Dinner has two Michelin stars and was named as the 7th best restaurant in the world in 2013, which definitely makes it the most renowned restaurant I have ever eaten at! All the food is based on old English recipes; Heston has obviously given it all his own twist, but the food isn't as crazily inventive as in the Fat Duck, for example. Also, the portion sizes are reassuringly big and not disappointing taster menu size - always an important consideration.
Saturday was the second time I had been to Dinner - I went last year at the same time for my and James' two year anniversary and can safely say it was one of the best meals I ever had, so we decided to return this year for our three year anniversary!
As I mentioned in my post about The Delaunay, I had only ever been to one other restaurant which had a doorman, and Dinner was it; Dinner by Heston is located in Knightsbridge in the Mandarin Oriental hotel and is definitely one of the poshest places I have ever been. The doormen all wear beefeater style red jackets and as you go in there are people waiting to greet you at every step. To be honest I felt a bit out of place and definitely as if I wasn't rich enough to be there, but that feeling soon evaporated due to the friendlyness of all the staff, particularly the waiting staff in Dinner.
This time we had a table right by the kitchen - there are glass windows so you can look through and see all the chefs at work, which I really liked. They didn't seem to be shouting and getting as angry ("YES CHEF!") as you see on Masterchef but I guess they have to be better behaved if they're on display!!
You aren't allowed to use flash photography in Dinner (the number of people who would want to take photos of their food would probably mean it always seemed like a lightning storm in there!) so apologies if my photos are a bit blurry.
Like I said before, my trepidation about not being posh enough to eat here was immediately allayed by the waiting staff; our waiter was so friendly and chatty and explained any dishes we had questions about without being patronising. They have a really extensive knowledge of all the dishes - they're lucky enough to get to try every single one, and be told how all the ingredients work together and what kind of flavours there are, and they even get a day in the kitchen helping to cook and assemble the dishes as part of their training!
We got a very nice bread board while we were deciding; sourdough with the crunchiest crust ever, and butter with salt crystals...delicious! They keep offering more bread, but last time I made the mistake of having about 5 pieces so got full really quickly, so this time I played it safe with just three!
I was having real difficulty deciding because I wasn't sure whether to play it safe and have the same as last time or try something new and risk feeling like I had wasted my money if I didn't like it as much as last year! In the end I compromised (with myself...) and went for the same starter as last year but changed the main after helpful suggestions and information from the waiter.
The starter I had is basically the stock google image result if you search for Dinner by Heston - the legendary Meat Fruit. It is a chicken liver and foie gras parfait, encased in a mandarin jelly and served with grilled bread.
You almost can't believe that it isn't a real mandarin because it looks so perfect! But then you cut it open....
..to reveal the smoothest, creamiest parfait ever! It is very rich without going over the edge into sickly, and the mandarin jelly is tangy and complements it perfectly. The bread was toasted in oil and was thick and crispy and again, they offer you more even before you've finished your first piece! I had two pieces spread generously with the parfait and I probably could have carried on eating it for my main and pudding as well. It's a definite must if you go there!
James chose the buttered crab loaf with crab salad, cucumber, pickled lemon, golden trout roe and stone crop
I was very pleased he did that as it meant I could try something else! He also got to share my Meat Fruit as I was feeling kind. I thought the dish was absolutely delicious; the crab tasted so fresh, and the whole dish was light and delicate with a subtle citrus tang...again, I could have eaten that all evening.
For main, I went for the Cod in Cider with chard, onions and artichokes
and a side of the creamiest mash known to man
I think my main course was probably less remarkable than my starter, but it was still very tasty indeed. The fish was perfectly cooked so fell apart into lovely meaty chunks when I cut it, and the artichokes were tender and sweet. The sauce was buttery and light with a subtle cider hint coming through. The mash was basically like heaven in a bowl; creamy, smooth and comforting...there's not much more I can add to that, it was perfect!
James went for the Fillet of Aberdeen Angus with mushroom ketchup and triple cooked chips
Look how nice and pink it is! If only we'd had more bread he could have lived the French dream of mopping up the juices with the bread...my favourite! The steak had some crispy onions and bone marrow on the top of it, which added depth of flavour, and the meat just melted in the mouth. It was fantastic. The chips were crispy with fluffy insides and James really liked the mushroom ketchup; sadly I didn't try it so can't comment.
For pudding we both had the same of last time - the pudding which seems to be becoming almost as famous as the Meat Fruit...Tipsy Cake. I'm not usually the biggest pudding person but this one is literally amazing - the first waiter we had described it as "life changing" and I have to agree! It takes 40 minutes to cook so has to be ordered when you choose your starters and mains so the pressure is on decision wise, but I don't think I could order anything else now I know how good this is.
Served in a cast iron pot on a little wooden board, with spit roast pineapple on the side, it will be almost impossible to do this pudding justice. To compare it to bread and butter pudding seems sacrilegious, but that's the closest thing I can think of. It's basically melt in the mouth brioche, with melt in the mouth sugar crystals on top (melt in the mouth is a Heston theme it seems!) and the most amazing brandy infused caramel-y custard underneath...it is sweet, indulgent and just unbelievably delicious! The spit roast pineapple is nice but potentially a bit superfluous - the Tipsy Cake could definitely stand alone in my opinion.
At the end of the meal, James ordered some tea (rubbish photo but such a cool teapot)....
....and they also brought us out a specially decorated petit four!
We were very touched by this and it made the already excellent service reach 10/10 heights! The biscuit was flavoured with caraway seeds, and the smooth and creamy chocolate ganache infused with orange blossom and earl grey; an interesting pairing which was the perfect end to our Heston adventure! Next stop (after lots of saving and the lengthy waiting list) the Fat Duck?!
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