Confronted by a list of London's restaurants, many and varied as they are, and asked to make a preference for an evening out or a business lunch, even the au fait foodie would be tempted to play it safe and plump for one presided over by one of the great French chefs, whose reputations tend to dominate the London restaurant
scene. And since London's eateries have not escaped the taunts of aggrieved visitors, whose over riding impression is one of flavouricss and over priced meals, disagreeably served in dreary surroundings, it's probably the most sensible course of action.
So it is refreshing to learn that English chefs and English food are coming into their own these days: less fodder, more cuisine in fact, a general realisation that our cold to middling climate does not necessarily demand enormous dollops of filler at the expense of culinary imagination. People can now come to London and eat local, instead of feeling if it's not French it's not worth bothering with.
That said, some of London's French restaurants deserve all the accolades they have been collecting over the years. Chez Nico (129 Queenstown Road, SW8; tel: 720 6960) is the proud possessor of two Michelin stars, and the chef, Nico Laden, is determined to acquire another, although that may mean moving to larger premises north of the river. Next door, L'Arlequin (123 Queenstown Road, SW8; tel: 622 0555), is quickly gaining on its neighbour in reputation: famed particularly for its delightfully textured and presented food and intricate desserts, the sorbets being especially delicious. These restaurants are making this rather grimy road in South London a gourmet's paradise. Koffman, the chef at La Tante Claire (68 Royal Hospital Road, SW3; tel: 352 6045) has been called "a culinary artist". Fish is his speciality, and a set lunch of Ll 2 a head makes his artistry accessible even to the most impecunious.
Le Gavroche (44 Upper Brook St, WI; tel: 408 0881) has made the running over the last few years. It is usually possible to get in at lunch but you have to wear a tie. You eat in turn of the century luxury in an atmosphere that is not unlike a top class speakeasy. Albert Roux's cooking has a peasant feel to it and hispot au feu sauce Albert will keep you going until Tuesday week, but he has a perceptive touch with more delicate dishes too his shrimp bisque has been particularly fine and the pastry is always superb. But it is a place to eat rather than drink though the wine cellar is among the best in London. Aperitifs, cognacs and cigars have doubled some people's bills.
Not long ago it was nigh on impossible to find a restaurant with sufficient confidence in the British culinary tradition to actually call itself an English restaurant. Now such places abound and many of
London's streets are filled with names like Bates, Rules, Porters and School Dinners, which bring to mind images of that other great British institution, the public school.
For solid and dependable old favourites, the bastions of London eating are still the best. The Dorchester Grill (Dorchester Hotel, Park Lane, WI; tel: 629 8888), under the all knowing eye of the fabled Anton Mosimann, specialises in regional dishes, bringing a whole new meaning to boiled beef and carrots. The Savoy Grill (The Savoy Hotel, The Strand, WC2; tel: 836 4343) where the game is always hung to perfection, is as formal as it is expensive, but delights those who have been brought up on tales of English superiority, taste and class, and fail to see it in action anywhere else.
The Connaught (Carlos Place, Wl; tel: 499 7070) has been a reliable stalwart of London eating for some time. It pays to be adventurous from the big menu,which includes such traditional specialities as bread and butter pudding and mince pies alongside some superlative soups and pates Trying to find somewhere to eat English food reminds one of how much of a seafaring and trading nation England has become there are very few genuinely English menus in London. The atmosphere, at least, at Boulestin's (Henrietta St, WC2) tel: 836 7061) in Covent Garden is as English as the ante room of Windsor Palace and the room itself is magnificent. The food has French parents and can be quite ineffective but the wines are superb and it is a good place for a celebration.
More authentic English cooking is to be found at the English House (3 Milner Street, SW3; tel: 584 3002) in Kensington, which is a restaurant imposed on a private house with a reputation for good game, or else the smartly executive Leith's (92 Kensington Park Road; tel: 229 4481) in Holland Park where duck is the house speciality.
Indian cooking is now so prevalent (with even the smallest of villages having an Indian restaurant) that it is in danger of being considered indigenous. Indian food connoisseurs should be well satisfied with Lal Qi1a (117 Tottenham Court Road, WI, tel: 387 4570) or with the Bombay Brasserie (140 Gloucester Road, SW7; tel: 370 4040) where the Sunday brunch is miraculous.
Chinatown, situated between Soho and Leicester Square, offers some cheap and good cooking (though not as good as say Chinatown in San Francisco, Toronto or Hong Kong) if the surroundings are a bit rough and ready. Poons (4
Leicester St, WC2; tel: 437 1528) has excellent wind dried foods and the massive Chuen Cheng Ku (17 Wardour St, WI; tel: 437 1398) has first rate dim sum. More elegant, is Tiger Lee (251 Old Brompton Rd, SW7; tel: 370 2323) where Cantonese seafood cooking is handled with nouvelle cuisine style elegance. This is the only Chinese restaurant in London with a Michelin Rosette
Fashionable London still goes to Langan's Brasserie (Stratton House, Stratton Street, WI; tel: 493 6437) where the food is remarkably good and famous people enjoy looking at each other. The theatre world heads forJoe Allen (13 Exeter Street, WC2; tel: 836 0651) in Covent Garden where the salads and cocktails go down well with people on diets.
But if you really want to make an impression then Blakes Hotel (33 Roland Gardens, SW7; tel: 370 6701) in South Kensington combines a stnkingly Eastern decor with some splendid cooking, again much in the modern European style. It is run by actress Anoushka Hempel and has yet to be fully discovered.
Perhaps the best value for money for a set dinner in the capital at the moment is at Gavvers (61 63 Lower Sloane Street, SWI;,tel: 730 5983), near Sloane Square, which is an offshoot of Le Gavroche. The set price (~38 will cover two people) includes a glass of kir to start and half a bottle of wine and some slightly unpolished but promising French cooking in a relaxed but swish setting.
Good fish restaurants are hard to find and perhaps the best is Le Suquet (104 Draycott Avenue, SW3; tel: 581 1785) in Kensington where the fish is flown in from Brittany each week and if you don't feel like a full meal you can have a huge plate of crab, whelks, oysters, mussels, langoustines and winkles and a bottle of Muscadet at the bar down
stairs.
