The last time I was at the Dorchester was for afternoon tea like over two years ago. In that time The Dorchester has not gotten any less intimidating or less posh. Jenny and I were quite early for our meal and though we were given the option of sitting at one of the numerous bars in the hotel lobby we were more comfortable wondering around gawking at people and relaxing on the lounges in front of the Grill. We also had a bit of time to check out some of the merchandise on sale (like the handbag Sandra has her eye on – a Gucci special for over £10k I think – eek!)

Before sitting down for dinner we also had a celeb spot. I was just gazing off into nowhere when out of the corner of my eye I caught a glance of this good looking bloke. The maitre d’ of The Promenade (where they serve afternoon tea) thought I was checking out his friend – who turned out to be the boxer Chris Eubank! Apparently he’s quite a lover of the ladies but its always the ladies who are left holding the bill so you are warned!

On to our meal.

The Grill at the Dorchester is kitted out in what seems to me a rather oddly chosen décor – a Scottish theme (everywhere you look you will see tartan) and giant murals of kilted men on the wall. It was very unusual (not even in the Scottish restaurant Albannach is there such décor) and not at all soothing. But we had to put it out of our minds to focus on the food.

Tonight Jenny and I were dining at the Grill courtesy of a set menu offer – 3 courses for £28.50 (please note there is a very limited selection) but there was lots going on before our starters were served. First off the top was a selection of warmed bread. We didn’t ask but I suspect the bread is baked fresh at the Grill every day. The bread was presented inside a warmed serviette and alongside my weakness freshly churned butter! It was so good that we asked for more. In fact we asked for more bread too. This was followed by an amuse bouche of Celeriac velouté which like all amuse bouches lately went down altogether too quickly!

For starters I went for the unusual option of breaded pigs trotters, what on earth was I thinking, and Jenny the lobster bisque. To my surprise I liked my breaded pigs trotters served with an almost tartare sauce. The trotters thankfully didn’t have an offensive flavour, though I’m guessing has a lot to do with the fried goodness of the bread crumb mixture it was surrounded by, and in fact I rather enjoyed my dish. I had a taste of Jenny’s bisque and though I don’t know what the lobster itself tasted like I found the liquid part of her meal just a little sea water tasting.

For mains we both opted for the fish option.

I can’t exactly recall the type of fish but it was a white meaty fish. In all honesty we were both left a little under-whelmed by our main dish but the bread had started to tell at that stage and it was the right portion to leave us room for …

… dessert! But first a pre-dessert of banana sorbet with berries and a peanut butter brittle. Dare I say it was better than our mains? I tell you – I’m getting well spoilt by these posh places that do all these little freebie extras to the point where if they don’t offer them I feel ripped off! Ha ha.

Unusually my dessert choice was the moist layered chocolate sponge served with malt ice cream (this was really the bit of the dish that appealed to me) and Jenny went for the Yoghurt pannacotta with blackberry ice cream and passion fruit sauce. Jenny’s looked the more substantial but I liked the combination on my dish better.

Service tonight was pretty superb. They even dealt with our bill query discretely and without recrimination (we were mistaken) and they always made us feel comfortable even through asking for tap water and asking for more butter and more bread! Though we were one of the first diners through the door we weren’t the only diners and by the end the room had been filled nicely. Not bad value for money off the set menu (considering the quality of the food) though I suspect that drink prices (we had a complimentary champagne) might be a little higher than you’d expect.

A satisfying experience if not exactly thrilling and exciting all the way through.