Alastair Little- Soho

[Bapi]

Its the wife's 40th this Saturday, so we are venturing to Alastair Little with a few friends.

We went there a few years back for my 30th, but haven't been back since, eventhough we had a great meal that time.

Has anyone been recently and what would you recommend to try?

(Taking her away as a suprise, to The Waterside Inn the next day for their current Sunday Night promotion. So I should be nicely brassic by Monday.)

[Andy Lynes]

Jan Moir of the Telegraph has http://www.telegraph.co.uk/wine....r08.xml

Sounds like you are in for a great weekend.

[Tonyfinch]

At the risk of labouring the Incognico point,once again a named restaurant where the "name" is hardly there.Seems more common than not.

[Jonathan Day]

I have recently had several dinners at the Frith Street branch, with groups, in the small private room in the basement. It really is a treasure, even for group dining: everything is simple, the ingredients are good, the preparation is nicely done, and it has a small, "human scale" feeling. If ever I could own a restaurant, this is the kind I would want.

You won't get Gordon Ramsay cuisine at Alastair Little, nor will you get stunningly fresh and pure ingredients as at a place like Chez Panisse or the best of the Japanese. But the overall standard is high, the place is unpretentious (it's hard to spot his name over the door) and the prices are reasonable.

One other good sign: the Frith street branch (I have not been to the one in Notting Hill) is littered with cookbooks. The private room, in fact, is a library of cookery and wine books that I wouldn't be sorry to have. Clearly the owner cares about "this stuff" -- or did, at one point.

[Bapi]

Thanks very much to Andy Lynes for the article link and JD for the information.

JD- As you have been there recently and eaten a selection of dishes, there is a fair likelehood a few of them may crop up on this Satuday's menu.

Is there any dish you would particularly recommend?

Andy- Yes should be great fun if a tad crippling financially, can you lend me a tenner?

[Andy Lynes]

Sorry, need all the money I can muster for my 12th wedding anniversary at Racine on Tuesday (yes I know it's not that expensive, but I can feel some champagne and a posh bottle of wine coming on).

[Jonathan Day]

These were group dinners.  There was a choice of roughly 5 starters, mains, puddings but I don't know how closely this menu tracks the carte.  And because there were many people present and the topic of discussion was not food, I didn't note the dishes as carefully as I might have.

From the last dinner I recall a borscht served with a mesclun salad on the side, the latter with shreds of duck added; the dressing very tangy and well matched to the borscht.  Main was a risotto of broad beans and mint, very good without a hint of bitterness in the beans. And the pud was an outstanding "cherry crumble", served in a tiny iron skillet: perfect cherries with just a sprinkling of crumbs and sugar, lightly browned, served with a scoop of ice cream based on (I think) Greek yogurt.

[John Whiting]

At the moment, there seem to be only five of us who have found something better to do than watch a spherical object being kicked around a distant field. Hello, JD!

[Jonathan Day]

John, I posted that from a grim conference room in Cologne, waiting for a meeting to start. The Germans were not about to be diverted because of the football.

Somehow reading/posting on egullet during the work day always feels slightly illicit, like going out for a long lunch...

[Bapi]

JD- Thanks for your tips. I went with the Borscht/ Duck salad option which was unusual but very good. The Borscht itself was very light, but full of flavour. The wife went for the Risotto option, you mentioned, which she wolfed down, I didn't get a look in. Amongst other dishes which were enjoyed were Globe artichoke with Parmesan, Seatrout( a bit dry ) , my seabass was very good and a fine foie gras starter.

Went for the Macon recommended by Jan Moir , but found it a tad inspid, not a patch on the Crozes Hermitage ( white) and the Brouilly we also had.

Thanks again

Andy - Re your meal at Racine , you might find this intersting from Nicholas Lander- http://www.jancisrobinson.com/nl160.htm

[Andy Lynes]

Thanks for the link excelent article. Really looking forward to my meal this evening now.

[Kikujiro]

Ate at AL Frith St on Saturday, having secured an 8.30 table for two that afternoon. We were warned we might have to be seated downstairs, but ended up in the main room.

From the fixed-price menu, £35 for three courses, I started with a risotto that was allegedly built around courgette flowers. I couldn't find a single one of these (had they melted? I rather suspect they had instead run out), although it did feature an abundance of fresh broad beans. It was in the soupier mode, and the flavour was subtle, a little too much so (read: slightly insubstantial), but somehow enjoyable nonetheless. My companion's starter has, alarmingly, already slipped my mind completely.

My main course seems to me stereotypically AL: grilled lamb with merguez sausages, tabbouleh and hummus, and was a pretty perfect rendition, helped along by an unadvertised puree (red pepper?) and a piece of wonderful flatbread. My companion helped push cod further towards extinction, with the help of Jansson's temptation, layered potatoes with cream and anchovies; I tried this and can sympathise wholeheartedly with Mr Jansson.

A good gooseberry crumble was served in a hot little iron skillet with very good ice cream. Friend's pudding has followed his starter into oblivion. With a pleasantly punky NZ pinot noir (£30), water and coffee, £106.50 before service. Service was laid back and friendly as usual, although the starters did seem to take an age to arrive, even allowing for the time it takes to make a risotto. There's something elusive about the totality of the AL experience that I am inordinately fond of, and I'm glad to find that still palpable.