We dined from a special menu which we found advertised on restaurant deal site, Bookatable, which included three courses for around £25 (I think) and all of the dishes we ate were available on the a la carte – there was no skimping or cutting around corners here. The new House restaurant is described as a destination restaurant at the heart of the national theatre. I find the word destination a very strong word when it comes to restaurants, it generally means it’s worth travelling solely for – and while our meal at House was good, I’m not sure it’s quite ready to use those words. The dining room on the other hand can, because it looks utterly sumptuous and very stripped back. We started our meal with this plate of buratta, candied tomato, seasonal leaves, balsamic and drizzling of olive oil. The tomato is encasing the burrata, which is why you can’t see it but was very nice, but as a whole dish failed to excite. I began to wonder whether this so called destination restaurant was aiming more at its theatre goers all of a sudden – healthy, simple?
I was rather won over by the sound of our other starter. Octopus smoked over apple wood chips with a seasonal bean salad. For some reason I’d envisaged a large smoky tentacle, perched over a vibrant, chopped salad. It arrived with the salad I’d imagined, but the octopus? Well I struggled to find much of it. When I did it was chopped up so small that it was lost in the salad and its smoked over apple-wood element seemed pointless, who could possibly taste it? The answer was you couldn’t. There was however a nice paprika smokiness coming from the salad – get the tentacle whole over the top of that salad and you’re on to a winner, House.
Main courses was where this restaurant really came in to its own. Our ordered cod was all out for the day, so instead we were offered sea bream instead (even better). Both fillets of the fish were very well cooked, a little buttery and perfectly seasoned – the skin was great too, just crisp enough but still moist. A side of chips were excellent. Underneath sat some sort of tartar mixture which was very nice, but we really had no idea what was in it. I’ve not seen a crushed pea ‘smearrrrrrrrrr’ before (for some reason that needed extenuating) and it was perfectly fine, but it looked like someone stuck their finger through it and smeared it back across the plate, maybe they did? Joking aside the dish tasted good, and this was effectively a version of the classic fish ‘n’ chips, it just needed a little more finesse with plating.
Amongst all this food at House, real talent appeared out of nowhere. In fact this simple dish of lamb rump with pan haggerty and a mint and caper relish turned out to be one of the most satisfying things I’ve eaten this year (2015 for those of you who are still drunk). The lamb was absolutely stunning, I can’t stress that enough. When I asked about its provenance, I was informed that the same lamb is used in all restaurants across the National Theatre and sourced from a farm in Scotland, I believe, although don’t quote me on that. It was full of so much flavour my mouth had no idea what was going on, chewing and cutting through it was with ease and was cooked so well its juicy medium-rare was making me salivate. Even the little square of potato pan haggerty (a bit like gratin dauphinois) was excellent. Customers eating here should be forced to eat this dish when dining, vegetarian or not, it shouldn’t be missed.
Dessert showed a little insight of what the kitchen is capable of, but its execution just wasn’t completely up to scratch. A praline hazelnut éclair with praline ice cream and chocolate sauce was absolutely perfect in terms of flavour, especially that praline sauce running through everything, but the éclair was nothing like how I imagined it. It’s texture was more like a biscuit and incredibly difficult the get through. I’m not entirely sure if this is how it’s meant to be, or I was simply unlucky. This dessert may have satisfied our sweet tooth cravings, but didn’t manage to excite, except for its presentation.
House restaurant at the National Theatre is certainly a welcomed addition to the Southbank area. Good theatre dining is long overdue and until recently, mainly consisted of either sandwiches, champagne or food stuck in the 90’s. People now want the whole experience and in some instances they are seeing dining, as the experience – cutting out theatres or shows altogether. So perhaps now is the time for these establishments to take note, create better restaurants and get us in not only for a show or meal, but both. I know I’m already sold on the idea.
6/10
