Les 110 de Taillevent

On the corner of Harley Street and Cavendish Square, this wine bar/brasserie from Parisian big hitter Le Taillevent puts wine front and centre to dining here. Indeed, the sheer breadth, kind pricing, accessibility and rarity of the wines on offer really rewards drinkers. As well as an encyclopaedic list, there are 110 by the glass – hence the name. By using a very handy, easy-to-navigate grid, each menu item is matched to four wines in different price brackets, offered in 70ml and 125ml measures. Should that prove too confusing, a sommelier is on hand to give very good advice. Cooking remains understated, everything is done with care, using good ingredients, overlaid with precision and French familiarity. Sauces are a real strength – notably a light but complex spin on bonne femme accompanying mushroom-stuffed Cornish turbot fillet. A lobster dish, deceptively complex and superbly balanced, utilised pickled discs of pumpkin as a sharp-sweet foil to a light and delicate foaming bisque containing generous amounts of claw and leg meat, all topped by two perfectly poached slices of tail finished with pieces of orange and pumpkin seeds – perfect with a 2015 Anjou Blanc. Elsewhere, an exquisite, glossy and translucent sauce tinged with coffee complemented two pink roasted slices of venison loin, while a whole baby parsnip, parsnip purée and some roasted hen of the woods mushrooms made for a classically sweet garnish – superbly matched by a glass of 2015 Zinfandel. Lunch began with a benchmark gougère filled with hot cheese cream, a glass of perfectly made foaming ajo blanco, and a whole round loaf of malted sourdough alongside generously salted butter, while various riffs on blackberry (sorbet, bavarois, soup) with vanilla yoghurt foam and some meringue shards provided a fitting finale. Set in a former Coutts bank, the whole place looks sleek, glossy and plush – although it comes with a relaxed vibe and surprisingly straightforward service.

3 Rosette Award for Culinary Excellence