New Bond Street wins the battle of the Christmas lights, no question. Even a grey Thursday morning couldn’t dull the shimmer of silvery peacock feathers and they must look even more spectacular after dark. But we weren’t going to hang around to until nightfall – we were in London for lunch at a very special restaurant.

We discovered The Square in Bruton Street a couple of years ago. Chef patron Philip Howard had just won the fish course of The Great British Menu and we were entranced by his fresh, classic style of cookery. To be honest I was also entranced by his silver fox good looks… much like my own husband’s… and the fact we could actually afford to eat in his two Michelin star establishment in Mayfair.

That’s when you know a successful restaurant is all about the food. The set lunch in the run up to Christmas was £50 and I believe it’s still substantially less for the rest of the year. There are bottles of wine on the extensive list for under £30 (and over £1,000). Ours was £55 and a quite superb Barbera. The one tiny fly in the unctuous ointment of our visit was that the young lady sommelier tried to upsell us to one double the price. Last time we were at The Square the fantastic Egyptian master of the wine list had carefully price pointed the desert wine we chose to exactly the same area as the bottle we had ordered – and that was very impressive.

But the rest of the service was outstanding. Although the restaurant is dressed formally its staff have a twinkle of humour and fun about them which makes it anything but starchy. Plus you only have to glance in their direction (or less, but more of that later) and they glide, smiling, across to your table in an instant.

It being Christmas, we started with a glass of champagne and very soon our amuse bouche arrived; a tiny rounded glass of cauliflower puree topped with a crisp bacon and sage crumb, sharp cranberry flavours and sitting on a bed of turkey jelly. You hear chefs talking about balance and this was it – a perfect microcosm of Christmas dinner.

We opted for different starters. My better half went for the terrine of English partridge and foie gras with air dried pear, quince puree and mead jelly. He especially liked the idea of English partridge… we once went to a small restaurant in Brighton and he asked whether the partridge on the menu was English or French… and we were rather amused when the answer came back “chef says it’s from Sussex.” He didn’t seek to question the origin of The Square’s offering; he was too busy eating it.

I chose the lasagne of Dorset crab and scallop because its cappuccino of shellfish and champagne foam is one of The Square’s signature elements. It was rich and light at the same time, and a perfect accompaniment to the delicious minced crab, sandwiched between the thinnest layers of a rather brilliant green – presumably festive – pasta.

For the main course we both headed straight for the roast haunch of Windsor Park venison with beetroot and port puree, roast chervil root (not a tiny parsnip, oh husband mine) and smoked ham and potato galette. The meat was cooked rare and finely sliced over the galette (a simple but time-consuming way of raising the humble potato to a heavenly level) and a bed of shredded sprouts. It was cooked to perfection but the real star of the show was the beetroot puree; sweet, rich and such a vibrant colour, it brought the plate to life on both table and taste buds.

The menus were brought back to us and we discussed our choice of desert. A very brief discussion really; husband of course went for cheese and because I’m not keen on the Brillat-Savarin which constituted the cheesecake, I decided on the Christmas pudding soufflé with chestnut and macadamia nut brittle ice cream.

We were somewhat surprised to see the cheese trolley appear at our table before the waiting staff had taken our order. “You do want it, though, sir” our young French waiter insisted “And you’re having the Christmas pudding soufflé, madam.” The psychic approach is certainly taking service to new levels. He also seemed to instinctively know which cheese to select for my husband, having been given the lead that Epoisses was essential. A Waterloo from Hampshire (“Like our French camembert…”), a goat cheese from the Auvergne, a very high class Cheddar and a blue from Carmarthen before scraping out the last of the Epoisses box to leave a huge dollop on my husband’s plate. I swear I can still smell it now.

The cheese was whisked away to reappear a little while later with my Christmas pudding soufflé, which was served with the understated theatre of a ball of ice cream being dropped into it, followed by hot brandy sauce. It was sublime. Every element of a Christmas pudding was there; spices, peel, plump raisins, but wrapped up in a lightness which is unforgettable. If it hadn’t been for Colin McGurran’s langoustine terrine (Frost, August 2014) it would have easily been my dish of the year.

We ordered our coffee and as we waited there was another delightful treat in store as we were offered a clementine from a beautiful wooden trug. It was the perfect finish to a rich meal, and apart from a few simple wreaths in the restaurant windows, one of the few visible concessions to the festive season. As I said, at The Square – it’s all about the food.

To find out more about The Square, visit www.squarerestaurant.com.

 

Jane Cable, December 2014