Today I decided to venture out to investigate some of the Michelin starred restaurants close-by in the area, this is imperative for me to do so when travelling to compare standards across the globe, country to country, city to city. A lot of the time The Michelin Guide gets things very wrong, or it was just the fact the restaurant was on their best behaviour that day, or things randomly went downhill or drastically changed since they last visited. Whatever the reason The Michelin Guide is still supposed to be the most reliable source out there, especially when you don’t know a place that well or when it’s your first time visiting. Chefs still strive to gain recognition winning that coveted star despite what the papers have said these past few months. Kitchen is new to The Michelin guide gaining one star in 2021 and keeping it firmly in their hands, you can see that this is important to them. (They announced they were serving an aperitif for lunch in honour of them being awarded it again) But I let out a passionate roar of “I don’t drink in the day!” This is a rule I will not break for anybody. As I eat out often, I must support some kind of balance, because if not, I will end up like the size of a house with my kidneys screaming at me. Alcohol is left strictly for the weekends or weekly evenings on special occasions only. Freedom is important and being able to choose what I eat and how much is the most valuable to me. It is also the reason I am shying away from a lot of tasting menus only restaurants. I want to be able to decide if I eat twenty courses or not, not for the chef to tell me I must or else.
And this is where Kitchen resonated with me because it offers a la carte AND tasting menus, this is the right approach. All to often one-star Michelin restaurants are turning into an army of tasting menu regiments. (Especially in London.) Here, it allowed me to choose what I wanted without judgement especially as a solo diner. More restaurants really do need to listen to the customer, because tasting menus should be reserved for niche places only. I felt comfortable at Kitchen, nobody was frowning at me because of my choices, I took two courses only and wasn’t made to feel bad about it. This is still a perfect way to have lunch. Now that I have finished my rant, let us move on to the food.
My aperitif came (Without any alcohol) And even better, I saw at the end of the meal that this was not charged. When does that even happen these days?! Upon the first bite I could already tell that the chef had a focus on flavours and precision, everything gave flavourful impact and even the vegan cheese was not weird or depressing. I would eat that again for sure.
A small welcome from the chef and crackers were placed on the table and that same precision shined through. It is only a cracker you might say, but each one had that perfect texture, not too hard, not too soft. The right amount of crunch, they were moreish.
A trio of bread items followed next with a wonderful olive oil from Sicily. All made to a good standard, I wanted to eat every single part, but I just couldn’t manage it, so I took it away with me in a box, because that’s the sensible thing to do. You can’t waste bread like this. The grissini is always a welcomed and fun change, it’s the norm in Italy to have it gracing your table.
I ummed and aahed back and forth with the menu, I skipped right past the tasting menu section with glee to a la carte. I really wanted a pasta dish, but that would have been far too heavy for today. So, I settled for a starter of scallops. (Scallops, pumpkin, hazelnut and franciacorta.) Clean presentation, odd numbers on the plate are always more pleasing to the eye as they are here. The scallop being perfectly cooked as I elegantly sliced my knife into the middle to check. Once again everything was precise and clear, with the ingredients elevated to how they should taste, there is nothing confusing here.
For my second course (Catch of the day and three caviars, meunière sauce) I was expecting more fireworks. The fish texture was firm inside not as melting and soft as you would find with others, with a seared golden crust, the sauce lifting this dish. It didn’t blow me away though unfortunately.
Kitchen IS one star; I am going back for those stuffed gnocchi on cheat day!
