Gordon Ramsay at 68 Royal Hospital Road (London)*** - HE

In 1998, Gordon Ramsay's first and main restaurant located in Chelsea opened its doors. 13 years later and holding three Michelin stars for ten consecutive years, Gordon Ramsay 68 Royal Hospital Road keeps serving exquisite and classic French food in a cosy and romantic atmosphere. Ramsay now lives in LA, USA, but Clare Smith runs the show from the kitchen, Jean-Claude Breton is Ramsay's right arm since Aubergine and an expert in filling a room with charme.  

Service: 18,5/20

Surprisingly friendly and informal for a three-star traditional restaurant. Three stars for Jean-Claude Breton, a master in the art of welcoming and making us feel at home, charming, educated, as well as highly professional. Hugo, a Portuguese young waiter, revealed distinct aptitudes, maturity and discretion. All these informal, but superior professionalism with the kitchen-front of house complicity relationship. 

Ambience and décor: 17/20

The restaurant is clean, classy with an romantic ambience.  The dining room is small and cosy, but noisy. Background music avoidable.

Food: 18/20

Food is cooked to perfection and extraordinary technic, presented with an amazing range of colours and plated with gentleness and detail. Textures and classic and vanguards techniques using high end and supreme quality products are characteristics of Gordon Ramsay's.

À la carte and tasting menus are available. To try as much as we could we opted for the tasting menu - Menu Prestige - composed of an amuse bouche, 3 starters, 1 fish dish and 1 meat dish, cheese or pre-dessert, dessert and petit fours. 

The lunch was all magical, but the "Sautéed foie gras with roasted veal sweetbreads and almond velouté" stood out for the creaminess of the foie and the connection between all components of the dish. Colourful and designed with precision, art on the table!!

Then off to a Ramsay's classic: "Ravioli of lobster, langoustine and salmon poached in a light bisque with a chervil velouté". The fresh pasta was filled with a winning trio, perfectly cooked, full of flavour with sea written all over it. The bisque had an intense aroma and a wonderful flavour, its was complex and with a magnificent consistency.

After we had the "Roasted fillet of Cornish turbot with coco beans, mousserons, morteau sausage and fennel pollen". The coco beans and the sausage are a classical combination and turbot impeccably cooked. The fennel is an essential component of the dish, but I would be better of without it…the fish would to.

"Roasted pigeon from Bresse with grilled polenta, smoked ventrèche and date sauce", complex Autumn dish (from one the Menu Prestige).

"Cannon of Cotswold lamb with confit breast and braised shank, navarin of summer vegetables", another fabulous complex Autumn dish (from the other Menu Prestige

"Agen prune crème brûlée with Granny Smith apple juice" to start with the desserts.

"Mango, jasmine and passion fruit soup" to keep going...

"Blackcurrant, violet, fennel and yoghurt génoise" to finalize beautifully.

Wine list: 19/20

We followed the sommelier's choice by the glass, the wine list, well the wine list was as thick as a bible.

Genre: French/Classic

Price: GBP125/person (plus wine)

Michelin:***

Date of visit: Autumn 2011

Overall: 18,5/20

Pros: Service, classic food, wine list

Cons: Ambiance and décor

Gordon Ramsay at 68 Royal Hospital Road
London
SW3 4HP
Phone: +44 020 7352 4441
Fax: +44 020 7592 1213
royalhospitalroad@gordon ramsay.com