Restaurants

Kitchen supremo Chris Staines has stealthily slipped into Foliage restaurant the most radical change to Londons fine dining arrangements for about 15 years. An entirely new set of menus tempts with the merest suggestion of an ingredients list, served you-dont-know-how until they arrive, and in portions that allow you to experiment to your hearts content, confident that every morsel will be up to Staines usual amazing standard. Best of all, the new dishes are simply listed as savouries or desserts and you choose four of whatever you fancy from the savoury selection that could be quail, artichoke, celery and hazelnuts; or scallops, tapioca, meyer lemon and lotus root. From the desserts: pear mousse, hibiscus and sea salt caramel; or guava sorbet, raspberry tuille and exotic fruits. The result: a whole meal of desserts, if puddings your thing, or all savoury, or two of each, or extra courses if youre feeling particularly thin. This adorable flexibility flies free and fantastic in the face of every stuffy London restaurant and prima donna chef. And the food is so innovative, beautifully cooked and diverse that you could eat here every week for a year without getting bored. The flexi menu is available lunch and dinner along with excellent wine pairings, or you can pick a more traditional six-course tasting menu, again with wines by the glass, or not. Most adventurous is the Menu Surprise: six seasonal, market-fresh dishes that could be absolutely anything; not even ingredients are revealed, although youre advised to inform waiters of any likes or dislikes.

Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2008