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Our last meal in London was arguably, also the best. The decor is modern and minimalist. Chef Phil Howard and his staff put on a great meal for our group. His Chicken with morrell mushrooms was probably the best chicken dish I have had in years. The overall level of service and consistency across all of the courses was amazing - particularly considering that we were a group of over 30 people. Well done Chef!!!
Elystan Street was the first restaurant my family came to for dinner when we got to London for vacation. It had wonderful reviews on "Eater" and not to boot a Michelin Star. Luckily, everything lived up to the hype for us. We all got the tasting menu, which started out with a chilled almond soup. This was the course we were most skeptical of, but it ended up being all of our favorites. The soup was smooth and had a wonderful depth of flavors. The following savory courses were delicious, but it was hard to live up to the surprise that my family all experienced with the first course. The final course, the dessert, was "milk many ways," and we were unsure of what to expect. What we got, was outstanding. It consisted of an ice cream, powdered milk, foamed milk, and english black currants that added a wonderful pop of acidity and brightness. It was a perfect way to end the meal while also being refreshing and not too heavy. The service was friendly, relatively quick, and about everything you would expect it too be. I will definitely be checking out Elystan Street again next time I am in London!
We came here for lunch, first thing I noticed was how some of the staff were staring at us the whole time. And by staring I mean they were walking from one table to the kitchen just looking at us the whole way through. It's not like we were loud (there were other patrons literally shouting in the restaurant), underdressed, rude or had bad table manners. My only guess is that we were Asian (?) (we were the only minorities in the restaurant). Service was straight up rude and cold at times, e.g. when my mom commented on how lovely a dish was and how she was curious as to how the chef made a particular item, and the staff replying with a simple "that's great.". They were pretty inattentive as well, often taking a long time to clear empty and we even had to refill the water for ourselves multiple times (I really don't mind doing this, but when we did so the staff immediately rushed over, took the bottle from our hands and helped us... like seriously?). We DID NOT feel welcome at this restaurant and just having to wonder if you are getting different treatment because of the colour of your skin in the 21st century in a city as diverse as London definitely is making me having second thoughts about Elystan Street. As for the food... I started with the Potted brown crab with cayenne and brown butter crumpets. The potted crab was more of a buttery crab spread than a traditional potted crab. The spread was very sharp, maybe even caustic, as the overpowering flavour gave the back of my throat a slight burn and a lasting, bitter aftertaste. Lots of umami and flavour but it is not very balanced. The main was a roast rump of aged Cumbrian beef with roasted potatoes and Yorkshire pudding. The beef was excellent, perfectly tender and juicy, very soft but also providing for the right amount of bite in a slice of roast beef. The roasted potatoes were clearly overcooked and they were hard, chewy and extremely dry. It was extremely difficult to get through them. The Yorkshire pudding was quite large, airy and fluffy. For dessert I had the gooseberry and elderflower crumble with vanilla ice cream and custard, which was excellent. It was probably the best vanilla ice cream I've ever had. Clearly very fresh and made to order, there was a melted layer over the surface of the scoop, which was the perfect temp, making each spoon of ice cream an effortless process as it cut through the dessert like a hot knife through butter. The ice cream was airy, smooth and sweet. The ice cream was served on top of the large pieces of crumble sitting on top of a small pool of custard, which, when combined provided for a great contrast of textures. The crumble itself was crunchy, but not uncomfortably so, with a hint of flower and fruit. Overall my take is that the dessert was great, the entree was mediocre, the starter subpar, and the service the worst among all.
I would give this place somewhere between 3-4 stars. The food was pretty good - some dishes were thoughtful, others were ok. The ambiance of the restaurant was quiet, elegant/classy feel. Maybe almost too classy. It felt somewhat stuffy, like everyone was watching as the room filled. I tried to ignore because I wanted to focus on a lovely dinner, but atmosphere just wasn't right. The service was pretty nice, but in the end it comes down to how the restaurant as a whole makes you feel throughout overall your meal: unfortunately uncomfortable. Rillettes of Organic Salmon with Pickled Cucumber, Horseradish, Lemon Zest, Toasted Muffins & Dill A perfect start to our meal! The combo was very light and refreshing - delightful. Sauté of John Dory with Chargrilled Tropea Onions, Girolles, Parsley, & Garlic Probably my favorite dish of the night! The dory was well-cooked, paired with many fresh veggies, & the sauce was delicious! Roasted Cauliflower with Cauliflower Couscous, Apricot Chutney, A Light Curry Dressing, & Lime Zest Yummy! The apricot chutney and curry dressing make the dish very unique & flavorful! Quail with Spiced Cous Cous This was a good side bowl to compliment the other dishes we ordered, but I'm not sure if it can stand on its own. Hand Cut Strozzapretti with Black Truffle, Chicken Stock, Parmesan, & Butter This dish was kinda too heavy for me with strozzapretti mixed with parmesan and butter, and I couldn't really taste the black truffle either.
This was my first Michelin Star experience. I made a reservation for a Friday evening to catch up with friends while in London. The hostess provided coat check and we were seated. Our first waitress wasn't the warmest but the waiter toward the end of the night turned out to be American and we bonded over that lol. We were provided a complimentary appetizer which was not to any of our tastes. We were a bit too late to do the early dinner 3 course dining so we did a La carte. They seemingly just changed from the summer to fall early dining menu and that didn't quite pique my interest anyway. I had a fish dish but I unfortunately don't remember the name. It was good and appropriately filling. One friend had the open face oxtail lasagna which I tried and was delicious. We skipped dessert but it was one of my friend's birthdays and they gave her a card signed by the staff. We lingered a bit with our cocktails before deciding on the next spot. My friends got the margarita which they enjoys and I had a French 75 which was just ok. Overall I wasn't blown away. I've been to other Michelin rated (bin gourmand etc) which I feel had better food and service for the price point. read more
2 years ago
This place was extremely disappointing for a Michelin star restaurant. We came on a weekday evening and the restaurant was empty. We did the tasting of 6 dishes and everything was just too salty and the flavors did not blend on the dish. Almond soup: one of the better dishes and fairly refreshing Veal tartare- presentation was poorly executed and the peach had some dents on the side. Lobster ravioli- good on its own but way to salty with the lobster bisque which had a slightly burnt taste Fish: fish itself was fine but the babaganoush pairing was odd and the red sauce on top and zucchini were way over salted. Lamb- a little gamey and red pepper hummus that came with it was very salty and didn't pair well with the dish. Dessert- milk multiple ways was creative and basically ice cream with a wafer on top made of milk. Service was fine as the place was fairly empty. But maybe there's a reason why it was empty. read more
Elystan Street was a lovely spot I visited on a visit to London. I got the three course set lunch which included an amazing venison braised shoulder parpadelle (my favorite of the set), Slow cooked duck leg with hasselback potatos, and a Rhubarb mess (dessert). The ambiance and the space felt super modern. Upon being seated, I was treated to complimentary fresh warm ourdough bread with butter on the side. The service was great even though I went in as a solo diner. A great one Michelin star meal with great service and modern elevated food. read more
1 year ago
3 years ago
Our last meal in London was arguably, also the best. The decor is modern and minimalist. Chef Phil Howard and his staff put on a great meal for our group. His Chicken with morrell mushrooms was probably the best chicken dish I have had in years. The overall level of service and consistency across all of the courses was amazing - particularly considering that we were a group of over 30 people. Well done Chef!!! read more
4 years ago
Elystan Street was the first restaurant my family came to for dinner when we got to London for vacation. It had wonderful reviews on "Eater" and not to boot a Michelin Star. Luckily, everything lived up to the hype for us. We all got the tasting menu, which started out with a chilled almond soup. This was the course we were most skeptical of, but it ended up being all of our favorites. The soup was smooth and had a wonderful depth of flavors. The following savory courses were delicious, but it was hard to live up to the surprise that my family all experienced with the first course. The final course, the dessert, was "milk many ways," and we were unsure of what to expect. What we got, was outstanding. It consisted of an ice cream, powdered milk, foamed milk, and english black currants that added a wonderful pop of acidity and brightness. It was a perfect way to end the meal while also being refreshing and not too heavy. The service was friendly, relatively quick, and about everything you would expect it too be. I will definitely be checking out Elystan Street again next time I am in London! read more
We came here for lunch, first thing I noticed was how some of the staff were staring at us the whole time. And by staring I mean they were walking from one table to the kitchen just looking at us the whole way through. It's not like we were loud (there were other patrons literally shouting in the restaurant), underdressed, rude or had bad table manners. My only guess is that we were Asian (?) (we were the only minorities in the restaurant). Service was straight up rude and cold at times, e.g. when my mom commented on how lovely a dish was and how she was curious as to how the chef made a particular item, and the staff replying with a simple "that's great.". They were pretty inattentive as well, often taking a long time to clear empty and we even had to refill the water for ourselves multiple times (I really don't mind doing this, but when we did so the staff immediately rushed over, took the bottle from our hands and helped us... like seriously?). We DID NOT feel welcome at this restaurant and just having to wonder if you are getting different treatment because of the colour of your skin in the 21st century in a city as diverse as London definitely is making me having second thoughts about Elystan Street. As for the food... I started with the Potted brown crab with cayenne and brown butter crumpets. The potted crab was more of a buttery crab spread than a traditional potted crab. The spread was very sharp, maybe even caustic, as the overpowering flavour gave the back of my throat a slight burn and a lasting, bitter aftertaste. Lots of umami and flavour but it is not very balanced. The main was a roast rump of aged Cumbrian beef with roasted potatoes and Yorkshire pudding. The beef was excellent, perfectly tender and juicy, very soft but also providing for the right amount of bite in a slice of roast beef. The roasted potatoes were clearly overcooked and they were hard, chewy and extremely dry. It was extremely difficult to get through them. The Yorkshire pudding was quite large, airy and fluffy. For dessert I had the gooseberry and elderflower crumble with vanilla ice cream and custard, which was excellent. It was probably the best vanilla ice cream I've ever had. Clearly very fresh and made to order, there was a melted layer over the surface of the scoop, which was the perfect temp, making each spoon of ice cream an effortless process as it cut through the dessert like a hot knife through butter. The ice cream was airy, smooth and sweet. The ice cream was served on top of the large pieces of crumble sitting on top of a small pool of custard, which, when combined provided for a great contrast of textures. The crumble itself was crunchy, but not uncomfortably so, with a hint of flower and fruit. Overall my take is that the dessert was great, the entree was mediocre, the starter subpar, and the service the worst among all. read more
I would give this place somewhere between 3-4 stars. The food was pretty good - some dishes were thoughtful, others were ok. The ambiance of the restaurant was quiet, elegant/classy feel. Maybe almost too classy. It felt somewhat stuffy, like everyone was watching as the room filled. I tried to ignore because I wanted to focus on a lovely dinner, but atmosphere just wasn't right. The service was pretty nice, but in the end it comes down to how the restaurant as a whole makes you feel throughout overall your meal: unfortunately uncomfortable. Rillettes of Organic Salmon with Pickled Cucumber, Horseradish, Lemon Zest, Toasted Muffins & Dill A perfect start to our meal! The combo was very light and refreshing - delightful. Sauté of John Dory with Chargrilled Tropea Onions, Girolles, Parsley, & Garlic Probably my favorite dish of the night! The dory was well-cooked, paired with many fresh veggies, & the sauce was delicious! Roasted Cauliflower with Cauliflower Couscous, Apricot Chutney, A Light Curry Dressing, & Lime Zest Yummy! The apricot chutney and curry dressing make the dish very unique & flavorful! Quail with Spiced Cous Cous This was a good side bowl to compliment the other dishes we ordered, but I'm not sure if it can stand on its own. Hand Cut Strozzapretti with Black Truffle, Chicken Stock, Parmesan, & Butter This dish was kinda too heavy for me with strozzapretti mixed with parmesan and butter, and I couldn't really taste the black truffle either. read more
Elystan Street is a great restaurant: attractive layout that encourages the diners to focus on the food and their companions; a great wine list with some surprisingly affordable and great wines; a creative menu, with delicious dishes; an exceptional staff that is both unobtrusive and very attentive. Its a great neighbourhood restaurant, replacing Tom Aitken and adding to others (Pelicano, etc. ). Fun place, and we had a great table looking out over the room. We had the Strozzapretti & Scallop Raviolo to start, followed by the cod and turbot, and finishing with the bitter chocolate mousse. We drank a 1/2 carafe of pinot grigio, and a bottle of Lalande de Pomerol. All of it was very ggod. But... i have to agree with others that the food was very good, but not 'wow'. To be picky: the cod had half the plate separated with a big smear of pureed cauliflower (jarring, and a bit dated now), and a topping of 'haute onion rings' (they were delicious & added to the meal, but...). I mention that, because the food part of the bill was £ 210 (wine was £55). For two starters, two mains, and a shared dessert...that kinda money begs to be 'wowed'. One other thing, which didn't bother us (au contraire..), was that it was noisy. For us, it was a fun vibe. But for others, I'd recommend going early (we went at 9pm) or a middle-of-the-week day. Overall, really great and I'd recommend Elystan Street. read more
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