Introduction
Perhaps this is why, when A N Other said he wanted to take me for a meal at The Grill Room at five-star hotel The Dorchester, all I could think was that I had nothing to wear. (Or maybe this just means that I conform to some horrible stereotype of what modern women care about, shudder to think.) Of course, I didn’t let this stop me from accepting the invitation.
First Impressions
I did find something to wear, and regret that I worried about it in the first place. The hotel was even more fancy than I’d anticipated, but everyone was very friendly and there was not an upturned nose in sight. The weirdest thing to me about the whole experience was that they give you a choice of sitting side-by-side on a sort of sofa-type thing or sitting in chairs that face one another. Now, it’s one thing to sit side-by-side on a sofa in a pub or a bar, but in a restaurant?
The Setting & Atmosphere
What I should have been fretting over, rather than what I was going to wear, was the pressure of being spoilt for choice as a variety of food was brought to our table on trolleys. Which of the forty different fresh breads on offer did I want? (A reliable answer here is “None, thank you.”) Which of the ten desserts did I fancy? Which of the dozen handmade candies would I like to indulge in? And on and on.
The Menu & Dining Style
For my first course, I had an incredibly good smoked trout terrine (ordered after I glanced at my “What Would Clotilde Do?” bracelet). It was served with good wholemeal (I lied to myself) bread and the tiniest jalapeño peppers I have ever seen in my life. And what an interesting choice to go with a fish terrine — jalapeños. Somehow, it worked.
Main Course
When it came to the main course, I think Mr Other expected me to go for the Grill Room’s legendary roast beef — it’s the reason he keeps coming back to the restaurant. But instead, in a move that would have horrified most other haters of all things seafood (as Mr Other is), I ordered another fish course: this time, a pan-fried salmon fillet with sweet potato mash, steamed vegetables, and a curious English mustard sauce that was fantastic, yet didn’t burn the way English mustard can. To my surprise, the fish was a little on the salty side. It wasn’t salty enough to ruin the meal, but salty enough that I noticed — and I’m not normally as shy as I should be when it comes to salt.
Dessert
The dessert trolley was heaving with traditional English puddings, sticky toffee pudding, bread and butter pudding, summerfruits pudding, et al — which, truth be told, are not my thing. So I opted for a mousse of white chocolate layered on top of a mousse of milk chocolate, with a dark chocolate sauce. It was nice, but nothing exceptional. Then again, it’s hard to go wrong with chocolate, especially three different varieties. Mr Other, who has an inexplicably strong liking for almonds, opted for an apricot and almond tart served with custard. He rated it highly.
Final Sweets & Finishing Touches
And when I thought we could eat no more, a complimentary selection of dainty sweets was brought to the table. At first, neither of us had much interest in them. But as they sat there between us, we eventually succumbed and started tasting and sharing them. I was most intrigued by the caramel physalis, but the standout candy of the lot was a sweet sesame crisp-type thing, which most resembled a single Pringle. I’ll probably spend years trying to recreate it in my kitchen, so perhaps I should have asked someone.
Despite the salty fish, we had a nice meal and a great time at the Grill Room. Service was attentive without being intrusive, though I wouldn’t choose to dine in a place this fussy all the time; I’m not totally comfortable with someone draping my napkin across my lap for me and leaping to refill my glass whenever it gets a bit low. But I could happily eat at the Grill Room at least, oh, once a week.