Restaurant ReviewLes 110 de Taillevent

By Henry Hopwood Phillips

It’s been fashionable since Jay Rayner slated Le Cinq (which, incidentally, lost its third Michelin star in 2007 – the same time as the original Taillevent) to trash the traditional bastions of French fne dining.

They’re typically viewed as low-hanging fruit (with their politically dangerous overtones of nostalgia and snobbery) by critics. And Les 110 de Taillevent hardly helps itself with either its name (which sounds like an oversized platoon of musketeers in French and crap in English) or its backstory, which screams “London spin-off of Parisian brilliance” in the eight arrondissement.

To make matters worse, it’s no longer owned by the Vrinat family who made the original restaurant’s name (harking back to the frst Frenchman to produce a cook-book in the 14th century) so formidable with its triplet of stars under the stewardship of Claude Deligne.

The brand was taken over in 2011 by the three Gardinier Brothers who run orange groves in Florida and produce a mean claret (Chateau Phelan Segur) alongside their restaurant portfolio.

Their London foray, “110”, occupies a Grade II listed Georgian building (once a branch of Coutts) on Cavendish Square that’s been redesigned by Pierre Yves Rochon (of Four Seasons and Shangri-La fame) in shades of mottled green.

Inside, stained oak and wrought iron wine casks evoke the restaurant’s vinicultural aspirations, which are spelled out further by a little army of Coravins.

These tiny-needle systems withdraw wine from cork-stopped bottles without letting air enter. 110 bottles are pierced by these machines (hence the restaurant’s name) and roughly 70 per cent of customers opt for its “BTG” service from the wine menu, which is roughly the size of a medical encyclopaedia and only slightly less daunting.

The general (and perverse) rule of thumb is that the expensive wines represent the best value. We dash through a number of glasses

(starting with a chalky, fresh Larmandier-Bernier Blanc de Blancs) on the “prestige pairing” six-course tasting menu. This includes Yarra Valley Pinot Noir, Clos Nelin Priorat and a Riesling from Mosel among others.

And the Head Sommelier, Christopher Lecoufe (who started his career at Lasserre) has his own fun playing schoolmaster, forcing us to go blind and enter into ever greater detail whenever a correct answer is delivered.

My friend gets an impressive 50 per cent correct before bowing out to a few glasses of my favourite of the night: a rosé Champagne by Deutz, which combines redcurrants and strawberries with a fresh acidity and toasted-nutty fnish.

Admittedly, the food feels secondary. Not in quality, as Ross Bryans (ex-Corrigans) brings shades of his idol (Martin Wishart) into the kitchen.

But because the service and excitement centres on the wines, sending the beautifully crafted grub into small-plates cum tapas territory.

Nevertheless, highlights include a frm spelt risotto, which lurks beneath a rich and frothy roof of bisque, topped with a glistening chunk of the crustacean.

And the “Barbary” (AKA “Muscovy”) duck with lavender spice and white onion that I push into the soft remains of English cherries for that perfect combination of sweet, sour and foral.

On a fnal note, Adisa Vital’s two desserts (goats cheese cake with violet – think “Parma Violets” – ice cream and a chocolate lavender tart) serve as powerful reminders of how superior the French are when it comes to the pastry chefs. Whilst, in the UK, pastry departments are seen as second fddles for recipe-followers, over the Channel folk like Cedric Grolet and Dominique Ansel (now in Belgravia) view it as a playground for innovation and fun.

16 Cavendish Square, W1G 9DD (les-110-taillevent-london.com)