- Richard Vines added a new meal Dinner at Claro; London at Claro
I really enjoyed lunch at @clarolondon, where the dishes are colourful and inventive. To be honest, I didn't quite know what to expect, as the website just describes the cuisine as "Mediterranean" and the menu doesn't fully prepare you for the creativity of the cooking. Look elsewhere, and you can find the description of the cuisine as "Eastern... More
I really enjoyed lunch at @clarolondon, where the dishes are colourful and inventive. To be honest, I didn't quite know what to expect, as the website just describes the cuisine as "Mediterranean" and the menu doesn't fully prepare you for the creativity of the cooking. Look elsewhere, and you can find the description of the cuisine as "Eastern Mediterranean," that the chef and owner @ranshmueli_chef is from Tel Aviv and that the mothership restaurant is in Tel Aviv. Claro is a quietly exciting restaurant on the old Villandry site on Waterloo Place. The menu features a lot of fish and vegetables, with very good ingredients and Middle Eastern spicing. The lunch menu offers a starter and a main for the price of the main alone (albeit with supplements). Among the dishes we tried were starters of venison tartare, pickled apples, caesar sauce, fried pita bread (+ £6 with set lunch); and yellowtail sashimi, freekeh tabbouleh, yogurt, pomegranate, pistachios, tomato salsa (+ £8 with set lunch). and a main of Poussin from the rotisserie, roasted vegetables, purple tahini, salsa verde (£32). It was all very good, but the most surprising dish was probably a pre-dessert of Tomato & Cheese: Tomato sorbet, goat's cheese, black pepper, cherry tomato marmalade, crispy cantuccini with raisins (£12). I was invited by my PR friend @jobarnessauce, and Ran wes there to greet us, so I certainly can't claim that I lunched as a regular punter. I just hope that everyone gets similar standards of food and service. (And @ronbronfman is a very engaging sommelier, too.) #rvinesdines Less
