REVIEW: Rivea, Bulgari Hotel, Knightsbridge

The question I’m asking myself now is, when am I going to get fat, lazy and rely on only good claret to get me through a meal. I’ve reviewed around 150 restaurants in London now, so I’d like to say I know a thing or too about food, and of course eating it. Some restaurants end up slipping through the cracks because I simply don’t have the time to write about them all, and these days I’m eating faster than I can write. But no matter how fast I eat there’s still hundreds of restaurants I haven’t dined in, and one of those which I feel I’m missing out on is Alain Ducasse’s three Michelin star restaurant at the Dorchester. So when I saw Rivea was in full swing and a great deal popped up in my inbox, I couldn’t resist.

The restaurant here used to be called Il Ristorante, which I believe was run by the hotel, for the hotel. With bad reviews popping up left right and centre it didn’t last particularly long. Even the Bulgari hotel is a strange thing. The problem Rivea most likely faces is that although it talks about being causal, the hotel isn’t. Visit the restaurant and you’ll be fine in jeans, if you really fancy it. But wearing no less than a cocktail dress or a three piece suit in the hotel and you may feel a little under dressed. Drinks in the hotel bar were good too, and weren’t ludicrously priced – just expensive. To be fair if your coming for a drink in Knightsbridge you’re not coming here for a Glenns vodka and coke, so price is probably irrelevant.

It must have been a hard task turning this soulless sunken cave of a restaurant into something a little more vibrant. The dining room certainly fared a lot better, but the food – I’m not so sure. There’s another Rivea in St Tropez too. I think this London version is meant to echo that a little, and looking at both menus – it’s certainly very close. Fresh, seasonal Mediterranean cooking. To start a meal here at Rivea you not only get bread (which was very good), but also bread-sticks with a eight dips to make your way through and challenge the taste buds. It was a fun and novel idea, except its hard to test those taste buds when some of the dips were vaguely resembling any flavour at all. The beetroot was a favourite amongst us.

The focus here at Rivea is small plates. You probably know I hate the idea, but I’m learning to love it, so do bare with me. And of course my hate for small plates never plays any part on the actual food – the simple matter is I just don’t like sharing. Food arrives here as and when its ready, so of course everything is ready all at once – and gets cold (if warm). Marinated seabream with citrus was first to the table. The fish was miraculously good, unbelievably fresh. But the problem was the citrus – there was so much of it. I’m not entirely sure exactly what was on the plate but I recall lemon, orange, grapefruit, some onion – it was frightfully acidic and I’m pretty sure its given me a years case of heartburn.

The most simplest of dishes, ended up being one of the favourites throughout the whole meal. Provence-style vegetable caponata. Filled with an array of vegetables, all well cooked, a little crunchy but each and every piece standing out with its own flavour detectable. Sweet, salty, acidic and deeply flavoured – I’d challenge you to find anything wrong with the delightful caponata. It may have been small, but it was perfectly formed. If there were a dish to evoke the flavours and smell of the Mediterranean, it was this.

I’m sure you’ve all been waiting for the meat courses and done with the vegetables, because I was. So when this well size small plate arrived busting at the seems with meat I was ready to delve in. Saddle of Scottish lamb with with new potatoes and a pissaladiere onion sauce. The sauce was the star here. It was sweet, richly flavoured with an intense meatiness and seasoned to absolute perfection. The lamb was just as juicy and tender as it looked in the photo but actually what the meat lacked, was flavour. It wasn’t tasteless, it was just not very tasteful.

Star dish on the evening without any deliberation was the roast duckling with figs. It just looked inviting from the moment the plate was put down in front of us. I could smell not only that sweet, lusciously silky sauce but the crispy skin on the duck and perfumed aroma of those figs. The meat was excellent, in fact everything was. I couldn’t fault this dish one bit, and it really did show what the kitchen is capable of here.

The menu at Rivea has quite a selection and the biggest problem here is consistency – In terms of both size, flavours, skill and presentation. You could most likely come here, pick well and have a great meal. Or like us pick blindly and have a meal which leaves you neither satisfied or thinking of a valid reason to come back. I was hoping this dessert of lemon shortbread with limoncello sorbet may have done the trick but instead its overly tart, racing acidity was like biting in to the skin of a fresh lemon. It was just too much.

We ordered the chocolate tart as well which was pleasant enough, but we struggled to get excited about it. Alain Ducasse has created a restaurant in Knightsbridge which feels like it doesn’t belong. The dining room lacks in atmosphere, the food can be hit or miss and with so many other restaurants offering a similar experience to Rivea, and sometimes much better you have to wonder exactly where this restaurant will fit into London’s dining scene. This three Michelin star chef may have it down to a tee at the Dorchester but Rivea’s unfortunately missing a beach, the south of France and a clientèle who cares more about being seen, then what’s on their plate.

6/10