Glorious London town, innit?
Áine Bonner and her husband left the children back home in Cork and headed to London for a superb foodie winter break
BREXIT was one of the moments of 2016 that hit me, and many others, in the guts. It was a total shock, a mind-boggling event that had people dumbstruck yet at the same time incapable of talking about anything else. It didn’t take people long to start talking about the silver linings, however. Apparently online shopping outlet ASOS crashed, such was the virtual stampede of Irish shoppers making the most of the bargain prices a fall in the value of sterling brought. And so it got me thinking: London.
Glorious, buzzing, stylish, adventure-filled London. I hadn’t been since I was single and in my 20s. The last time I went there I slept on a friend’s couch. It was the business at the time but the idea of a grown-up, luxurious break in the city was calling. And falling sterling prices made that fantasy all the more possible.
Myself and the other half managed to swing babysitters for two whole nights and three whole days so the trip was planned with military precision to find out where to go, where to stay, what to eat.
There was a glass of champagne in the middle of the day if we fancied it; a cocktail before dinner was totally acceptable too. This was an adult trip with no obligation to do anything child friendly. We were giddy with glee and I scouted the opinion of as many people as I could think of to find out where the gems were.
I spoke to a good friend, Martin Sweeney, who’s head chef at one of acclaimed Mark Hix’s restaurants. Martin’s cooking is to die for and on a recent trip to Ireland he practically had Clodagh McKenna on speed dial to find out where to go. He’s pretty much got a little black book of chefs who he can ask where’s hot and where’s not.
So I plagued him with messages every time I stumbled upon a possibility for lunch or dinner. He told me what was overrated and what to avoid. He steered me away from some places that hadn’t lived up to his expectations, and encouraged me to go for it when I found a place that I thought looked great. ‘You couldn’t really go wrong with Galvin’ or ‘that menu is amazing’. Our trip would only allow for two breakfasts, three lunches and two dinners. We wanted to make each one amazing.
The first thing we had to sort out was accommodation. We found a gem in central London in Mayfair that ticked all of the boxes – the recently renovated Athenaeum Hotel, a five-star beauty that didn’t jeopardise our mortgage application with its price tag. It’s family run, so had a great vibe about it, and it counts Elizabeth Taylor, Russell Crowe and Steven Spielberg as past guests. The Oscar-winning director even edited some of Raiders Of The Lost Ark, ET and Close Encounters there. Take That broke hearts everywhere when they announced their split from the penthouse of The Athenaeum. So you get the picture.
This place is gorgeous. Our room overlooked Green Park and the four-poster bed offered comfort I haven’t experienced in a long time. Rooms are from £249stg (€292) per night and if you book early you can avail of a discount of 15%. My advice is to contact the hotel and see what they can do for you because they’re very accommodating.
We got an early flight to Stansted from Cork (€58 return for two on Ryanair) and whizzed into London on the train. After checking into the Athenaeum, we met a friend for what would be the first of many spectacular meals.
We chose Sticks N Sushi in Covent Garden for our first meal.
‘The four-poster bed offered me the kind of comfort I’ve not had in a long time’
We opted for the Extravaganza platter (£95), which had beef tataki, tempura shrimp, salmon tataki, seared wagyu beef, black cod, lamb chops, and pork belly along with staples such as edamame. It was divine.
After ambling around Covent Garden and enjoying a drink, our next stop was an Indian restaurant called Quilon at Buckingham Gate, which has a Michelin star. Indian is my absolute favourite food. We went for a tasting menu option, which had everything from chicken to okra and prawns cooked to perfection. The rice and side dishes were delicate and feasts for the palate. It really was heavenly and not as steep as you might expect. The service was lovely and unfussy.
We topped off our first night in London town with a visit to the Radio Rooftop bar, which is located on the 10th floor of the ME London hotel. It came highly recommended for a bit of the wow factor and cocktail menu – neither disappointed. We took in the views right across the city – the London Eye, Houses of Parliament and the wondrous skyline – from the heady heights of the bar above. It may have been a cold evening but that didn’t stop dolled-up people sipping icy cocktails outside in their dresses. It’s got a real VIP vibe.
As for the drinks, we bypassed the £5,250 bottle of Cristal champagne in favour of £14 champers and cocktails, which really were yummy. By midnight, our exhaustion was creeping in so we headed back, ready to tackle another day.
On day two, we headed to a new Basque restaurant called Eneko for lunch. The restaurant is three Michelin-star chef Eneko Atxa’s first UK offering so we were very excited. My husband used to live in the Basque country and is always raving about the food in San Sebastian, so I knew he’d love it. I did too. The prices are reasonable (set menu lunch is £25 for two courses plus a side dish). We went à la carte and I got langoustine to start (£14) and a melt-in-themouth pork dish for the main (£17). Himself went for fish soup to start and then hake he raved about for days.
Afterwards we called in at Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park for a stroll and a mulled wine. Then it was time for a champagne cocktail at the Athenaeum’s bar before we changed and headed to the Wyndham Theatre to see Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen in Harold Pinter’s No Man’s Land.
Then it was time for dinner at our hotel’s restaurant, Galvin at the Athenaeum. The Galvin brothers are Michelin star winners and their style is usually French but they went for a more British feel with this menu. I had a beetroot salad to start and pasta for my main. Himself went for the meat after his fish lunch and had foie gras and steak. We split a sticky toffee pudding. It was heavenly.
For the final day, our lunch was booked for a place called Picture in Marylebone, owned by Co. Offaly chef Colin Kelly from Tullamore. We went for the whole hog: the six-course tasting menu. The food was beyond good and, for £40 each, it was superb value as well. Staff were really helpful in choosing the wine as well.
The one aspect I regret about the trip is that it wasn’t longer so we could have squeezed in more eating. The city is full to the brim with amazing places to eat, drink and be merry. But we definitely got to sample some of the best.
‘On our last day we went the whole hog and had a six-course tasting menu’