated spades and remains the gastronomic capital city, in terms of both diversity of offering and quality.
As we enter into the New Year with the best intentions (or not), some will self-flagellate with puritan concepts such as short-term veganism or a ‘dry’ month ahead. Not me. I would prefer to kick off this new column reflecting on some of my highlights of ‘silly season’ and give some recommendations of London’s culinary hotspots.
BOUCHON RACINE
The monster month began with Bouchon Racine, which opened over a year ago and is now a Smithfield Market favourite, where Tete de Veau and a very reasonable Morgon ‘le charmes’ Jean-Marc Burgaud 2021 (£61) proved to be an exceptional match.
PERFECT PAIRINGS
Other pairings firmly in my memory are a lobster roll and glass of Chablis at The Libertine in the Royal Exchange. At M Threadneedle St I recommend Ken Forrester’s ‘Beef’ Barrel (£110 for a magnum), named after the golfer Andrew ‘Beef’ Johnston after he and I selected the wine in Stellenbosch a year ago. It’s perfectly accompanied by the Wagyu beef. Another fantastic coupling is Langan’s poire belle helene dessert served with English pink sparkling Louis Pommery.
KROKODILOS
My new opening-of-note is Krokodilos in Kensington. This most recent offering from the folk behind Goodman’s and Wild Tavern is a modern temple of Greek gastronomy, with the kitchen run by Angelos Togias, who brings authentic dishes from his homeland. The turbot is outstanding and the wild goat and rabbit stifado comes highly recommended. But the star of the show is sommelier Jessica Bourne, who has assembled a unique collection of indigenous wines, which sit comfortably next to the range of Burgundies, Bordeaux and Super–Tuscans. The Siglas Mavrotragano 2021 (£160), aged for a year in French barrels, pairs perfectly with the rabbit and was the ideal follow up to an Olivier Laflaive Cuvee Margot opener (£105).
KIOKU BY ENDO
Another outstanding experience, thanks in no small part to head sommelier Merlin Ramos, is ‘Kioku by Endo’ at the OWO. I usually don’t touch Chilian wine due to a healthy blend of snobbery and ignorance but, after a Belvedere Martini, we accepted Merlin’s suggestion of a 2022 Reta Chardonnay Quebrada Seca (£140). The “Puligny-Montrachet of the Limari Valley” surprisingly delivered.
I got carried away with the notion that this South American bastard child of wine could offer something elegant and sophisticated at half the price of Burgundy’s finest, so we doubled down by pairing an amazing duck breast with a wine named Grus; a £75 high-altitude blend of Southern Rhone varietals from the Elqui region of Chile. Superb.
MANZIS SOHO
Usually on the money, Jeremy King gets this one wrong. Manzis is an inelegant cross between a Blackpool Chip shop and the gauche décor of Bacchanalia. The Graci Etna Bianco 2022 for £80 is worth savouring while you consider the irony of the ludicrously ornate, crab shaped salt and pepper pots as you sit in the shadow of the NHS Soho STD clinic.
LE MARGRITTE BAR AND SARTORIA
The final long lunch of the year was enjoyed with my friend Alex, who has made the unique Renais gin using Chablis hops, alongside his actress sister Emma Watson. We naturally began with gin cocktails in the luscious Le Magritte bar at The Beaumont hotel, followed by a walk to Sartoria for their exceptional white truffle menu, which we matched with a Frescobaldi Vermentino (£65). Both will have me rushing to return to Savile Row in January; a month when you can get a table at any of the most exclusive dining rooms in town.
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