aquavit

came by to celebrate a special occasion. really enjoyed the meal; particularly enjoyed the smoked eel, mackerel tartare and duck. the meatball dish was mostly mash- only 5 meatballs- but was otherwise good. for drinks i had a nordic bramble which i really enjoyed, but was disappointed by the arctic egg dessert which, while very visually appealing, wasn't really to my tastes flavour wise, with blueberries, chocolate and what tasted like a goat milk sorbet. service was lovely, though i found it a bit pricey overall.

there was my friend who was determined to be the largest (muscular) man around, so much so that a while ago when he was asked to described himself, in fervent hope that words would become reality, he screamed “muscles, muscles, muscles!”  he is now twice the man he used to be but not in an asthetically pleasing way.  in contrast, there was the british empire which once spanned the world, yet is somewhat smaller now.  it even runs the risk of potentially even fragmenting into something further reduced, as ireland and scotland debate on whether to leave the union.  against such comparisons, it would seem that a restaurant’s fall from grace would be something not even worth batting an eye at.  even if such failures trouble my stomach and wallet, that is something inconsequential to the world.  life goes on.

amazing place in london. i love the food. can’t wait to come back here again. congratulations to the staff.

great setting, excellent food and service with a smile!
having been a few times now, i’m happy to say a wonderful first experience was no fluke. staff are friendly, helpful and expeditious. would certainly recommend working through a selection of smorgasbord and whilst i’m a fan of the duck, the meatballs are also very good.

i was curious to try it, given the restaurant has two michelin stars in ny. it was also my first time in a scandinavian restaurant in london, i was quite interested to see what they would have proposed.

we used the formula "after theater" with a fixed menu at 26 pounds. for the price, the place is definitely worth it.

the service is very fast and the waiters are very kind.

we could decide two starters and i choose the duck liver and the herrings. both were really good, although i found a bit too sour the sauce combined with the liver. this probably depends from personal tastes as i never combined before sour cream with foie gras. it seems to be a more nordic tradition.
i had meat balls as a main dish, which had the same taste of the ones i got in stockholm, delicious. 
i decided to try a desert with raspberries, i believe it was the artic bird nest. it was the best part of the whole dinner.

strongly recommended, very different from all the other restaurants i tried in london.

been there for a brunch. had the nordic breakfast; it was rich and good. with more poached eggs and bacon we ended up having a full meal. atmosphere calm and nice. friendly and helpful staff and prices are reasonable for this area. dessert was the rhubarb cheese cake.. so delicious. oh yes and say no to the bread, just exquisite.

my boyfriend and i came here for our anniversary and we were not disappointed! the food, ambience and service was absolutely amazing - we didn't even mind the pricey bill.

the beef tartare i had to start was very nice and light. we also shared the matje herring, which had a nice salty flavour. the paired drink that was suggested was a nice complement.

for mains we ordered the beef and the sea bass, along with the johannes' temptation for a side (it's a potato dish with crime and anchovies). all three were divine. the beef and fish were cooked perfectly, and the accompaniments were very tasty.

for dessert we had the artic bird's nest and lemon posset. as a fan of goat's cheese, the former was delicious. the posset was lemony without being overpowering.

overall, a wonderful meal - pricey, but you definitely get your money's worth. the staff were friendly, and i adored the decor. i totally recommend!

london seem to be the "go to" place for oversea top chefs to expand these days, and the latest came from a nordic restaurant called aquavit, already with two michelin...

aquavit‘s much anticipated launch finally arrives tomorrow and london officially has a new gem to add to it’s scandinavian restaurant collection. as a swede, i had been patiently waiting for this opening since mid year and had very high expectations!. aquavit has two additional fine dining branches, one in tokyo and the original one in new york which holds 2 michelin stars. the london st james branch is labelled as contemporary nordic dining but i’d actually call it fine dining. not only because of the quality of the food but also the interior. the design is beautiful with very high ceilings, large pieces of artwork on the walls and warm wooden décor throughout.

have eaten at the two star aquavit in new york recently, so was very excited to have a meal in the new london outpost.

the dining room is a lot more open and less intimate than it's new york counterpart. there are very high ceilings, a moderate noise level, and a lively vibe. the menu looks to be a bit simpler than it's new york counterpart at a pretty steep price point that is typical of this area.

blood pudding, melted lardo, lingonberries (7/10) - the blood pudding was well made. it was seasoned well, and was bursting with minerality. i found the lardons to be an odd addition, as a cured, salty fat is not something you'd think of to be paired with blood pudding. however, with the addition of the lingonberries, the dish was balanced and delicious.

herrings 3 ways (6/10) - i love herrings. these were all of good quality, but they all seemed a bit too similar to one another. the curry serving had largely similar flavor profiles to the mustard. the baby quiche was delicious. the eggy mixture within it was a perfectly set and delicate custard. the crust was buttery with a pleasing granular texture.

foie gras parfait (7/10) - this was a very simple an adequate version of a dish that is often seen on menus. the aspic above provided much needed textural intrigue while balancing the fattiness of the foie.

mackeral tartare (8/10) - the fish here was expertly cut and of high quality. the chosen accoutrements were worthy team players as the greenery did well to contrast with the fishy and oily mackerel. the generous dollop of caviar added much needed salt and ocean to the dish.

crab and fennel salad (6/10) - i found this dish to be adequate, yet boring. the bread was a bit dry. the crab was of good quality, and the pickled fennel was punchy enough.

langoustines in shellfish broth (6/10) - i found the langoustines to be a tad over for my liking. the root vegetables perhaps a bit too crisp for me. however the broth was incredibly rich and bursting with shellfish flavor.

swedish meatballs (6/10) - well it would've been a crime to not give these a shot. i found the meat to be a bit on the dry side. i think the meatballs could have used a tad bit more fat. the potato puree however was lovely. velvety smooth and very generously ladened with butter. the pickled cucumber and lingonberries seemed almost unnecessary with how lean the meatballs seemed to be.

duck breast and parsnips (8/10) - the duck was beautifully prepared with just enough chew left to the fat. the root vegetables prepared in various ways paired perfectly with the duck and rich pan sauce.

salted codfish (4/10) - i found this to be overly salty, even for salted cod. the emulsion that dressed the cod was also quite salty. the green puree beneath it could not do much to relieve me from the salt bomb.

my meal at aquavit was good, and certainly ahead of the curb as far as new openings in london lately. however, if i were to compare it to the 2 star michelin in new york, it would seem that this one is a few leagues below and not exactly what it aims to do anyway.