Success goes with caviar as strawberries go with cream, Caribbean sun with piña coladas, and gin with tonic. Caviar House & Prunier, the only caviar retailer in the world that produces its own caviar, have just opened a fully-fledged restaurant in the heart of the City of London.
Located within the 5-star Threadneedles Hotel (part of the YTL group), a stone-throw from the Bank of England and Leadenhall Market, Caviar House and Prunier’s new establishment caters for both professionals of the Square Mile and travellers exploring this illustrious part of London, full of history and heritage.
Lead by Manager Bobby Poyzari and Assistant Manager Ewa Idzikowska, the team at this new gourmet destination ooze confidence and savoir-faire, which reflects on a friendly and animated environment, which may be conducive to long breakfasts and even longer lunches.
Caviar House & Prunier Threadneedles offers an indulgent menu that wouldn’t look out of place at an Imperial Russian table.
Early meetings are not my thing. As a friend of mine says, “I leave that to other, more spirited folk,” but for those who don’t mind, can’t avoid or even enjoy meeting at such an ungodly time of the day, breakfast here will most certainly set you up for the day. A full English with all the trimmings and extras you can possibly imagine is available, as well as à la carte option, with dishes as decadent sounding as they are delicious. The Breakfast Tsarina for example, consists of a large savoury blini smothered in caviar; and the otherwise modest scrambled eggs, are served here with smoked salmon and Prunier caviar.
Lunch is an even more extravagant affair. We let Bobby surprise us since it was impossible for us to make up our minds about what to eat. We wanted it all.
Oysters are always a good way to start a meal as it is champagne; and so we did. Ewa brought us a bottle of Caviar House Champagne Lombard, as she introduced us to the five varieties of oysters offered at Caviar House at Threadneedles: Jersey, Fines de Claire, Essex, Maldon and Carlingford. Next, we were surprised by a crab cake, another humble dish elevated to fine cuisine levels by the chefs behind the elaborate menu at Caviar House & Prunier. Light and fluffy, full of flavoursome crab meat and finished with a touch of citrus dressing.
Left: selection of oysters, containing Jersey, Fines de Claire, Essex, Maldon and Carlingford varieties. Right: Crab cake in a lemon butter sauce, topped with caviar.
A salmon assortment plate (Balik Discovery) followed. Considered the best smoked salmon in the world, Balik-style smoked salmon has its origins in Imperial Russia and was originally exclusive to the Tsars. There are no additives or preservatives in the preparation of Balik salmons, just a bit of salt, sugar, and smoke.
I was immediately attracted to the wild salmon roe, very dark in colour – almost like Carnelian gemstones – which released a rollercoaster of flavour as they exploded in my palate. Equally good – if not better – is the Balik Fillet, a melt-in-the-mouth, succulent piece of salmon equivalent to fillet mignon. The plate also includes hand-sliced Balik Overture, Tartare, slightly smoky Gravlax, and Sjomga Orange, obtained from the belly of the salmon, which Ewa explained follows the Scandinavian tradition of enhancing the flavour with ingredients such as orange, ginger and honey. A generous helping of crème fraiche, mustard & dill sauce and blinis completed this delicious sharing plate.
Prunier Paris Caviar, is amber-coloured, coarse-grained and with a very low salt content. On the palate it feels subtle and creamy, revealing its full flavour as it melts on the palate.
Further indulgence followed in the form of 30 grams of Prunier Paris Caviar, which is the caviar that Emile Prunier developed in the 1920s, very-slightly salted and freshly produced daily and delivered to the restaurants in Paris. These days, Ewa informed us, the caviar is immediately packed in vacuum tins, so it retains all its character and taste. The large, light-coloured eggs are creamy and velvety, with a range of flavours that develop as they coat your palate.
At this point, I didn’t feel I could eat anything else, but Bobby insisted we tried the Sirloin Steak with portobello mushroom and a pink peppercorn sauce, brighter and fruitier than its black counterpart. The beef was tender and beautifully cooked, pink and juicy in the middle, with charred marks on the outside. The earthiness of the portobello mushroom enhanced the meatiness of the beef. A cheeky glass of Ribera de Duero Fuentenarro paired with the dish heavenly.
We found impossible to go for dessert, as tempting as the Toffee Apple Crumble with vanilla ice cream sounded. I guess I’ll have to come back very soon.
Caviar House at Threadneedles. 5 Threadneedle Street. London EC2R 8AY
info@caviarhouse-prunier.co.uk Tel. +44 (0)207 6578080
More information and details, HERE.
Author: Julia Pasarón
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