If there is one thing that comes at a premium in London these days, it’s a view. And not to blow our own trumpet – but London does have one of the best in the world. Situated on Park Lane, on the top floor of the Hilton Hotel is the Michelin starred Galvin at Windows. Surprisingly for its location, Michelin star and well known chef, Galvin isn’t that particularly well known. Most of my friends, or people i meet haven’t even heard of it (maybe i need new friends). Either way those who don’t – are missing out.
Apparently the interior inside Galvin at Windows was designed to evoke the 1930’s, and maybe it does just a little but it’s already in need of a little refresh. Still, it was a lovely large dining room with a view to melt a heart. The restaurant opened in May 2006 and gained its first Michelin star in 2010, which it has kept hold of ever since. Chef patron Chris Galvin and his head chef, Joo Won have created a tantalising menu here. Rich, decadent, mouth watering food which would easily get an award for ‘most likely to give you a heart attack’ – the good kind of course (if such a thing exists). The bread was good too. The Galvin Bar is also on hand if you can’t eat your weight in foie gras, to sip on a delicious creative cocktail while soaking up those stunning views.
We dined here on a Sunday and took full advantage of it. Starting with a balloutine of rabbit, foie gras, ham hock and pistachio. Served with a cauliflower puree, pickled carrots and Serrano ham. The ballotine was stunning. Parts of it melted in the mouth from the foie gras, and everything else was so well compressed that all of the intense flavors were packed into each bite – it left us all salivating. Cauliflower puree was pure heaven – but the carrots and ham didn’t do much for me, or the dish in my opinion.
Remember when i mentioned about that heart attack, well this is probably what i was really referring too. A huge piece of foie gras, with a dense and meaty Cumberland sausage, and just to make sure it’s that little bit more unhealthy – a hash brown. Plus a little tomato chili jam and gravy. The photo doesn’t really show its true size but this dish as a starter was gargantuan. The foie was outstanding, melting to the touch and the Cumberland sausage was a lovely well made example The jam gave some much needed freshness to the dish and with its racing acidity left me drooling over the plate by the last mouthful.
Fish course was another mammoth dish. Pan fried sea bream, a hefty fillet and very well cooked. Seared scallops were a lovely addition but a little overcooked, which i think came more from the warmth of the plate than anything. Some well made gnocchi, olive tapenade and tomato emulsion were all lovely accompaniments to a dish which was good, but felt more like quantity was taking over a little, compared to quality or precision in the cooking itself.
Our main meaty course was a another gigantic portion. This time in the form of rolled roast pork, braised cabbage, carrot, apple compote, crackling and roasting jus. The pork was stunning, easy to cut through and much more tender than i expected for a piece of meat of this cut. It was infused with a few herbs and lovely rich jus to accompany it – there really wasn’t much to not like. Perhaps the cabbage and carrot could have been more apparent just to take away some of the heaviness of the dish but otherwise a lovely plate of food. It’s only criticism would be refinement, for a Michelin starred restaurant it’s very heavy handed slab of food.
By this point there were no words to describe how full we was. I could barely move. Or stand from the copious amounts of wine I’d consumed. Still we tried our best to put the cheese course away. The Comte and Epoisse were the standout cheeses for us – both were gorgeous examples. The grapes on the other hand were hideous. No flavour, pips and very tannic. Toasted walnuts were lovely, but what this dish was missing was some jams or syrups. It was all a little dry for my linking.
If there were a dish where Galvin at Windows really showed off its Michelin starred creativity, then it would be with their desserts. Caramelia cremeux, chocolate sponge and textures of apricot looked the part. The cremeux was beautifully smooth and textured with a delicious rich chocolate sponge base. Apricot was served as a compote, puree and sorbet all of which were bursting with so much flavour. The whole matching style with substance was perfectly balanced here, leaving just as much coming through on the palate as could have been expected just by looking at it. This was all about flavour, and it had bags of it.
When you dine at Galvin at Windows the one thing that never stops coming to the table, is food. Just when we thought everything was over a large glass pot of marshmallows arrived completely filled to the top (we’d eaten quite a few before this photo). Rose and violet flavour, light and fluffy – they were all excellent and a little playful which made for a nice change compared to the usual petit four offerings. Although i can’t imagine anyone could ever manage to get through them all. We gave it our best shot but the above was the finished result – pathetic i know.
Galvin at Windows was a lovely surprise and a restaurant so close to home, it’s a shame i hadn’t discovered it earlier. Whether the food here is of Michelin star quality, I’m not entirely sure but even if it weren’t to have its one star i don’t think it would make any difference to its popularity, because when we dined it was absolutely packed. Service was outstanding, and some of the finest I’ve had in London. While our meal may not have been particularly refined, we did dine on a Sunday which I’m informed is very much about feasting, with their usual menus being much more precision driven with its plating. Even on a Sunday, messy plates and all this is still French haute cuisine at its finest. I’ll definitely be back.
8/10
