This little restaurant on Saville Row has only been open
since last summer, but it’s already become one of my favourite recommendations,
especially for a romantic dinner à
deux. It’s elegant but understated, with lots of stylish details and a
monochrome colour palette with touches of gold and copper. Of an evening, it’s
softly candlelit and small enough to feel intimate without being cramped.
And what about the food? Well, I just love everything
about the menu at Henry’s. It changes regularly, every six weeks or so, and is
pleasingly restrained, with three or four options for each course. Regular
readers will know I am always impressed by a short menu – I want the chef to
tell me what to eat, not hedge his or her bets by cramming something in from every
cuisine. As well as the regular chef’s menu, there’s also an
entirely separate, entirely vegetarian menu (with vegan options available as
well) and I think this is such a thoughtful detail. If you’re dining out and
one of you is veggie while the other is not, it can be really hard to find
somewhere that will really please both of you – and if one of you is a vegan,
you might as well forget it most of the time. Henry’s not only caters for
vegetarians and vegans but puts a huge amount of thought into doing so,
avoiding all the usual clichés, whilst keeping even the most carnivorous diner
happy too (on the evening we visited, lamb rump and loin of venison were both
on the menu). That’s a serious achievement.
On this occasion, I started with a Crispy Quail’s Egg on
Truffle Potato, which sounded like it was going to be fabulous and did not
disappoint. I will be spending quite some time trying to recreate that
incredible mashed potato myself, because it was absolutely swoonworthy,
particularly when combined with velvety egg yolk. My dining companion chose a
Mackerel Tartar with Horseradish Aioli, which was also delicious, and the
texture of the tartar combined with crunchy fresh radish was lovely, although I
do think it might have been nice with bread or toast of some kind.
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| Beetroot Tart and Goat Cheese Curd |
For the main course, I ordered Salmon Fillet with
Chickpea Sweetcorn – the salmon itself was beautifully cooked and delicious,
and I really enjoyed the smoked salmon parfait that came with it, but thought
the chickpeas and sweetcorn didn’t quite work as a combination. My dining
companion made the better choice in this case, with a warm Beetroot Tart and
Goat Cheese Curd – the flavours were exquisite and the dish looked absolutely
gorgeous too.
Finally, for dessert, I opted for a Warm Chocolate Tart
with Sichuan Custard, which was gloriously rich and dark rather than sweet, so
ideal for the end of a meal, although it didn’t look quite as special as it
tasted. My dining companion’s dessert was much more exciting in presentation,
combining Peanut and Banana Parfait with Confit Lime and Caramel Sauce, and
although it’s not the sort of dish I would normally order we both agreed it was
delicious.
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| Chocolate Tart with Sichuan Custard - custard work my own! |
Throughout, the staff were extremely friendly and
helpful. We washed our meal down with a bottle of the house white, recommended
by our waitress, which was lovely – 2015 Le Notaire Colombard, light, crisp and
a little fruity. I came away still in love with Henry’s, and thoroughly
impressed with the vegetarian offering, so rest assured that regardless of your
dining requirements, you’ll enjoy a fantastic meal here.
