HIx Mayfair Restaurant Browns Hotel Review
There are so many restaurants in London these days that when you recommend somewhere to a visitor to the metropolis you might be forgiven for feeling slightly nervous. However, you know you are in safe hands when you suggest Mark Hix, whose reputation must span almost twenty years or so, and his executive chef Lee Kebble.
Mark’s stint at The Ivy in the 1990s was the meeting place for all the film, theatre, artists, publishing and anybody who was considered to be part of the media. People would fight for a table in order to rub shoulders with what we now call celebrities, whiling away their long expense account lunches whilst earwigging at what was being said on nearby tables, in the possible hope of over-hearing a snippet of scandal in this social centre of the universe.
We all know that people go out to eat expecting not just interesting food, but to enjoy the theatre and conviviality of wining and dining amongst the good and the beautiful. Well the long all expenses paid lunch may no longer exist, but Hix today is a convivial, buzzing restaurant with a deceptively relaxed atmosphere serving what he has always done, the best of British produce. His passion for local ingredients and his wealth of experience guarantees you will eat and drink exceptionally well.
Our waiters were both charming and amusing providing recommendations for both food and wine pairings. Everything was cooked simply and perfectly allowing the ingredients to sing for themselves – exceptional English classic food. Nothing was excessive and every ingredient had its place on our plates.
The dining room has dark wood panelled walls with iconic modern art, including a Tracey Emin, oozing a sophisticated understated elegance and ambiance but sedate it is not. Splashes of purple, pink and green in the chairs, together with crisp white tablecloths, provides an exuberance that together with the sublime food more than matched our high expectations.
My smoked salmon followed by the most perfectly grilled Dover sole were absolutely sublime. It was certainly the very best sole I have ever eaten and will remain in my memory for many a year. My companion’s red deer with alliums and hazelnuts more than lived up to expectations. We both went really traditional for pudding me with a trifle, which I have to admit was every bit of as good as my grandmother’s.
Hix Mayfair at Brown’s Hotel, 33 Albemarle Street, London W1S 4BP
www.hixmayfair.co.uk
