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The Boxwood Cafe
co-owner Gordon Ramsey |
This café is no greasy spoon
THIS is as far from being a café as you could image
a café to be. It qualifies more as a brasserie-restaurant.
Boxwood Café occupies the corner entrance of The Berkeley
Hotel (Hyde Park corner end) and you can enter through Knightsbridge
or through the hotel itself.
The restaurant is divided into two floors: the lower mezzanine
and the ground floor with the bar in the middle. I prefer the
upper section – especially table 11 for two or if you want
seclusion then table one for four situated on the corner with
interesting street views. The menus are attractive in colours
of metallic dark green, brown and silver and ceramic pots with
potted flowers on the tables.
We opted for the lunch menu at £21 for three courses.
Excellent value for what I would describe as above average food,
both on presentation and taste. Warm bread was brought immediately
we sat at the table together with a pot of taramosalata followed
by an espresso cup of Jerusalem artichoke soup with roasted
shallots and shaved truffles.
I had the thinly sliced Norcia ham, baby artichokes, basil and
rocket. Serrano ham is usually chewy but not this one. It melted
in the mouth.
Werner chose poached hens egg, smoked haddock brandade, bacon
and red wine sauce which he pronounced as being exceptionally
good.
For a main course we had the Fricassee of white beans with buttered
English spinach and glazed root vegetables. An innovative dish
for vegetarians. The pan-fried gilthead bream, fennel, olive,
tomato and chorizo sausage was superb. The other choices in
the lunch menu were celeriac, apple and chestnut soup and Char
grilled rump of beef with sautéed potatoes and Café
de Paris butter.
For dessert I had the poached rhubarb soup and tropical fruit
sorbet. Lovely presentation with beautiful colours and low in
calories while the pear and almond cake with rum-soaked raisins
and bay-leaf custard was quite the opposite but equally delicious.
We had them with two glasses of Kir Royale (£21) –
it seemed that everything we ordered cost £21!
A well-balanced wine list with category titles such as dry and
earthy, medium bodied, full and aromatic. Several from California
and Bouchard Pere and Fils were well represented with a 2001
Mersault (£88) and a 2001 Gevrey-Chambertin (£48).
We found my now favourite Grenache Viognier, Domaine La Croix
Belle at £21 which was an excellent choice. Medium bodied
and dry.
The espressos (£8) came accompanied by delicate petit
fours: chocolate fudge, white chocolate with orange and a macaroon.
We met Gordon Ramsey’s partner, Stuart Gillies, who seems
to love his work. His enthusiasm is contagious and every one
around him is happy and relaxed. Boxwood Café is a sheer
delight. Everything there gives you a prelude to an excellent
dining experience.
Smoking is not permitted in the restaurant and a 12.5 per cent
discretionary service charge is added to the bill and the credit
card receipt was closed by the restaurant. Well done.
Boxwood Café
The Berkeley,
Knightsbridge, SW1X
Tel: 020 7235 1010 |
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