Marjorie’s, London W1: ‘original, And Truly, Madly Good’ – Restaurant Review | Grace Dent On Restaurants

Some caller openings conscionable sound unappetising connected paper. Take nan cave à manger Marjorie’s successful Soho, a marque new, Parisian-inspired vino barroom serving mini plates successful London W1. “Oh God,” I said connected learning that its proprietors are Michael Searle and Josh Anderson. “Never heard of ’em.” Sorry to quibble, particularly seeing arsenic this seems to beryllium their first hospitality venture, and I americium good alert that eating retired for a surviving is simply a immense jolly, but eating successful vino bars? Well, I americium not a fan: excessively noisy, excessively boisterous, excessively give-me-my-bloody-dinner mostly – not to mention excessively galore drunken elbows successful your toastie de fromage while a sommelier bores connected astir beaujolais nouveau. Also, Marjorie’s is alarmingly adjacent to Carnaby Street, nan earthy residence of nan disappointed diner.

So I group disconnected down Foubert’s Place, muttering to myself that astatine slightest I’m not heading for nan adjacent Kingly Court nutrient hub that brims pinch eating options, each of them much impersonal and oversubscribed than nan next. Back successful nan noughties, Carnaby Street still gave a flimsy motion to its Swinging Sixties roots, pinch a fewer remaining independent shops trading goth gear, pantaloons and bongs. Today, however, it is simply a shiny statement of sleek world flagship stores, pinch nan wondrous, olde worlde Liberty astatine 1 end, clinging connected for beloved life, nan mediocre love, earlier she is inevitably turned into a Lululemon.

‘Outstanding’: Marjorie’s brie de Meaux pinch beans and apricots.

Anyway, it turns retired that it is for each these reasons that we should really beryllium grateful for Marjorie’s, because, yet again and pinch nary fearfulness of this letting up immoderate clip soon, it besides turns retired that I americium an absolute idiot. Marjorie’s whitethorn look for illustration a vino bar, but Searle and Anderson person opened thing tiny, brave, bespoke and appealingly odd. Oh, and delicious, too, because nan duo person tempted Giacomo Peretti, formerly of Le Gavroche, to navigator for them. He has besides worked astatine nan crowdpleaser Temper, nan wholly underrated Firebird and nan dependably superb the Culpeper, and if you caput down to nan basement, wherever location are much tables, you’ll beryllium capable to watch him weave his magic.

Snaring Peretti to do vino barroom snacks and letting his imagination alert is simply a changeable of genius, because now you person a superb cook serving gooey chickenhearted liver “rocher” – deliberation rich, nutty, nibblable savoury Ferrero Rocher – beautiful small yummy crab tartelettes made each nan merrier by nan summation of kumquat and a delicate and alternatively bizarre lamb tartare dotted pinch outpouring vegetables, goat’s food and a mini caller strawberry. Surprise! This is actually, and rather unexpectedly, a edifice pinch superior food; successful fact, it mightiness good beryllium nan astir earnest, accomplished, imaginative nutrient being served successful this quadrate mile correct now.

‘Well worthy nan risk’: Marjorie’s bavette pinch an ovum yolk emulsion is conscionable 1 of respective unexpected larger plates.

Yes, you could play safe, drawback a abstraction astatine nan agelong barroom upstairs, bid from nan exclusively French vino database and feast only connected a action of La Fromagerie food and rustic pain served pinch a shedload of salted French butter, possibly pinch immoderate saucisson pinch cornichons connected nan side. But don’t do that: Peretti’s larger and admittedly stranger-sounding dishes are good worthy nan risk. There’s a vessel of escargots pinch seaweed successful a silky pinewood pick and a soft, delicate crockery of good, mixed greenish leaves pinch a sweet, citrussy, orangish blossom vinaigrette. Original, possibly offputting to some, but truly, madly good.

Two different standouts were a stinky, somewhat lukewarm portion of runny brie de Meaux served pinch lush caller apricot – outstanding – and immoderate due French psyche food: poached chickenhearted connected achromatic atom made decadent pinch brownish butter. This was a rhapsody of classy, beige carbs, and I scraped astatine nan vessel for illustration a sad labrador released from her kibble diet. Slices of tempura courgette, almost for illustration cigars to look at, came dotted pinch trout roe and rouille, and were arsenic weird and wonderful.

The dessert database offered a millefeuille pinch crème diplomate and strawberries, but my eyes had already been greedily drawn to a warm, frothy, oliva oil-strewn vessel of caller cocoa mousse topped pinch crunchy hazelnuts. Again, this was conscionable heavenly.

‘Just heavenly’: Marjorie’s basking cocoa mousse topped pinch hazelnuts and oliva oil.

As a non-drinker, I walk small clip successful vino bars these days – aft all, arsenic nan aged saying goes: “If you enactment successful nan barber’s agelong enough, you’ll astir apt extremity up pinch a haircut” – but for Marjorie’s I’m making an exception. Service is prompt, nan paper intriguing and there’s a consciousness that you’re successful connected a concealed that nary 1 other knows about. Go for nan vin, nan gossip, a vessel of nocellara olives and immoderate awesome baguette; enactment for a meal that’s presently 1 of nan champion successful London. It’s really worthy going to Carnaby Street for. Courage, mes braves!

• Marjorie’s 26 Foubert’s Place, London W1; marjorieslondon.co.uk/ (no phone). Open each week, noon-11.30pm (Fri & Sat midnight, Sun 10pm. From astir £40 a head, positive drinks and service

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