Le Bristol (Paris)

The amuse bouche of a tuna lollipop and olive oil gel with pea puree was definitely the most stylish set of canapés I had ever had and to this day remains in the very top bracket of all ever experienced.  A delightful beef stew jelly with horseraddish emuslion proved to be an incredibly sublime amuse bouche and that too was special, in its supporting role.  The turbot we received came in a sealed wrapping which was carved away and removed at the table, leaving a seaweed butter to melt in to the dish and this was highly professional in its design and execution; the flavour being exceedingly fresh.

The mains that were had were similarly impressive and had true expert presentation.  Even the pre-desserts that included a lemon grass sugar stick with sorbet and a lychee snowball with sugared, edible rose petal were glorious in their skill and originality on the palate.  And yet however, after all that, the real star of the show was yet to be presented and this was a chocolate egg, coated with edible gold, sat on a drum of chocolate truffle in a sphere of dark chocolate which had the appearance of a Swiss cheese ball with its perfectly crafted holes within the sphere.  This was and still is one of the truely best desserts ever had and it is hard to place which, out of this, the strawberry soup at Arzak and the bacon at egg ice cream at The Fat Duck which is at the top, but to even be in this selection means it is a life great addin to the overall experience had here.

The small rotunda shape of the restaurant (i.e. limited and enclosed space) may not be to everyone’s taste and the sheer opulence of the design means dressing well is a must.  But for anyone keen on highly impressive food, this is up there with the best one can get.