Restaurants

Diners are ushered past theatrical drapes and a pitch-black hallway punctuated by art installations and an Ottoman-style couch. In comparison, this lunchtime brasserie and the haute-cusine Lecture Room – the Glade is Pierre Gagnaire’s most egalitarian. This is reflected in the choice of Market Menu, a set selection of straightforward dishes such as mushroom velouté and fish mousseline. Likewise the carte, which adds global interest at (relatively) purse-friendly prices. A Japanese element plays through in the ‘Ryukisan’ salad with its zesty grapefruit, grilled shiitake mushrooms and beansprouts, while even a simple-sounding roast breast of chicken defies expectation, arriving with a marmalade of madras curry. It’s artfully done, as you’d expect, but nothing prepares you for the loos, each housed in a gleaming ‘alien pod’.

Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2008