CHRISTOPHER’S GRILL Restaurant Review – Introducing Nouveau American

rating:4.5

I had heard nothing but great things about the steak and lobster that friends have had at Christopher€™s. Having never been there myself my knowledge of it is based on previous reviews and word of mouth that have always waxed lyrical about a place that they claimed did the best American food in London. Such a claim! Sceptical or excited? The setting is rather more formal than I had been expecting. My coat is taken at the door and I€™m lead into a table at the martini bar. Dimly lit, with an orchestral arrangement in the background it€™s busy, vibrant and alive with a good mix of young couples, work parties, theatre groups and a small party of people who proclaim that €˜they just love martinis!€™. They have come to the right place. If you subscribe to the idea that the longer a cocktail takes to make the better it tastes €“ and I do, unless I€™m dying of thirst or the desire to get hammered €“ then you will be very satisfied at Christopher€™s. Starting traditional I go for the classic. Slightly sour, slightly sweet, not acidic. Served straight, Bond would bed you if you served him this. Going fruity, the strawberry is quenching and sweet, while the apple wonderfully sour. Even better is the fact you could drink ten of them and convince yourself you haven€™t imbibed so much as a thimble of alcohol. I€™m sure your legs would correct you when you attempted to stand. Finally being inventive I go for an Elderberry Martini. It€™s a dry beverage, which I€™m not a fan of, but extremely flavoursome. The elderberry cordial fuses with the blueberries, crème de classic and the gin to produce a very potent mix. It€™s not quite my taste, but it€™s an inventive well-made cocktail so I respect it. Top marks for care and presentation, the martini bar is a must visit. If you€™re not a Mr. Bond, then they have a wide selection of cocktails, covering all the classics and one of the most comprehensive wine lists available. The beer selection from across the pond is not quite so wide ranging, but beer doesn€™t seem quite so suited to this venue. I say this because Christopher's Grill has the aestehtic and atmosphere of a much more formal and dare I say 'upmarket' restaurant. From their reasonable prices to the things I have heard about it, it does not come across as such a formal place. And yet we are lead upstairs to a dining room where there is no music. Romantically lit, and opposite the Lion King theatre, it's a stunning location with stellar ambience values. It's perhaps not what one expects when going for an 'America dining expeirnce'. Or am I being a snobby Brit? While the term surf and turf does not seem appropriate to associate with Christopher€™s, it does sum up the kind of meal mood you would be in if visiting. Or perhaps surf or turf would be better. At £25 for a top steak or lobster, and no option to mix and match (and rightly so, I€™ve never had a top quality half and half) you are probably going to settle on one or the other. I know that I€™m going for lobster later so I€™m in two minds about starting with lobster bisque, though I do love bisque. However, the head chef Francis intervenes and insists I try his bisque. It arrives with a delicate little dumpling floating on a bowl of thick orange soup - resembling the warmest sunset you can recall €“ with precision dots of dark shellfish oil surrounding it. Thick, reach, creamy and insanely comforting, the lobster taste comes through strong, which is welcomed and the shellfish oil gives a little acidity to what is otherwise a very hearty bowl of greatness. Had I not been in such serene, formal circumstances I assure you I would have licked the white off the china bowl. And the dumpling melts in your mouth releasing a tiny piece of lobster. If you are in two minds about whether to surf or go to turf here, this will surely make up your mind for you. The Maryland crab cake sends my companion€™s taste buds on an all-paid expenses trip the Caribbean and mine are en route behind her. The cab meat is like a piece of melting butter held together only by a thin layer of golden breadcrumbs, attempting to maintain any kind of shape when cutting is an act in futility. creamy, savoury and flavoursome throughout and served with a sweet red pepper mayo, it€™s far and away the best crab cake I€™ve ever had. The offering of starters is really something special. The Carpaccio of beef is sliced so thin that the flavour has absolutely no place to hide. The seared scallop is as tender and tasty as you will find. And for lovers of asparagus, you must try the asparagus, pecorino and truffle oil medley. While I€™m set on lobster, chef Francis once more insists that I and my companion - who like me was set on lobster €“ sample their steaks, just to determine which kind we think is best. He thinks we might just surprise ourselves. All their steaks with the exception of the sirloin is sourced from America. The sirloin comes from Scotland, what many of course consider to be the be all and end all when it comes to sourcing steak. So I give credit to our cousins from the north and start with the sirloin. Tender and tasty; a petrified pink inside and a strong brown outside. Slightly drier than expected, but still a very satisfying piece of meat. The fillet is exceptional. When you press the fork against it juices shoot out of every crevice but once you lift the fork the steak immediately reforms its shape. The blackened steak is peppery with a lasting heat and bite to it. A tougher and thinner cut meat than the fillet, it requires a bit of a chew, but when it tastes this good, the work is worthwhile. But by far the best is the rump steak. Often overlooked for the fillet, this was a different class of steak. Francis smiles widely at our conclusions €“ just as he expected. It€™s thick, juicy beef that just melts in the mouth. While perhaps not as tender or juicy as the fillet, there is no substitute for flavour and seasoning can only do so much. This was the most delectable beef I have tasted in my adventures around London. Finally it€™s time for the lobster. I chose thermidor €“ the classic €“ and while Christopher€™s grill offers it in a variety of different ways, which I have not had the honour of sampling, I have concluded that this is the best. The meat was tender and soft; it pulled away from the shell with the slightest of pulls. With the buttery sauce mixing beautifully with the fishy juices, the aroma was intoxicating and the taste just topped it. If the beef melted in my mouth then this just liquefied and slid down my throat like nectar of the Gods. I finally understand why lobster is so revered. By far the most interesting and unique item on the menu (or perhaps any menu) was the tobacco onions. Not the most appealing of titles for a dish €“ more so if you don€™t like onions. The dish arrives and it resembles a batch of thread-thin onions, deep fried in a golden batter and heavily seasoned with thyme, black pepper and good helping of salt. While I have never eaten tobacco the texture of these in your mouth feels like what I would assume tobacco would taste like. The batter crumbles and the mixture of pepper and thyme create a smoky peppery sensation. It€™s a truly individual dish, distinct from anything I have had anywhere.

I admit to being a Baked Alaska virgin before visiting Christopher€™s; I have often heard of it but never partaken, which is odd as it contains some of my favourite desert components €“ cake, ice cream and my undisputed favourite €“ meringue. The merengue was soft and chewy, and clung to the spoon as I cut into it. Through a spongy cake which kept the creamy, rich vanilla ice cream captive. It oozed out once freed releasing a surprise layer of strawberry jam and chocolate. Each bite took my back to a time when I was a child chomping on as many wagon wheel chocolate biscuits I could eat. I may have found my new favourite dessert. The Tokaji wine served with it really went down well; sweet and fruity with a firm body and slight thickness to the texture. The alcohol was slight of taste, but high on potency as I would find out later, particularly on top of the champagne and martinis. While I remain destined to go forever without having a decent key lime pie, their lemon tart fell right between sweet and sour and the chocolate brownie was rich and sweet, form, sticky and contained just the right amount of nuts. Wonderfully moreish; it would proudly sit beside the most indulgent brownies I have had at chocolate festivals. While Christopher€™s might not neatly meet the criterion of an American eatery for they certainly don€™t deviate so far they don€™t relate to the group. As chef Francis puts it, we offer €˜the classic American dishes with a British twist. It€™s the same stuff, just using superior ingredients. It€™s what I like to think of as nouveau American€™. For the perfect mix between fine dining and classic American dishes given a €˜nouveau€™ cuisine twist then Christopher€™s is your place. Get the ambiance and high standard of food you would receive from a Michelin start restaurant but a a much more affordable price. Failing to try one of their magnificent martinis is almost as unforgivable as not starting with the bisque and finishing with the baked Alaska. In fact it€™s hard to visit Christopher€™s Grill and come away feeling completely satisfied unless you try the entire menu. A three-course meal at Christopher€™s will cost you from £40 - £60 excluding drinks and service charge. Christopher€™s Grill is located at 18 Wellington Street, London, WC2E 7DD.For more information or to book a table visit http://www.christophersgrill.com/ And if you are a fan of Christopher€™s Grill and believe it to be the best American Restaurant in London, remember to register your vote when the polls open on 25/11/11.