Having favourably reviewed 34 Grosvenor Square with Mr Oil in late November 2011, Mr Vinegar took his wife there in early January 2012 to celebrate her birthday – and wasn’t quite so impressed.
MrO: So, what was the problem?
MrV: There was more than one. In the first place, I’d asked for a table at the other end of the room from the piano player but we were put virtually next to him. In the second place, we were put next to three very drunken, loud, swearing men who were there purely to drink. The three of them, two of whom were very fat, were squeezed round a table for two on the banquette, which made things even worse. I cannot understand why they weren’t at the bar. If they hadn’t left when they did, we would have walked out. Thirdly, the quality was inconsistent. Our steaks were excellent but the chips were chewy and my sloe gin jelly had a very rubbery texture, which happens to jelly when it dehydrates – for instance, if it’s been made some days beforehand. And fourthly, the service was inattentive at best, distracted at worst. I sat with my hand up, like a schoolboy wanting permission to go to the lavatory, for ten minutes before someone came and took my wife’s drinks order. And later, when I explicitly asked for coffee to be brought after my pudding, they just brought the coffee and had to be reminded about the pudding.
MrO: Do you have anything good to say about it?
MrV: Well, the room remains very pleasant, the food was generally very good and it is clearly a big hit, being full on a Monday evening in early January. But perhaps its popularity is the problem. I got the feeling that, having realised that it is a success, everyone has relaxed. This is a crucial moment for any restaurant. Do you remember what happened when Christopher’s in Covent Garden became an overnight success 20-odd years ago? The waiters thought they ran the place and they almost destroyed it. I hope 34 doesn’t go the same way.
Mr Vinegar and his wife consumed two first courses, two main courses and one pudding, one glass of champagne, two glasses of white wine and a 500ml carafe of red, two cups of coffee and mineral water, at a total cost of £232.
34
34 Grosvenor Square
London W1K 2HD
+44 (o) 203 350 3434
reception@34-restaurant.co.uk
http://www.34-restaurant.co.uk
Showing posts with label 34 Grosvenor Square Mayfair. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 34 Grosvenor Square Mayfair. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
34 Grosvenor Square Mayfair
Mr Oil and Mr Vinegar have been to the newest star in the Mayfair restaurant firmament – and the Caprice Holdings stable - and been very impressed.
MrV: You wait ages for a new steak restaurant to open up in Mayfair, and then two come along at once.
MrO: It’s doesn’t seem right to compare them – at least, not 34 Grosvenor Square – to a London bus. I thought it was outstanding.
MrV: 34 is an object lesson in how to do things properly, unlike its rival Cut in the old Playboy Club premisesin Park Lane. I must say I disliked that place intensely. The service was very patchy and the food decidedly unimpressive considering the razzmatazz that went with the launch.
MrO: Everyone was very excited that it is Wolfgang Puck’s first restaurant in Europe.
MrV: I’d never heard of him before. But after eating at his restaurant I’m inclined to think that Puck and Cut are typographical errors.
MrO: But you clearly approved of 34.
MrV: A different thing entirely. Richard Caring and Jesus Adorno have excelled themselves here.
MrO: You don’t mind the prices?
MrV: I’m happy to pay top dollar for top quality.
MrO: You certainly didn’t stint, though I am glad you insisted we both have the Jamón Ibérico de Bellota. It is quite the most delicious Jamón Ibérico I’ve ever had.
MrV: The pigs are fed only on the tenderest acorns to produce that flavour and texture. Worth every penny of £22.
MrO: There’s a lot of it. When I next go there I’ll be tempted to have one of those between two.
MrV: It is a very comfortable room, particularly if you’re on the separate tables rather than the banquettes. A much nicer space than PucknCut’s flashy, soulless place. It makes one feel terribly prosperous just being there.
MrO: Is that why you ordered a £70 wagyu steak?
MrV: Precisely.
MrO: I was quite happy with my £19 sliced rump steak. It was excellent – although tasting a bit of your wagyu before I’d tasted the rump was mistake, as the rump was rather drowned by the other’s richness. I’m not sure I’ve ever eaten from an indoor charcoal barbecue before.
MrV: It is an incredible contraption, isn’t it? Made specially for them in Argentina. The smoke extraction alone must be some sort of work of art.
MrO: I think it will draw in the rich and the curious. This place looks like it will become very fashionable quite quickly.
MrV: Yes, but it’s probably expensive enough to keep out the hairdressers and secretaries. I hope it doesn’t attract too many Mayfair property spivs. Nothing kills a restaurant’s atmosphere and appeal quicker than a spiv with an entourage, chucking money about the place.
MrO: That tends not to happen in Richard Caring’s restaurants, I would say.
MrV: Not in most of them, I agree, but look at Annabel’s. Ghastly.
MrO: It was a shame you didn’t try a pudding. My sloe gin jelly with lemon sorbet was exceptional.
MrV: Ice cream and jelly – not an original idea.
MrO: No, but brilliantly executed and that’s what counts. What did you think of the wine list?
MrV: It’s a decent list and I guess their customer base won’t quibble at the prices, though I was a little surprised to see Chateau Musar 2003 at £19.75 a glass when you can get a wholeb ottle of the stuff from Majestic for £17.99.
MrO: The Californian Duckhorn Decoy was very good – much more European in style than most California wines.
MrV: Again, quite pricey. I think you can get that for less than a quarter of what 34 charged us – but hey-ho, it’s only money.
Mr Oil and Mr Vinegar consumed two starters, two main courses and one pudding, washed down with two large vodka-and-tonics, two bottles of wine, one large Poire Williams and four further glasses of wine, plus mineral water and coffee, at a total cost of about £500.
34
34 Grosvenor Square
London W1K 2HD
+44 (o) 203 350 3434
reception@34-restaurant.co.uk
http://www.34-restaurant.co.uk
MrV: You wait ages for a new steak restaurant to open up in Mayfair, and then two come along at once.
MrO: It’s doesn’t seem right to compare them – at least, not 34 Grosvenor Square – to a London bus. I thought it was outstanding.
MrV: 34 is an object lesson in how to do things properly, unlike its rival Cut in the old Playboy Club premisesin Park Lane. I must say I disliked that place intensely. The service was very patchy and the food decidedly unimpressive considering the razzmatazz that went with the launch.
MrO: Everyone was very excited that it is Wolfgang Puck’s first restaurant in Europe.
MrV: I’d never heard of him before. But after eating at his restaurant I’m inclined to think that Puck and Cut are typographical errors.
MrO: But you clearly approved of 34.
MrV: A different thing entirely. Richard Caring and Jesus Adorno have excelled themselves here.
MrO: You don’t mind the prices?
MrV: I’m happy to pay top dollar for top quality.
MrO: You certainly didn’t stint, though I am glad you insisted we both have the Jamón Ibérico de Bellota. It is quite the most delicious Jamón Ibérico I’ve ever had.
MrV: The pigs are fed only on the tenderest acorns to produce that flavour and texture. Worth every penny of £22.
MrO: There’s a lot of it. When I next go there I’ll be tempted to have one of those between two.
MrV: It is a very comfortable room, particularly if you’re on the separate tables rather than the banquettes. A much nicer space than PucknCut’s flashy, soulless place. It makes one feel terribly prosperous just being there.
MrO: Is that why you ordered a £70 wagyu steak?
MrV: Precisely.
MrO: I was quite happy with my £19 sliced rump steak. It was excellent – although tasting a bit of your wagyu before I’d tasted the rump was mistake, as the rump was rather drowned by the other’s richness. I’m not sure I’ve ever eaten from an indoor charcoal barbecue before.
MrV: It is an incredible contraption, isn’t it? Made specially for them in Argentina. The smoke extraction alone must be some sort of work of art.
MrO: I think it will draw in the rich and the curious. This place looks like it will become very fashionable quite quickly.
MrV: Yes, but it’s probably expensive enough to keep out the hairdressers and secretaries. I hope it doesn’t attract too many Mayfair property spivs. Nothing kills a restaurant’s atmosphere and appeal quicker than a spiv with an entourage, chucking money about the place.
MrO: That tends not to happen in Richard Caring’s restaurants, I would say.
MrV: Not in most of them, I agree, but look at Annabel’s. Ghastly.
MrO: It was a shame you didn’t try a pudding. My sloe gin jelly with lemon sorbet was exceptional.
MrV: Ice cream and jelly – not an original idea.
MrO: No, but brilliantly executed and that’s what counts. What did you think of the wine list?
MrV: It’s a decent list and I guess their customer base won’t quibble at the prices, though I was a little surprised to see Chateau Musar 2003 at £19.75 a glass when you can get a wholeb ottle of the stuff from Majestic for £17.99.
MrO: The Californian Duckhorn Decoy was very good – much more European in style than most California wines.
MrV: Again, quite pricey. I think you can get that for less than a quarter of what 34 charged us – but hey-ho, it’s only money.
Mr Oil and Mr Vinegar consumed two starters, two main courses and one pudding, washed down with two large vodka-and-tonics, two bottles of wine, one large Poire Williams and four further glasses of wine, plus mineral water and coffee, at a total cost of about £500.
34
34 Grosvenor Square
London W1K 2HD
+44 (o) 203 350 3434
reception@34-restaurant.co.uk
http://www.34-restaurant.co.uk
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