Michelin stars are the ultimate symbol of culinary excellence. It’s a coveted honor that many restaurants chase after for years. Some restaurants achieve their three-star status quickly, climbing the ranks rapidly. Others take a more deliberate path, spending years at two stars before finally earning the third. I’m fascinated by the latter group, wondering how these established restaurants push the boundaries of their cuisine and elevate their dishes to three-star caliber.
Hélène Darroze at
The Connaught
, a
London
restaurant, is one of these later promotions, earning its third star in 2022 after holding two stars for a decade. With the promotion fresh in my mind, I decided to experience Hélène Darroze for myself and see what prompted the red book to award them the final star.
My visit left me with more questions than answers. Don’t get me wrong, the food was refined and the dishes were thoughtfully constructed, rooted in classic French techniques. However, I found it lacking a certain spark, with no dish truly pushing the boundaries of three-star cuisine, except perhaps for the lobster. This isn’t a critique of the restaurant itself. You’ll enjoy a satisfying meal at The Connaught. However, it might not meet the high expectations (and high prices) associated with a three-star establishment.
A French Chef in London
Hélène Darroze at
The Connaught
was London’s newest three-star restaurant when I visited, having earned its final star in 2022, thirteen years after Chef Darroze took over the kitchen from Angela Hartnett. Aside from her three-star restaurant in
London
, Chef Darroze also runs two Michelin-starred restaurants in her native France. The food at The Connaught is exactly what you’d expect from a French chef cooking in one of London’s most luxurious hotels – classic French cuisine with a subtle nod to its British location, such as locally sourced proteins. While the restaurant is named after Chef Darroze, she divides her time between her various restaurants and wasn’t in the kitchen during my midweek dinner. In her absence, the kitchen was led by head chef Marco Zampese, who has experience at Chef Darroze’s other restaurants.
A Formal Ambiance
Compared to the other two
London
restaurants I visited on this trip, The Ritz and
Core
, the ambiance at
The Connaught
wasn’t my favorite. The tables were surprisingly close together, and the lighting was dim, making it difficult to capture clear pictures. This dining room would likely be more enjoyable during lunchtime when natural light would stream through its large windows. The service was impeccable, catering to every need and desire, but some of the staff seemed overly formal. However, there was one standout: Claudia, who navigated the room with grace, connecting with each guest before taking them on a brief tour of the kitchen.
A Tasting Menu with a Price Tag
The menu offered a variety of choices during my visit, including the “Taste of Autumn” menu, priced at £175 for five courses or £195 for seven courses. While the prices seemed reasonable at first glance, there were a plethora of menu supplements, ranging from £18 for a baba dessert to £28 for cheese, and a staggering £115 for A5 wagyu. Beyond these standard supplements, there were also three white truffle courses that could be swapped into the tasting menu for an additional £65 per course. So while the tasting menu itself offered decent value, adding any premium ingredients would significantly increase the cost.
The wine list mirrored this structure, offering an extensive selection with hefty markups, even by
London
standards. The cheapest pairing cost £160 for seven courses, while the most premium option came in at £640. Bottles of wine didn’t offer much better value, despite the list’s depth. Avoiding alcohol wouldn’t save you much, as the non-alcoholic pairing was also priced at £160. For those seeking a more affordable option, the excellent Connaught bar offers cocktails, which might be your best bet considering the wine pricing.
The Taste of Autumn
A bold kitchen would start a tasting menu with a dish featuring coco beans, and that’s exactly what the team at Hélène Darroze did, pairing it with smoked eel, timut pepper, and clams consommé. This course instantly revealed the chef’s approach, focusing on light, clean flavors to avoid overwhelming the palate. However, for me, this was a misstep. The flavors were too muted and lacked punch. The clam consommé, in particular, was weaker than expected, failing to deliver the deep, rich flavor profile I usually associate with consommés, including the leek consommé served at the beginning of the meal. It seemed the kitchen executed the dish as intended, but it failed to resonate with me. For those with deep pockets, an alternative dish centered on Kristal caviar was available for a whopping £75.
Given it was late November, I opted for the white truffle dish (£65 supplement) instead of the second course (snails). The dish featured pheasant raviolis with foie gras and salisfy. While I believe white truffles are best enjoyed in their simplest form (think over a fried egg, beef tartare, or buttered pasta), this was a well-executed dish. The pheasant-filled pasta was moist and flavorful, which is no small feat considering pheasant can easily become dry. The foie gras-based sauce reminded me of Albufera sauce, but with a slightly lighter touch, which was a clever choice to avoid clashing with the delicate white truffles. This was a beautifully crafted dish.
Foie Gras and Lobster
A surprise course arrived next, showcasing a stunningly seared piece of foie gras with beetroot, sansho pepper, and koji rice. I’m a huge fan of perfectly seared foie gras, so this was right up my alley. The seasoning was spot-on, and the foie gras had that perfect contrast between the seared exterior and silky interior. The beetroot was a smart pairing, grounding the dish with its earthiness and balancing out the richness. While this wasn’t even on the menu, the foie gras was my second favorite dish of the evening.
My favorite dish, however, came directly after the foie gras and was one of the chef’s signature dishes: lobster with tandoori spice, carrot, citrus, and coriander. This was a truly exquisite plate of food. The Cornish lobster was cooked to perfection, and the flavors blended harmoniously. The sauce, based on a meat stock, was particularly dazzling, offering great depth of flavor, and the use of the lobster coral was well-judged. I even enjoyed the extra coriander added to the dish, which amplified its international flavor profile. Packed with bold and interesting flavors, this was a joy to eat.
A Main Course with Mixed Results
After two incredibly strong courses, the meal faltered slightly with a piece of turbot served with turnip, razor clams, chanterelle, and yuzu. The flavors were pleasant, but the sauce was too restrained and lacked complexity. There were hints of chanterelle and yuzu in the dish, but both seemed barely present, timidly announcing themselves.
The main course was a generous portion of guinea fowl with onion, ale, and capers. Guinea fowl, which tastes similar to chicken but more flavorful, is a treat when cooked well, and thankfully, it was here. The meat was wonderfully moist with a farci wedged between beautifully crisped skin – this was a top-notch creation from the kitchen at Hélène Darroze. Despite the flawlessly cooked bird, I struggled with the overall composition of the plate. I couldn’t find the perfect bite, even though all the components seemed to be present. The portion of fowl was also too large for such an extensive tasting menu. This might seem like a strange complaint, and it is, but the enjoyment of such a beautifully cooked bird was diminished when I was struggling to finish the last few bites. For those who prefer not to eat guinea fowl, an A5 wagyu dish was available for a steep £115 supplement.
Sweet Endings
After the satisfying main course, we transitioned to the pastry section with a dish of vanilla with corn, banana, mango, and lime. This was quite interesting, the flavors reminding me of a riff on banana foster’s but with a more tropical note from the mango and lime. While enjoyable, this dish needed some editing as the corn was an unnecessary addition.
For my final dessert, I chose a classic Hélène Darroze dish: a baba with raspberry, long pepper, Sarahawk pepper, and armagnac. Ignoring the £18 supplement, which felt like an unnecessary charge for guests wanting to try a signature dish, this was a very good rendition of a classic French pastry. The baba was moist and flavorful, filled with raspberries and topped with chantilly cream. Interestingly, the cream was infused with two different types of pepper, adding a gentle aromatic spice. It sounds odd, but it was perfectly judged, not overpowering the other flavors. Instead of the traditional rum, three Armagnacs of varying ages were offered tableside to finish the dish. While I found the Armagnac a bit strong, this was a flawless interpretation of a classic French pastry.
