Pret a Diner (Italians do it Better)

The next course was the one that the Costardi brothers had seemed most passionate about.  They described it as a nursery food that was incredibly common where they grew up, but apparently largely unknown elsewhere – tomato risotto with basil. It certainly isn’t something I had ever thought to make, a sentiment echoed around our dining party. But two mouthfuls in and we were all wondering why we had not made this before as it is deceptively simple yet addictively delicious. The carnaroli rice was perfectly al dente yet coated in the creamiest of smooth tomato sauces, topped with a chunk of blanched tomato and a swirl of rich homemade basil pesto.  It was so simple, yet so effective, and spoke of truly good ingredients.  This was followed (rather rapidly, once again) by the meat course consisting of slow-cooked veal cheeks with creamed potato. Veal cheeks are, to my mind, a tremendously underrated dish and perfect for those who find most veal to be insipid.  There is nothing inspid about these butch, gelatinous chunks of meat, cooked to fork-tender consistency.  Alongside them came the creamiest potato that I have had since I dined at L’Atelier Joel Robouchon – another perfectly simple dish, elevated to greatness by spot-on cooking techniques.

Dessert was described as a peach tribute to Nonna Sandra and consisted of a sort of peach custard, topped with crumbled amaretti and a spiral of excellent dark chocolate.  This was unusual yet comforting, and again not something that you will see on most menus.  I also liked thet fact that it was not too sweet, and that the scuptural chocolate garnish was made from really good quality chocolate, and was not just a visual afterthought.

After dinner (which, to my astonishment, took 90 minutes or less), I decamped to the bar downstairs, packed with the trendy young things du jour and awash with witty retro jackets, vertiginous platform sandals, outsized designer handbags, and air-kisses, sweetie-daaaahling. I felt a little like I was on a Richard Attenborough film set, where he was fliming some rare and alien species in their natural jungle environment – an impression added to by one lush, ivy-coated wall in which glowed a neon sign that read “Let’s go get lost.”  Indeed.  After a couple of very fine cocktails I headed out into the twilight, standing on the Mayfair pavement blinking as if in surprise to find that the real world had been just outside the front door all along, like Alice emerging back out of the rabbit hole.

And the verdict?  Tough question.  First, the good stuff.  The Costardi brothers and door staff were super-nice and smiley and not at all pretentious, keen to explain the concept and not batting an eyelid at my terminal uncoolness (!). The building itself is sumptuous, with the art and decor providing a constant stream of visual stimulation. Clearly a lot of thought has gone into creating and executing the concept and attention to detail is pretty high. I also really enjoyed all the food – the ingredients were good, the combinations interesting, and the platings attractive.  So then why did I leave feeling so curiously unsatisfied? Firstly, we seemed to be rushed in and out with haste bordering on the indecent. I do not know whether this was because I was at a table of journalists, not paying for our places, or because they enforce that hateful 2-hour table-turning policy so common in London – but the meal seemed to be over before we knew it.  Secondly, for organisers whose stated intention is to democratise the world of Michelin-starred fine dining, pricing the menu at £75 for three courses and another £9 on top of that for dessert seems to be an odd way of going about this. And although I had eaten more than enough, if my husband and his healthy appetite had come along, he would have left still hungry – and after blowing £80 on a meal, that is not ideal. To put it in perspective, you can dine at most Michelin-starred restaurants for less – so I am not sure how the democratisation is actually working. Sure, you serve your bread in a paper bag rather than with silver tongs, but at that price I’ll take the tongs, please! Lastly, places that try quite this hard to be cool, cutting edge and trendy provoke bouts of giggles in me, rather than mountains of admiration.  But judging by the trendy crowd in the bar, I am guessing that this is not a universally held opinion 😉  Would I go again?  Probably not.  But if you are tired of same-old same-old fine dining and like your Michelin-starred dining with a bit of sideshow, make sure you catch Pret A Diner at some point on its world tour.

Liked: the food, the door staff, the eclectic decor
Disliked:  the prices, the over-speedy service
On a scale of 1 to 10:  6 out of 10

DISCLOSURE:  I enjoyed this meal as a guest of Pret a Diner