Rating

Cuisine:

British

Appeals to:

• Adventurous eaters. 
• Displaced explorers of Regent Street (for this is a different Regent Street)
• People who like ‘food experiences’
• People who like surprises (lots of surprises). And smoke. And orchestral music…
• People who like to be looked after by the head chef.
• People who like to watch their food prepared in front of them with a blowtorch
• People taking a very, very clear day off of their diet.
• Anyone who wants to see the mad culinary genius of Jesse Dunford Wood in action (it has to be seen to be fully appreciated)

In A Word:

Theatrical

The Location & Style

Jack: The Chef’s Table is a slightly different experience from ‘regular’ dining at Parlour. You have to book it well in advance and there is as you’d imagine, just the one table. You are seen to directly by Jesse, Parlour’s head chef and the guy who won Time Out’s 2007 Best British Restaurant Award.

It is half meal, half theatrical performance and is…well, just ridiculous and excellent. With that in mind, have a read of what Greta made of it…

Greta: In a place where the laws of space-time break down (because the amount of mass one acquires from consuming large volumes of rather palatable food), its still surprising that Parlour keeps its charming décor intact. The atmosphere is sweet with a subtle rustic hint of… everything.

That evening I was hoping our table was a reincarnation with an adventurous past as Huckleberry Finn’s raft (or as Jack seems to refer to it: Chuckleberry Funn). But it felt more like a boat out of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate factory, especially as what might have been the most majestic dessert ever arrived…

The Service

Jack and I were warmly welcomed with a drink at the bar. This time I was determined to try a more interesting drink to start the night and spotted a cinema themed cocktail on the menu – The “Ol’ Odeon” (named after the cinema of the same name) – Bourbon with syrup and popcorn. It was served with red and white stripy straws, a mere hint of the playful food galore to come!

The Food

With the generous variety of the food spectrum we were besieged by, it is difficult to name them all. However, all were delicious. Amongst the starters was Chestnut Hummus Served With Honey – sweet and smooth, Popcorn Chicken Nuggets – also cinema themed to match my cocktail, Tangy Fritta With Tiny Thyme and the rest of the menu.

Then we went on an eggventure (pun fun!) with Attenborough’s Neolithic Eggs, seriously served runny egg in garden hose taps (very industrial)

The main was the Sea Bass served with Monk’s Beard (a type of salad, there were no hairs) and Kale With Buckwheat. Jack’s main was the Chicken Kyiv, radical enough to cause revolution in our mouths and the only casualties being  our appetites (Ed: ooooooo snap).

For desert, Jesse took his charismatic showmanship to another level. Jack and I were fitted with headphones blasting epic symphonic music, and our table raft was laid out with futuristic aluminium foil – a canvas for Jesse’s sugary masterpiece!

He painted like a caramel artisan and continuously laid puddings of all shapes and colours. Tinkering with berries and sprinkles, like a mad scientist, he appeared to be inventing new dishes right in front of our hungry eyes.

We dug in and got diabetes (Ed: legit). A truly phenomenal finisher to the meal!

The Verdict

“There was fire and smoke, I think my salivary glands broke.”

Jesse Dunford Wood may very well be Willy Wonka’s protégé, of desert puddings as well as the savoury meals.  

Jack: This really is another way to experience dining. It must be both fun and terrifying to work alongside Jesse.

Details

A: 5 Regent St, London NW10 5LG

W: http://www.parlourkensal.com/

P: 020 8969 2184

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