Kerridge's Bar & Grill — Restaurant in London

Dinner at Kerridge Bar and Grill is an evening that felt like stepping into someone’s well considered vision of what a great venue should be. I dug the decor, the lighting and the welcoming staff and clinking of fine glass. After we ordered we got a little gift of a ham and cheese croquette with a delicious light mustard sauce. I knew we were in safe hands.

The Duck Parfait arrived and was smooth like great jazz —rich, velvety, and just the right touch of something decadent, with an orange chutney and a well toasted, delicious brioche - it is the sort of dish that makes you want to lean back and close your eyes: like great jazz.

The Dressed Crab mixed the white and brown sweet meaty flavours of what I love about crab, with none of the hard work of enjoying it placed on me, you could tell the staff in the kitchen did all the hard work so you could focus on the bliss, knowing that it didn’t need any frills - it came with confit egg yolk and a sourdough cracker I could only hope to be good enough to learn to make - it was purity on a plate. I enjoyed the Blanc de Blanc and Rose I paired with these.

Then came the mains, we went for red meat options, it seems to be the place. The waiters gave us a good run down of the chef’s larder. I went with the 300g Ribeye, it was medium rare perfection and juicy pink within, to anyone who appreciates a properly cooked steak with a great bearnaise - this place is a sanctuary. The Barnsley Lamb Chop - I didn’t know until I was finished that the things on the top were little bits of lamb tongue, but it the best lamb chop I’ve had in ages. You could eat the fat with the meat as I went as it was so well rendered, the meat so well cooked. I ordered a glass of Pinot Noir recommended by the sommelier and it was a perfect match for me, and I love Pinot Noir at the moment.

We threw in some chips for good measure, and a side salad that I initially worried might be too basic, but proved me wrong like only great food can, it was simple but worked to balance the rest of the meal.

The staff hovered around the perfect amount, like friendly ghosts, never intruding but always there when needed.

When it came time for dessert - we waited til after mains to order - but I was so impressed with everything else and am a sucker for Bread and Butter Pudding. As a recent immigrant to UK, I’m not super familiar with Gary Rhodes - how he is connected the establishment or why his name is on the Bread and Butter pudding, but it was a superbly elevated take on a classic comfort food.

I loved how sticky and crème brûlée-ish the topping was, I was a bit unsure of the chocolate ice cream but the whole thing worked. The Ramos Pinto 2018 LBV Port that paired with it wrapped the whole meal up in a warm, opulent bow.

As good as the food was - and it was fantastic - I felt blessed that it was matched by the quality of the shared conversations and connections at that table that made the night unforgettable.

Kerridge’s menu is timeless, in a way that could feel dated if each dish wasn’t like an exemplar for what each dish should be. It is the kind of place you come to when you want to to set a bar for what a great one is. It felt like home, if my home was much nicer and fancier.

It was a special moment for me and the people I dined with, and it was the perfect venue for anyone needing a location for these kinds of moments: a special place for special people having special conversations they’ll remember.

Epicurus said you should always start by looking for who to eat and drink with before looking for what to eat and drink. I chose both well tonight. To close with a quote from another the great philosopher, Arnold Schwarzenegger:...

It was great to be back at Kerridge’s which is one of our favourite places and once again we enjoyed another fabulous lunch. There’s always such a good friendly atmosphere which makes you feel that you are in an enormous pub. You also get the chance to enjoy fantastic food and drinks so really why wouldn’t you come back as many times as you can.

Our visit on saturday started with a delightful welcome at reception before taking a seat in the the bar area for a pre lunch drink. This was to be a complimentary glass of champagne courtesy of manager Blaine who managed to come over for a chat before heading back to an already busy service. Once we’d finished our bubbles it was time to head to our table which was in one of their delightful booths.

It was here that head waiter Anne took over and looked after us superbly for the rest of the afternoon along with Blaine who would pop over whenever possible. We started with a Cod Roe Crumpet snack along with Bread and Butter while we looked at the A la Carte menu.

After a discussion with Anne about the menu and her recommendations we placed our order. We then chose a fabulous 2020 Dolcetto D’Alba a light and italian red wine from Piedmont. Now it was time for our starters where we chose the Hand Dived Orkney Scallop with yorkshire rhubarb , black pudding , cobble lane coppa. For myself I opted for the Orange Glazed Duck Rillettes with green peppercorns , pistachios , cognac jelly , sourdough toast and truffle butter. These were two fabulous dishes to get us of to a great start.

Now we moved on to our main courses of the Beef Shin Pie with clotted cream mash , beef suet crumble and devilled peppercorn sauce. We also chose fish heaven in the form of a Fillet of Sea Bass with sicilian red prawns , lobster and seaweed butter , charred cucumber , pickled carrots and a parsnip purée. To accompany these dishes we ordered the heavenly triple cooked chips and hispi cabbage.

After a nice little break it was time for dessert and boy was I in for a treat. My wife opted for the fabulous Banana Souffle with coconut sorbet and chocolate sauce. Now for myself when ever I see Apple Tarte Tatin on the menu then it’s a must have and this one along with vanilla ice cream and cardamom custard really will take some beating. It was an individual portion cooked in its own pot that was simply sublime.

We finished with coffee and petit fours to bring to an end another fantastic visit to Kerridge’s. I really would recommend a visit here as the food from head chef Nick was amazing as always and the service led by Blaine , Anne and the team was first class. I for one will be looking forward to returning as soon...

The food was exceptional! Amazing. I enjoyed the quality of the food so much I still gave a 5 start review despite some service challenges (will cover later). We were greeted well, shown to our seat, the restaurant is beautiful, classic and modern rolled together seamlessly. It felt like somewhere that was going to be indulgent and special. The food as I said was exceptional, even the breads at the start of the meal were really another level. I had the fillet, ask for it medium, they did say they normally suggest medium well but I ask for medium - and I got it medium, perfect. The bone marrow sauce is the nicest sauce Ive ever had on a steak, I wish they served it in a bowl as I could have happily eaten it on its own with a spoon. Then there was the chips, they were described as triple cooked - they failed to mention that 1 of the three times it was cooked it obviously involved some sort of magic or Devine power. Ive never enjoyed a chip so much (I've eat a lot of them), so crispy on the outside, so soft and smooth on the inside. My final note on my main has to be the onion dip/condiment, WOW! wasn't expecting it, blew my mind. Again why it isn't served in a massive pot or jar so you can take it home is beyond me :-) Only other thing to say really is that my wife's meal blew mind away. She had the pork (I'm totally underselling it) and it looked like a true fine dining dish, multiple elements, beautifully presented. I never tasted the pork (my wife never gave me a chance....) she assures me it was amazing. As was the Gerkin Gravy (much anticipated after seeing it on Great British Menu). What we were not prepared for was the Mustard mayonnaise, I was full on space invading trying to get at it! Dessert was great, we love a brûlée however the waiter said we can share and not to miss out on something so I want for the Chocolate option (OMG it was good) which was like a brownie flavour except it letter away in my mouth (Im salivating now thinking of it). So on to the negative, we both ordered different wines (red for me and white for my beautiful wife) they kept my woofs chilled, however they were not very prompt in keeping her glass filled. As well as having to ask for her wine to get her empty glass filled we asked multiple times for the water to be refilled, that took 3 attempts. However, despite this we are going to go back next time we are in London. Food and restaurant are...