Galvin La Chapelle Awards

Galvin La Chapelle Restaurant Review:

Galvin La Chapelle is a restaurant that has everything right. The setting is striking --- it’s in St Botolph’s Hall, once a church hall, then a girl’s school. The vaulted ceiling soars above you, light streams from the windows, there’s a spectacular glass and steel staircase up to the private dining Gallery and acres of space taken up with crisply laid tables. And, of course, there’s that Galvin cooking, that deceptively simple style that relies on fresh ingredients and skill, and takes solid bistro fare and adds modern touches. Start with lasagna of Dorset crab with beurre Nantais, escabèche of yellowfin tuna with spiced aubergine purée and herb salad, or home-cured Shetland salmon with fennel, avocado and ruby grapefruit. Move on to roast Châteaubriand of Cumbrian beef with a millefeuille of potatoes, cavolo nero and Périgord sauce, or fillets of John Dory with braised endive, mild curry, and a raisin and pine nut dressing. Leave room for apple tarte Tatin with crème fraîche, or an exotic cheesecake with coconut gel and pineapple sorbet. The restaurant is named after the great Hermitage La Chapelle wine, and you can drink that if the sky’s the limit. The wine list is good, with emphasis on the top end. There’s also a set 3-course Sunday lunch menu for £34.50, which must join the great food-fair price category.