A good start at Hemicycle. After eating at bistros for a few days and then returning to the stars, it was immediately clear just how much sophistication is present. Lime and white melon lured us in with a confident introduction to Hemicycle’s snacks. The butter for the bread arrived wrapped in a parcel with a bow; I hadn’t seen this touch in a restaurant for a long time, it felt thoughtful. (And the butter was delicious.)
I knew the cacio e pepe was going to be filling, and that starting with it might mean a struggle at the finish line! However, my head wasn’t in control — I just had to eat it. This was a gutsy version: powerful, rich, supremely cheesy, with a hard kick of black pepper. Bloody good. So good, in fact, that I ate the whole thing without stopping for air. Shall I just go home now? I may have ruined the flow of the entire meal. And this was only the start! You could quite easily come here just for this dish alone. Give me a huge bowl of it and I’ll see you again for the same next week.
I did find some room in my stomach for the lobster. It’s supposedly grilled on the barbecue, but that flavour didn’t come through strongly enough. The raviolos, however, could have been a course in their own right — we found them superior to the lobster. With a crisp, sticker‑like texture on the bottom, they were absolutely epic. Give me twenty of those on their own and now we are talking!
The stuffed quail to share is a must‑order here. From a technical standpoint, the precision is exactly what we want to see. It is decadent, and the green bean salad helped to balance the plate, offering some light respite. A beautifully composed combinational creation.
Dessert at Hemicycle is one of the best I’ve had in a while. It’s small — just the size I prefer — interesting and stands apart from the usual suspects you expect to receive: another quenelle, another foam, another sorbet. It all becomes a little repetitive, as though everyone is copying each other. Not this. Here, I came across something else entirely. You might want to protect this one, chef.
We are witnessing a solid one‑star restaurant at Hemicycle. It did lack some soul and personality on the service side — I didn’t find everyone particularly friendly — but we’re not here for a social gathering. We’re here to eat well, and that’s exactly what we did.
