The Ledbury, Notting Hill, W11

The Ledbury
127 Ledbury Road
W11 2AQ

I paid a bit more than I was hoping to at the Ledbury, but this is a restaurant gunning for Michelin stars, I expect. It has probably raised the Notting Hill food standards. So apart from the costs, I’d recommend going.

The Ledbury is owner Nigel Platts-Martin's fifth restaurant (The Square, Chez Bruce, The Glasshouse and La Trompette) and it is chef Philip Howard's second (The Square) although I think a young Aussie does a lot of the cooking in the kitchen (Brett Graham sous-chef at The Square).

Enough of the history, down to the restaurant and food. I and the girl went on the second night of opening, so need to go back again to see how it’s kept up. I expect the terraces will be lovely in the summer, if there will be a summer.

Before you get to the food, you are welcomed by a charming maitre d and ushered into a sleekly designed space. All dark wood and quiet expensive elegance. (Warmer than Tom Aikens, sleeker than the Green House)

Then there is the sommelier. I think her name is Dawn and she seemed to be charming the pants of every single table. As my philosophy for these type of restaurants where the prices are starting to hurt already, is to go for out of the way, interesting wines at the lower price end rather than anything remotely well-known (eg mainly no Bordeaux then) and we found an interesting Spanish bottle at £20-25 which was yum.

Right. The food. Of course it was great, in the modern French style. An amuse bouche, dishes like roasted scallops with basil puree, rabbit and morel lasagne, veal with posh macaroni cheese, bream with courgette puree in lobster foam… but I am going to go and try it again to make sure it’s replicable.

Atmosphere… well what do you expect, it is Notting Hill types edging to the business end, where I can fit in nicely if I want to but some times want to escape from. If you’re feeling anti-establishment not one to go for. Also I didn’t see anyone who looked like they were in their 20s. Not that this necessarily matters. I wouldn’t go there on a first date either unless business posh food elegance will impress, it is slightly too shiny dark black wood, flawless linen, black uniform staff and black and white leather chairs. But then again, it’s pretty good if you want to have a conversation and I think not a bad place to celebrate something like the end of a deal (!)

If you liked The Square, Tom Aikens, Gordon Ramsey, you are likely to like this. If you are poor, maybe not.

Food: Dazzling French but there’s a possible bum note or two on the menu, so you can’t have everything. I’d come back again but could only do so regularly if someone rich was paying.

Wine: Amazing wine list. Amazing Dawn. Amazing prices. But you can pick up yum for £20 or £200.

Value: Um. At dinner: 3 courses and wine is going to £100 a head. Tasting menu is £55. It’s £40 for just the standard 3 courses, so if you are a bit economising like me, you could just get away with £50-£60 a head. Lunch is better at £20 for 2 courses. Hard to justify as a local pop in brasserie.

Veggie friendliness: if you take out the fish, it’s not that veggie friendly, although I am sure the kitchen will rustle you up something. If you have a veggie date, I’d go somewhere else.

Top Tips: (they might have sorted this out but) the taps are not intuitive to use. Ask before you go in the toilet. Trust me, it will save you breaking the taps which everyone else has done. Milk Dawn for her wine knowledge don’t be afraid to go cheaper and unheard of rather than classic. Be prepared for 3 courses.