Le Cafe Anglais

Le Café Anglais
8 Porchester Gardens W2
020 7221 1415

It’s like walking into a film set in a glamorous 1930s ballroom. It’s almost too beautiful to be real and exactly what poor, under-appreciated Whiteleys deserves. Le Café Anglais is vast, vibrant, impressive, all enormous lights, curved leather banquettes and polished wood. There are big round tables to seat ten and cosy small ones for two, all widely spaced. Countless staff glide around capably and there’s a surprisingly informal feel – no wine pouring, no stuffiness but smooth, professional service, just like Kensington Place.
Plates in restaurants have been getting progressively bigger over past years but despite having ample table space, le Café Anglais prefers small, modest plates, engraved with its name, creating a welcome lack of table clutter. We started with delicious warm smoked eel salad with bacon, which was cleverly dressed with a creamy and slightly sharp dressing, crunchy leaves and served on a warm plate. Foie gras terrine was predictably flawless. Chef Rowley Leigh is all about rotisserie chicken and has devoted himself to grilling the perfect bird, and his chicken with lemon thyme and whole garlic cloves heads up the roasts section, so we ordered it. Aromatic with lemon thyme, juicy and generous on the sweet, soft garlic cloves, this is certainly a superior chicken. Puddings are excellent, especially the intriguing sounding – and looking – Queen of Puddings. We look forward to returning for the lunch specials. l Pendle Harte