the ledbury

i can’t think of too many restaurants that i’ve had both a strong desire to visit and an equally strong level of frustration to secure a table. given the reputation of the ledbury, a perennial #worlds50 best restaurant and two michelin starred establishment, i can understand that it’s a little difficult to get into.  however, the main reason that i’ve been unable to secure a table in the past is because you cannot get a table as a solo diner….

my last meal at the ledbury was back in january, the day after new year’s day to be exact. the kitchen was working on a limited menu and they were very upfront with the fact that this was because of restrictions to supplies at that time of the year. nevertheless, it was a very solid meal and it was nice to see brett cooking in his own kitchen during the holidays, a refreshing change in this day and age when many chefs are much more interested in showing up on tv than they are maintaining the high standards in their own kitchen. for this meal, kang of londoneater had kindly gone to the trouble of booking us a table which these days are booked solid two months in advance. you can read his take of our meal here.

it's weird, i've never liked the look of the ledbury menu so i've constantly put off going despite it constantly coming out as the no 1 tasting menu in london and often the uk. every tasting menu i've had anywhere there's been an item on it that i don't think works, and i'm consistently proven wrong, given that, i figured that a menu where i didn't think anything worked must mean that i was again wrong about it, and i was - it was superb.

let's start at the beginning; the ledbury's a small restaurant in notting hill, located on the corner of 2 residential roads and is utterly unassuming, from the outside it could really be anything, inside it oozes style, the tables are laid out such that you're not sitting on top of each other and it's all nice and serene as you'd expect. so, to the food....

we had the 8 item tasting menu with paired wines, the first course was tomatoes and langoustine oil, i don't really know how to describe it except textures and flavours of tomato, each different but excellent together, the rich langoustine balanced it all and held it together really well. the white beetroot with smoked eel (and i admit i'm biased as i love smoked eel) was again perfectly balanced as i expected the beetroot to overpower the eel but no, it was mild enough to complement it perfectly. the warm bantam's egg with dried ham and truffle was a sunday morning fry up given an up market make over, absolutely awesome (i admit to holding some bread back to mop up the egg), it was the mildest dish with truffle i have ever encountered and this is a good thing as i find truffle more often than not kills the flavour of everything else on the plate, this was really well balanced and the truffle was just one of the flavours not the heavy flavour killer i'm used to. the steamed romanesco with shellfish, crab and parmesan crisp was full of the flavour of the sea and the parmesan just enhanced the sea flavours with it's own saltiness. the glazed aubergine if i'm honest was the weakest item on the menu, more a texture than a flavour but then i dislike aubergine, however the meat sauce was amazing. the galloway beef was to die for, perfectly cooked, melt in your mouth beef with bone marrow, just perfection. the first dessert was a set custard and doughnut, i loathe set trifle, mainly for the horribly gelatinous cold custard within so this was a massive shift from what i was expecting, far from being the claggy lump of vanilla i expected it was a light delicate little thing with tasted amazing, coupled with the tiny delicate doughnut it was a real surprise, two things that should be heavy both in taste and texture were light, delicate and refined. the brown sugar tart with stem ginger ice cream was a struggle, not because of anything to do with the food just because we were stuffed. even though we'd only eaten brunch that day and it was now 10 hours later we had to fight to make room for it.

so, the service, there's no dress code, which is great, and the service is as informal as the dress, this is no bad thing, no stuffy waiters, just attentive, friendly staff who realise that the slightest slip up from them can ruin your meal. sam was excellent, a really nice guy, happy to answer questions about the food and everything a good manager should be, he gets himself out to the front of house and meets the diners rather than hiding out the back. our sommelier was excellent (i'm really sorry i can't remember her name which is appalling as she was fantastic), explaining every wine and very helpful when i explained that i don't particularly like red so she swapped out the heavier of the 2 reds (a malbec) for a south african white which was not dissimilar to a white burgundy and could hold its own against heavy flavours (great choice btw). and of course dylan with his very dry sense of humour. i have to say that i think the service here was better than at the waterside inn under diego and the food was on a par, perhaps the waterside has 3 michelin stars because it's a prettier building, who knows? but the ledbury blows the only other 2 star restaurant i've visited, the hand and flowers, out of the water. well done guys and thank you very much for an excellent anniversary meal.

we visited here for lunch earlier in the year. we opted for the tasting menu and it didn't disappoint. the restaurant itself was a bit subdued being sunday lunch but is very well presented and i'd imagine would have a great atmosphere in the evening. a slight criticism would be the tables perhaps being a little too close together.

the food and service were top notch as you'd expect. the snacks at the beginning were excellent (especially the dumpling) and the meal throughout was of a very high quality with the highlights being the agen prune and the belted galloway dishes. they even gave us an extra desert to share which was a really nice touch. the manager was very charismatic, knowledgable and passionate about the food.

this is rightfully in the upper echelon of fine dining establishments, it certainly won't disappoint.

really amazing choice for our first meal in london. we opted for the 4 courses set lunch menu and although the dishes started out small we walked away perfectly satisfied. i wasn't a huge fan of the scallop cevice but couldn't fault how fresh the scallops themselves were. the strawberry tart is definitely one of my fave deserts ever. it seemed so simple in theory but the combination of textures and flavours were perfect.

the 2 michelin starred, the ledbury is a gastronomic explosion of foams, foie gras and finesse.exquisite fine dining, perfect for a special celebration and definitely worth booking months in advance. the ledbury, 127 ledbury road, nottinghill, london, w11 2aq. about conciergeangel. view all posts by conciergeangel →

ledbury used to be a restaurant i would frequent a lot back when i was living in london. back then, the restaurant had just obtained a michelin star and was viewed as a ‘lite’ version of the square. it was more of a neighbourhood restaurant rather than a destination restaurant. booking was not essential and you can literally walk-in and get a table on the day. i still remember a lunch service and where there were about 4 other diners.

super posh place but totally worth it!!
everything from the entire to the min to dessert were superbly cooked and excellent service all round. the wine chosen by the sommelier was spot on

earlier this month, i had the pleasure of dining at the ledbury. it was three of my friend’s 30th birthdays (one of them including tim!) and matt had managed to get us a table at this incredible restaurant, one of very few to have two michelin stars! chef brett graham has won countless awards since beginning his career in australia at the age of 15, working in a fish restaurant. at the ledbury he is joined by head chef greg austin, also from australia.

an extremely overdue post, due to a few busy days (holidays, birthdays, visitors from italy) and the looming and now passed, deadline to hand in my write-ups for next year’s restaurant guide. amongst the places i was asked to cover this year was the ledbury,  michelin starred establishment in notting hill. partly owned by phil howard, i had sort of always wanted to try but it was  not exactly on top of my list, partly, i confess, because notting hill is, for lazy me, quite a trek. i asked my friend and fellow restaurant aficionada the chaotic cook to join me for dinner and i finally made my way to the far west (not really).

regardless of what santa might decide come christmas day, judging by how utterly spoilt i've been for my birthday, i must have been very good this year... or i'm just surrounded by the best people. probably the latter. the best of the best being, of course, my incredible husband e. he always spoils me rotten (not just on special occasions, and i don't mean in a material sense - he does a lot for me, all the time), and he knows me so well. he'd already gifted me a dreamy present from when we went to new york (i am subsequently obsessed with all things henri bendel), so i definitely did not expect him to take me out for what was the best lunch i've ever had in london. a bold statement, and one that means it surpassed the likes of alain ducasse (ok, only by a hair, but still) and l'atelier de joel robuchon.

we ate here on the 16th of october for a friday lunch, we were on our honeymoon from australia. the ledbury is a formal and serious fine dining restaurant. my wife and myself both had the full tasting menu with matching wines. the service and food was impeccable, my only critique would be if the service staff could announce the food and wine more clearly and with a greater depth of understanding and passion. when you are a foodie and you undertake a tasting menu, the interpretations and motivations behind the dishes are as important as the balance and techniques used in the actual dish. one of the gentlemen that served us was excellent the others were in need of some practice and guidance. ths food was amazing, spot on every dish. our favourite was the tomato dish, incredible. as silly as it sounds the house bread and whipped goats whey butter was also a high light :) we were treated wonderfully and loved our experience at the ledbury, the chef was even kind enough to show us the kitchen. will definitely return when we venture back to this side of the globe. thank you ledbury team!

the best restaurant in the world!

from the casual ambiance to the friendly service. just perfect. of course the food is the star here.

been here twice for dinner.
have not tried lunch yet.

we went to london for a week to visit our chosen son. during our visit we ate at nine excellent restaurants. the most memorable after the fat duck in bray had to be the ledbury a  michelin restaurant which was number 10 on the san pellegrino the world's 50 best restaurants list 2014. other than the fact that they tried to take our table before we had had dessert, it was a most delicious meal. the scottish langoustine with asparagus, shiitake and smoked dulse was a standout course followed closely by the roast breast and confit leg of pigeon with cherries, red vegetables and leaves. pigeon is a course which is rarely, if ever, served in canada. the impeccable professional service was lively and friendly. the ledbury is an excellent restaurant worthy of its two stars. we drank notting hill blonde ale moncada brewery and ate three amuses bouche of green peas and crispy brawn cubes; new season beetroots with smoked eel and dried olives; flame grilled mackerel with pickled cucumber, celtic mustard and shiso; warm house bread and house butter; scottish langoustine with asparagus, shiitake and smoked dulse; poached new season’s morels cooked in earl grey tea with truffle and wild herbs; aged fillet of belted galloway beef with celeriac baked in juniper; roast breast and confit leg of pigeon with cherries, red vegetables and leaves and the inner bits, separately; whipped chocolate carmel with frozen jasmine tea and citrus; passion fruit soufflé with sauternes ice cream; brown sugar tart with stem ginger ice cream; passion fruit soufflé with sauternes ice cream (very light and fluffy); and petit fours - buckwheat chocolates, dandelion and burdock jellies and juniper and fernet branca "sticks;

i went there with a friend yesterday. this place is beautifully decorated with such nice and friendly atmosphere. cuisines were excellent and great service. quite simply the best fine dining experience we have had. we can’t wait to get back there. definitely recommended!