The smell of vanilla wafts slowly towards you as you enter this strangely out of the way restaurant situated on Great Titchfield Street in a random member’s club (membership is free.) I’m not sure which market Vanilla is aiming for but it’s location certainly seems to suggest they are not aiming for any of the mainstream public. Vanilla is, admittedly, only a short stroll from Oxford Circus and an even shorter one from Great Portland Street however its a little off the beaten path and without my printed out google map handy I’m not sure I would have ever stumbled upon it.

In all honesty I like the approach because Vanilla is a gem of a venue and I’d kind of like to keep it to myself and my friends! Its intimate, its cosy and the perfect atmosphere to bring a date (you can draw the curtains so you are effectively alone with your date!) or bring a group and share some divine food. The place only sits 35 people apparently so you can expect attentive and personal service.

Upon entering you are greeted by a lot of white for the main dining room. But rather than appear tacky and shall I say chavvy the simpleness of the design coupled with detail such as long flowing curtains, giant chandeliers and little tea candles actually makes the room appear quite elegant. The lighting also changes colour gradually during the night. In contrast the room we were sat in was dominated by black with white painted swirley designs on the walls and giant long mirrors to lighten what would otherwise be a very dark space. Vanilla was empty when we first arrived at just before 7 but got quite busy after that.

Food at Vanilla is French. Which means basically quality food artfully presented. Pauline, Sandra and I were dining off a set menu which was fairly good value for money. The fact that they charged us £0.00 for two cocktails also helped keep costs down. I know. WTH? If they’d missed off the drinks completely we would have said something but the fact it was on our bill at £0.00 was just a good result. Cocktails, by the way, are super almost shockingly strong. Wahey. Some are a hit (like my gorgeous “nutty cracker”: kahlua, amarreto, frangelico with a touch of cream served over crushed ice) and some are a miss (“bourbon forest” – supposedly black forest cake in a cocktail.) To say I was a little tipsy after a sip of the first would be an understatement.

The draw backs to set menus are that generally you’re options are limited. As it was we all ended up with practically the same meal except for our starters. Where Pauline and Sandra had what I think was a crab and avocado salad with smattering of mango I went for a pea soup served with cheesy croissants. Did I hear anyone say divine? I loved my soup though I think it was the croissants that sold it for me. Mmmm … For mains we all went for something quite heavy, a stewed beef which was cooked nicely though I don’t remember there being anything especially spectacular or unusual about it. And then we were brought our dessert. I’m not a chocolate dessert fan at all but even I couldn’t go past the Chocolate Fondant with cookie (can’t resist cookie) and coffee ice cream. It looked less fondant than chocolate mud cake but it certainly went down a treat. The texture from the cookie and the ice-cream helped break down the richness of the chocolate cake. I was impressed. I only wish I’d taken a photo of what was left on the plate – which was not much at all!

Service was excellent with the waiter joking around with us and making some good recommendations for cocktails. It was efficient and at just about the right level, even when they did start to get in a few more customers.

Many (earlier) reviews of this place have written it off but if tonight’s experience was anything to go by I would happily recommend the restaurant/bar to any of my friends.