Very Bored Cook

I wrote this review a year or so ago and had nowhere to publish it. I have been back several times there and as I had the same thing most times I thought i would let you all read about how good this place is!

I absolutely love this restaurant. A friend of mine has briefly returned from Australia after he emigrated there back in April and I had heard along the grapevine that he was missing ‘good English food’. So I had a long think about where to go and on discovering that his favourite restaurant was full I went for my favourite. Whilst the well known food critics brag about being known at places like The Ivy and The Woolsley and are able to secure tables at last minute, I can crow about being ‘known’ here and managed to secure myself a table on the morning of my booking.

I was shown to my table where I waited for my friend who was quietly getting lost among the little streets of Belgravia. What I love about this restaurant are the clientele, from the twenty-something sophisticates, the distinguished fifty-somethings to the refined seventy somethings all of which gives the place a wonderful warm and welcoming buzz.

Obviously having not seen my friend we had a lot to catch up on, so we took an age to get around to even looking at the menu. The staff couldn’t have been more accommodating and when we gave a little wave after 20 minutes of chatting came over instantaneously. I opted for a Smoked Salmon and Leek tartlet with Crème Fraiche and salad for a starter which was lovely; very smoky but with Crème fraiche acting as a great answer to the smokiness, the dish worked. The other starter on the table looked, smelled and tasted heavenly; there were three gloriously large scallops that had been gently fried off to give them a beautiful golden brown shading, resting on an artichoke puree. I am not a huge fan of artichoke, but in its puree form the flavour really complimented the simple decadent taste of the scallops – A wonderful starter!

I have recently been trying not to eat too much red meat when I go out for dinner because I find that my greed takes over and my eyes become miles too big for my stomach, so lately I have been trying fish dishes and a meat that I rarely eat in a restaurant – Pork. Tonight, however, there was no chance of me being able to keep a hold of my will power and I went for the 8oz Sirloin steak and my friend; the 8oz fillet steak. Apart from the fact that when I said Medium-Rare I knew I was going to get Medium-rare and that the meat is delicious at the Ebury Wine Bar, I went for the steak so that I could have my favourite wine to go with the main course, this was the Vergelegan Mill Race, it is a big and bold Merlot that perfectly harmonizes with a correctly cooked steak. I was not disappointed when my steak arrived, it was exactly as I asked with crunchy chips and rich, thick béarnaise sauce.

While powering our way through the main course we were urged by the table of four nearby to try the pudding with the butterscotch sauce, they were waxing lyrical about that sauce and the rest of their meal as well, and on their departure wished us a very Happy Christmas. I’ll repeat myself, a warm and welcoming buzz!

Pudding was certainly not on the cards for me as I had managed to finish my steak, so we opted for a couple of espressos to round off our dinner. The bill paying process is never a predicament at the Ebury Wine Bar, I always know in what region the bill is going to be, it isn’t one of these restaurants that no matter how careful you are you end up fainting on receipt of the bill. By the time we left we were the last but one table left in the restaurant but we had not felt hurried in any way to leave, the staff were quietly getting on with their chores.

The great atmosphere, helpful staff and beautiful yet comforting food all keep the Ebury Wine Bar right up at the top of my list. I can’t wait for my next visit!