It’s a long time ago (late June) since I ate at Hibiscus, but seeing as we had a great meal and it’s a Michelin starred restaurant, it’s definitely worth a write up. Hibiscus is a gem of a restaurant, tucked away down a side street off the hustle and bustle of Regent Street. In fact it’s right just down the road from the Goodman steakhouse which I must visit one day.

Asked first for an aperitif, I asked for a gin and tonic and was then asked to choose what sort of gin (out of four) and what sort of decoration (lemon, etc) I wanted. My dining companions asked for a classic martini of which they then had a bombardment of questions (gin versus vodka, type of vodka, shaken/stirred, olive, etc). Impressive but surprising to be asked all of these. I’m not quite sure it was that necessary.

Before we decided, they brought a selection of small appetisers to the table – including fried polenta balls and some cheesy puffs, but really delicious since they were warmed through.

Next up we had a palette cleanser which tasted like a pineapple juice shot mixed with fresh soda. I can’t quite remember what it was but it sure was tasty. The texture felt like it was slightly jellified with a bit of fizz.

Opting for the summer seasonal menu, our first dish, surprisingly was a fresh pea soup with a pea puree centred around it. They poured the soup around at the table and it’s nice to see such a rich green colour.

Next up was a small piece of pork, served with some fresh green beans and a nice jus.

I remember the next dish amazingly since they brought some amazing looking knives to the table, all with distinctive pearl-like handles all opulently coloured differently. It wasn’t really needed though because the beef with stewed tomatoes and a potato cake literally melted away into your mouth. All you really needed was a fork in the end.

There’s the knife above. Lethal looking huh?

Finally we started on the round of desserts – this first one was a light fruit salad topped with custard.

Our final dessert was a deconstructed tiramisu and the highlight of the desserts so much I wanted seconds but it was far too rich for that.

And of course there was the obligatory petite fours with the tea and coffee. With a bottle of wine and 12.5% service, our meal ended up costing £125.06. A fairly expensive but reasonable deal given the quality of the food we had.

Name: Hibiscus
Found at: 29 Maddox Street, London, W1S 2PA, United Kingdom
Website: http://www.hibiscusrestaurant.co.uk/