Clos Maggiore
I have heard much about Clos Maggiore but never been in.
Walked past countless times but never looked in.
Now it is it was high time to rectify that.
Located in the middle of Covent Garden, it has a bit of a tight entrance but that is made up through its atmospheric entrance and dining room decoration. Although we were not given a seat in the conservatory, which was apparently the place to be for a romantic candle-lit dinner, we had to make do with being surrounded by artfully arranged alcohol instead.
Setting. Pretty placing as well.
Fancy lemonade. This is the alternative to a glass of champagne that I had to unfortunately decline.
White potato bread. The bread was carefully baked. Firm exterior, pillowy soft interior with a bit more spring than is the usual perhaps on account of the potato flour. A decent accompaniment, even if the butter which came along side was a little too firm for me. Required rather forceful action to apply to the bread someone deflating the bouncy interior.
Brown olive bread. A seemingly healthier alternative than the white, with more complex interior on account of being olive infused. Different in a savoury way.
Steak Tartare, Picked Onion, Chive, Smoked Dressing. Excellent. The tartare had been expertly minced and seasoned and when combined with the dressing was something rather special. Probably the best tartare I’ve had in London.
Orkney Scallop, Smoked Mussels, Shiitake & Leek Chowder. Delicately fried scallop dressed with delightfully deeply umami flavoured soup. A sign of the expertise in the kitchen with carefully balanced flavour and texture.
Scottish Roasted Hake, Shaved Fennel, Orange, Saffron & Kalamansi Sauce. Delicately cooked, a superb example of hake done well. In a particular nod to how good this was, my companion, who is usually averse to fruit appearing in anything except dessert, lapped this all up.
Rhug Estate Fallow Deer, Kale, Beetroot, Blackberries. Another example of expertise in the kitchen, this was juicy and full of flavour, the meatiness of the deer, the tart but sweet blackberries and the hint of bitterness of the kale resulted in a dish well done.
Pecan & Maple Tart, Creme Fraiche. Delicately presented, its flavour seemed to be rather ordinary. It was not bad but it lacked the spark of other dishes here.
High Mountain Honey & Vanilla Creme Brulee. This more rustic dish was presented with a little more sophistication with hexagonal wafer. Creamy, sweet, crunchy and smooth, an excellent example. Wouldn’t mind a few more of these.
In this new year, I’m trying to live without any (food) regrets. So when I find something that I’ve always thought about trying before but never did before because of wallet issues, time, or laziness, I’m trying to rectify this. This approach appears to pay dividends. Then again, it could just be the law of averages making up for recent bad experiences. Whatever the reason, I should have come to Clos Maggiore before.
A quiet eating 8/10.
Lunch (3 courses and a glass of bubbly) was GBP45 excluding drinks and service.
33 King St,
London WC2E 8JD