Warning: The meal took over fours hours...so might this post...
I'm not brilliant at handling super serious places. To be frank, I find it nerve-wracking with all that clean damask waiting to be sullied, and waiters that have an air of pomp (or finesse, depending on how you look at it).
Gauthier Soho made my list of places to eat at because I'd heard that it was a French restaurant with a Michelin star, and a vegetarian menu to match it's meat counterpart in taste and choices. For these reasons, braving my inferiority complex was a must.
If, like me, uber trendy or posh places give you the heeby jeebies, then I should warn you that you have to ring a doorbell to get into the restaurant. Yes, that's correct - a doorbell. The covert nature of entering, and our location, led me to worry for the briefest of seconds, that we were at the wrong door and we were moments away from a Soho surprise.
Inside, Gauthier Soho is beautiful (minus the weird papier mache, Victorian lady's head in the bathroom - what's that about?!). The restaurant is a converted Town House, so it's on different levels - not good for negotiating if you plan on binge drinking but perfect for making each room feel personal and intimate.
The decor is simple but the lighting was so dim that it was difficult to see: other tables may not face this but we were on the first floor in a corner away from an overhead light which meant that every time our words hit a 'th', 'p' or 'b' we came close to blowing out the candle which would have left us, quite literally, in the dark.
Lets head back to my inferiority complex for a brief moment: it dissipated as soon as the staff talked to me. Also, I was people watching a fair bit and the staff were able to adapt to the customer. There were little nuances in their behaviour that prevented them from being overly friendly to stuffy patrons or too formal with nervous or more relaxed ones - very impressive.
Now the food. Oh my...the food. I'll try and keep this as short as possible, which will be difficult as both Fiancé and I opted for the 8 course tasting menu: him meat, me veg.
His menu included everything from seafood to lamb and on the whole he was happy.
I started with Jerusalem artichoke veloute, goats cheese and swiss chard ravioli - interesting, innovative, not risotto, delicate and delicious.
On to Kentish carrots and a medley of vegetables (I forget the name of this dish) but it was filling, the veg was cooked perfectly and once again, delicious.
Next, the loathed risotto, this time with black truffle and brown butter - tasted amazing. The meat counterpart also got a 'happy face' and big thumbs up from Fiancé.
The next dish was poached duck egg on purple broccoli and quinoa. The broccoli and quinoa were delicous but I'm not a huge egg fan unless it's scrambled (or in a pudding) so I couldn't bring myself to eat it...those of you not as wary of poached egg as I am will probably enjoy the whole thing.
Yuzu curd and a roasted root vegetables followed. Without even an inkling of doubt I can tell you that Yuzu curd and I, don't get on...at all. One of the meat starters also involved some Yuzu curd and it elicited the same response from Fiancé. The response being; 'what is this sloppy, weird tasting, coagulated stuff?'.
OK, so this dish represented a severe reduction in enjoyment, especially when set against its predecessors (and the subsequent dishes), and had I not done the tasting menu and ordered this as my main I would have been disappointed, hungry and definitely poorer. However, on a tasting menu where every other dish offered was incredible, I think I can let it slide.
A cheese plate marked the end of the savoury section. Nothing wrong about that.
Some kind of passion fruit sorbet/fruit combination was dessert number one: flawless. Seriously it was wonderful and light and managed to be full of flavour and cleanse my palate at the same time.
The last dessert of the evening was a Golden Louis XV. It was just as decadent as it sounds: Dark chocolate and Praline soufflé. After Gauthier Soho and the wonderful soufflé made by the chefs at Bistrot de Luxe, it would seem that soufflé has won a place a rather large space in my heart.
Anyway, I think this review has been long enough, but if you can't be bothered to read the above, just take heed of the following: veggie choices galore and tastes that just may rock your world.
Then again, if you've come this far...the summary really isn't necessary.
Price: £229.00 for 1 x bottle of still water, 1 x tasting menu with 4 glasses of wine, 1 x vegetarian tasting menu with 4 glasses of wine and service charge.
Veggie Friendly: 5/5
Food: 5/5
Service: 5/5
Atmosphere: 4/5