I have read so many good reviews of BBR, mostly from food bloggers. I must say in the beginning I was somewhat confused by all this enthusiasm as it totally contradicted the first review I ever read written by Adrian Gill where he simply destroyed the place.
The other week I had a perfect opportunity to try it for myself and see what the fuss was all about; I had to entertain a couple and the only remit was that 'fun' was required. Fun is exactly what we had.....and some!
All the outlandish adjectives and whimsical descriptions you may have read about the interior of BBR do still not condition you for the shock and awe as you enter the magnificent space. We were greeted by a sweet young lady dressed in a suitably 'snazzy' ensemble.
We were shown to our booth which reminded me of an Edwardian railway carriage, as we sat down I immediately felt a sense of occasion and knew I was going to enjoy the BBR experience (the millions lavished on the place are worth it you see).
Everywhere you look you cannot escape the BBR opulence. The light pink that has been used (see above) throughout the menu's and other little bits of printed matter is genius and sets the tone brilliantly. It reminds me of the colour the Mount Nelson hotel is Cape Town is painted, retro, colonial, powerful, seductive pink.
One of the great things about BBR is that you just feel you HAVE to indulge in a cocktail or two, it's that kind of place; I ordered the house drink of rhubarb gin for the table, it was simply superb resplendent in the beautiful, ornate glassware that is a strong feature of BBR. We had a second round quickly. I have subsequently thought that going to BBR and not ordering a rhubarb gin would be like going to Harry's bar in Venice and not ordering a bellini. Wrong.
The menu is the collection of diner retro classics that you expect and hope for. It is fun, it does not create big, difficult decisions in your head but tickles the part of your brain reserved for smiley comfort food decisions. Potted shrimp, Lobster cocktail, smoked salmon, steak tartare, beef wellington, crispy chicken, onglet steak, hamburger and chips, lobster and chips, knickerbocker glory, strawberry souflee...bet your smiling.
Our table had a mixture of smoked salmon(hedermans, quite the best I have ever tasted), egg benedict and potted shrimp to start...a couple of rhubarb gins down and things were flying along. Um's and rrr's of satisfaction sounded out from our decadent booth, we were comfortable, satisfied and happy, already!
The wine list is competently put together and complete in it's offer, I plumped for a relatively basic New Zealand pinot noir that was fine.
I could not ignore the O'sheas onglet for my main course; the meat was as good as ever but I found there was too much of the sweet shallot confection on the plate, the chips were good. My dining companions had a burger and fishcake, they were extremely happy. Presentation and detail are never left wanting in BBR. The quality of the ingredients and cooking is high.
I had a fine strawberry souffle to finish......and then the waiting was over. That button for champagne had to be pressed. Pol roger house champagne served in once again beautiful glassware. I forget what a brilliant way to end a meal champagne is, in many ways it offers more at the end rather than the beginning of a meal.
Champagne finished it was time for Vodka, a cute little goblet full of Russia's finest arrived, ice cold, it was punchy. Oooof.
By this time our booth was in seventh heaven, it felt like we were riding gloriously in a carriage on the beginning of term 'Hogwarts' express, no tricks just gaiety.
What a journey.
In all seriousness our city needs restaurants like this, London's restaurant offer can be too stern. The New York restaurant scene has fun in abundance, we have the quality but sometimes lack that fun, BBR combines both. It is an extremely worthy option to the Wolseley(maybe that's what grated on Adrian so), possibly a bit 'nouveau' in comparison and maybe lacking that sublime Corbin and King service, but so what.
If you feel like a wonderful, fun, easy, quality, opulent and boozy evening out in London town then get you best mates together, get dressed up and get down to upper James street and treat yourselves.
Three cheers for Bob is what I say.
Food- nearly four out of five stars
Atmosphere- five out of five stars
Bob Bob Ricard
1 Upper James Street
London
W1F 9DF
020 3145 1000
