London's Top Tables

London's Top Tables




In a continuing series of features, Bob Sturges of Omni Capital offers a personal view on some of London's finest, if not always best-known, restaurants....

This month...

Roux at Parliament Square, 11 Great George Street, London SW1P 3AD

Run under the gimlet-eye of Michel Roux Jr., this eponymous eatery is the two Michelin-starred chef's second London restaurant. Having established his culinary reputation at the internationally-famous Le Gavroche in Mayfair - which he continues to run - Roux Jr. opened the doors in Westminster as recently as 2010.

Located in a listed building that serves as the headquarters for the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, Roux at PS is a stone's throw from the Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey. If the building's gothic appearance looks familiar, it could be because its architect was the same clever clogs who designed the Natural History Museum in South Kensington.

Inside, the restaurant is thoroughly contemporary. Employing fashionable pastel shades and modern furnishings, the ambience is one of hushed luxury. Booming voices and unseemly rush have no place here. Rather, it is a space in which to enjoy personal company while discreetly surveying the clientele. Tailor-made for Westminster intrigue and Machiavellian political plotting.

The food, as might be expected of this accomplished chef, is of a consistently high standard. Starters are around £15 each and mains about twice that. The cooking is firmly in the 'modern european' style, executed well and prettily.

Wine is expensive. There are few bargains to be had. But if you enjoy classic white wines, seek out the Lugana - a hard-to-find dry wine from the Italian Lake District that, priced at £40-odd a bottle, is decent value.

Taken as an all-round package, Roux at PS is not perfect. It exudes an elitist sheen likely to deter many diners and can feel a little too polished for its own good. But it scores heavily on detail and quality; as it does for location.

Your writer is fond of this area, not just for its obvious constitutional attractions but because it's a part of prime central London not yet conspicuously spoilt by the oligarch intrusions evident in glitzier locales. Moreover, Roux at PS provides a much-needed presence in an area surprisingly lacking in decent restaurants.

Top Tip: Choose your company to suit the venue. If your guests are of the hearty variety, there are better places; but for those content with quiet conversation and civilised dining, try Westminster as an alternative to the usual hang-outs.

Nearby Watering Hole: The area is better served by pubs than restaurants. The pick of these close to the restaurant is The Speaker, 46 Great Peter Street, SW1P 2HA. Small and traditional, it attracts hordes of pen-pushers from nearby government ministries celebrating the accumulating value of their private sector-funded, gold-plated final salary pensions. But don't let the bitter taste it leaves spoil your beer: sneer at their cheap George@Asda suits and let them know, unashamedly, you're off to dinner at Roux.

Attributed to Bob Sturges of Omni Capital

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