Apsleys - The Lanesborough, Hyde Park Corner

Apsleys: Recently re-launched in September, Apsleys is situated in The Lanesborough Hotel on Hyde Park Corner. Their new Head Chef, Heinz Beck already has a fantastic reputation running one of Italy's best restaurants the three Michelin starred 'La Pergola' in Rome. Regarded by many as the best chef in Italy, this is his first venture in London.

Review: My wife and I had booked our table for 9pm as we'd decided to take advantage of staying at The Lanesborough overnight for her birthday. At just after 9pm, we headed down to the restaurant with high hopes, having eaten at La Pergola in Rome back in April where we were fourtunate enough to meet Chef Heinz Beck after an amazing meal.

We were led to our table in a quiet corner of the restaurant and ordered a glass of Champagne whilst we decided on the food. We pretty much knew that we were going to have one of the tsting menus, it was just a case of deciding whether it would be the five or seven courses. Within minutes, we were ready to embark on the seven course menu with accompanying wines paired to each course.

With our Champagne, we were brought a surprise from the chef, a tiny soup and mushroom shaped aubergine starter. This was very nice and kicked things of rather nicely. We then cracked on into the full seven courses with some lovely bread on the side.

Sea Bass Wafer, Tomato Confit & Avocado2007 Cuvee Anna, Tiefenbrunner, Alto Adige, ItalyThis was a very delicate, light and pretty dish with some lovely flavours and great textures all perfectly matched with the wine.

Scallops, Amaranth & Black Corns

2005 Verdicchio di Matelica Riserva, Belisario, Le Marche, ItalyThis dish wasnt quite what we were expecting, as the scallops were served raw on top of the back corns. Never the less, it was very tasty and beatifully presented and the wine worked very well indeed.

Foie Gras, Cereals & Mushroom Consomme2007 Riesling, Schloss, Johannisberg, Rheingau, Germany
We were both aprehensive about the foie gras, not because it was foie gras but beacuse we'd had this dish at La Pergola and had been left slightly dissapointed. However, this time around it really delivered on flavour with the foie gras wonderfully caramalised with balsamic it really was a delight. The wine worked well too, not being a fan of Riesling it was very good.

Carbonara FagotelliN.V. Prosecco Garbel, Adami, Veneto, Italy

The Carbonara Fagotelli, or Fagotelli 'La Pergola' as it's called in Rome is an absolute delight. We'd had high hopes for this dish as in Rome, it was absolutely amazing. A Heinz Beck signature dish, it's one of the best plates of food that I've ever eaten. Not bad for a bowl of pasta!!

Dover Sole & Fine Herbs2008 Verdejo, Jose Pariente, Rueda, SpainAn unusual looking dish, its flavours and textures were lovely, reminding us of our trip to rome and a similar dish with little rice crispies in every bite. Another winner here.

Lamb Crepinette2007 Nebbiolo Langhe, Produttori del Barbesco, Piemonte, ItalyAs you would expect, the lamb came with a wonderfull red wine from Italy. The meat was so soft, delicate but the dish was packed with flavour and a realy joy. Another amazing dish from a great chef.

Setteveli, Chocolate & Hazelnut2005 Tokaji Aszu, 5 Puttonyos, Royal Tokaji Co, HungaryLast up was the pudding, a fabulous chocolate treat with hazelnuts and gorgeous ice cream. It looked amazing too as you'll see in the photo I took! The wine on the other hand wasnt up to scratch, but then I've never been a big fan of desert wines.

Conclusion: This restaurant is the business, it delivers on every level. The food is excellent, with wonderfull flavours, textures and truly beautiful presentation from my point of view it knocks spots of Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester and it head and shoulders above many other London restaurants. Heinz Beck's winning combination has to make this one of the best places to eat in London and it will surely only be a matter of time before this restaurant is awarded multiple Michelin Stars.

The River Cafe - London

The River Cafe: Situated on the banks of the River Thames, The River Cafe is run by Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers and has been there for over 20 years. The likes of Jamie Oliver, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Theo Randall have all trained here and so our expectations were high.

We struggled to find the place to start with, I knew that it wasnt far from Craven Cottage but couldnt quite work it out. Once in the restaurant, we were greeted by a very attractive lady who showed us to our table, near the window and with a good look at the River Thames.

I'm not sure what hit us first, the amazing atmosphere of the place or the fact that all the staff appear to be extremely good looking, both male and female, everybody was good looking! As I said the atmosphere was really good, a busy busy canteen type environment and lots going on. I really liked that about the place.

Service was great too and the staff made us feel at home, no pressure and always with a smile. I ordered the Chargrilled Squid, served with fresh chilli and a rocket salad. It was nice, just nice and nothing special but then it was exactly what I ordered. We selected a bottle of red (can't remember what) but it was nice and tucked in. The waiting staff, still attentive and making sure we had everything we needed.

Main Course for me, was Grouse. Served with pumpkin and an Amarone sauce. The Grouse was a bit fiddly to eat, nice but a bit hard work and I struggled to get all the meat off the bone. It was tasty though and the Amarone sauce was tremendous...really loved it.

Yet again we skipped desert in favour of liquers, becoming a bit of a habbit. Out came the Frangelico (a hazelnut liquer) and Strega which was great.

The whole afternoon was good, great service with a fantastic atmosphere but sadly the the food was a little short. I'd go back for sure, but next time around I would order something different.

Fifteen, Jamie Oliver - London

I visited Fifteen for lunch with a colleague and we opted eat in the Trattoria which had a really good vibe, was buzzing and very welcoming. The waiter was really laid back, made us feel very welcome and was quick to get our drinks order in. He was good with the menu, explaining all the options and making a few suggestions too.

For starters we opted for the Fifteen Signature Antipasti, a board to share with a selection of meats, vegetables, chees and olives which when it arrived at the table looked absolutely amazing. It tasted great too, fantastic fresh flavours and smells it was a great start to the afternoon.

We orderd a bottle of Chianti to wash it down with and both decided to run with the Rib Eye steak for main course. The steak came perfectly cooked and seasoned with Parmesan which was lovely and served with a rocket salad on top. It was a great piece of steak, succulent and tasy and with more of the Chianti we were having a great time!

The decision to skip desert was mine but not in favour of leaving, just to sample some of the beverages available. Frangelico, Strega and a lovely Limoncello with tiny Strawberries in it....by this point we were a tad tipsy but had a great afternoon.

Cost? I think we spent around £100 each plus a tip - a bit over the top but we only had ourselves to blame given decision to go off piste!