The 18th century townhouse with some of the best food in London
If you do anything in London this year, go to Sketch. Enter through the doors of the sprawling listed 18th century Town House and fall down the rabbit hole to join French master chef Pierre Gagnaire in his journey through food. Setting the scene for what’s to come is the vivid neon sign, “Jouez”: prepare for an adventure.
French master chef Pierre Gagnaire
After some confusion over our booking and some always encouraging and nonchalant ‘not for the likes of you’ service on the door, we made our way up to the Lecture Room and Library, seemingly via a wormhole through Alice’s wonderland. Once upstairs, the service is much more warming and relaxing however, never pushy or over enthusiastic, but simply knowledgeable, open and personal.
Visit most other London eateries in this Michelin bracket and you’ll find a stuffy ambiance with classic grandeur-by-numbers style. While the Lecture Room is surely Sketch’s most restrained room in terms of decor, it still feels as though it has a playful, vibrant character. We’re seated as the first table of service, a silent room, the tall glass-domed roof only adding to its emptiness. Sat dead centre in an entirely symmetrical room – hues of purple and yellow – it was like living out our own personal Wes Anderson flick. Add to this some ceramics and wine decanters straight from 2001: A Space Odyssey and Sketch have crafted such a surreal, other-worldly ambiance that you wish they would cover up the windows and shut out London entirely.
The Sketch Library
Balancing his time between London and his eponymous restaurant in Paris, Pierre was voted “World’s Best Chef” by his peers last year and carries three Michelin stars on his shoulders. With his penchant for the avant-garde you might also expect the food to be tiny, quirky morsels and while it is delicate, it’s by no means bite-size. Starters, mains and desserts arrive as 3 or 5 different plates; an exploration of the central ingredient, turning a 3 course A la Carte into a 22 course feast. No risk of that “empty wallet, emptier stomach” feeling.
For example, the “Wild Duck” starter course arrives as four or five plates; a duck and foie gras Pâté en Croûte with red cabbage and salt jelly, a duck consommé with foie gras ice cream, a beetroot carpaccio with raw foie gras, and finally a dish of smoked duck on crispy rye toast.
Other highlights over the meal included a visually stunning amuse bouche including squid ink and goats cheese wafers, a ricotta, spinach and egg yolk ravioli generously showered in freshly shaved black winter truffle at the table and a dessert of cocoa water and candied oranges. A combination of both intuition and impulse, Pierre expertly uses juxtapositions of textures, tastes and temperatures to ultimately deliver flashbulb moments of drama and grace on the table.
The Wine Director, Frederic Brugues, won’t shy away from a challenge, egging us on to try an expert range that complimented each note perfectly. With the AA guide marking their arsenal as one of the UK’s best Wine Lists, his confidence is well founded and his quiet modesty is truly endearing – I think we would have drunk anything he gave us!
The dynamic cuisine on show does come with a lofty price tag. On the a la carte menu, starters can cost around £50 and mains as high as £80. But this doesn’t stop Sketch from being one of London’s most essential destinations for any gent who cares about ground breaking food and is willing to revel in its excess.
Those quick to snub Sketch for the clubby reputation of its downstairs are missing out on the greatness of the upper floor. It may have been around a while and long gone are its days of being the hot name on everyone’s lips. But there is a reason it is still relevant and booming over 14 years and 2 Michelin stars later.
The Sketch Lecture Room
Sketch Lecture Room creates a wonderland far beyond simple gimmickry. Sketch is brave enough to have some fun whilst being skilled enough to back it up with culinary clout when it counts. Above all, Sketch is a reminder that, much like Alice, we should not brush aside the imagination and vigor of our childhood when we enjoy the luxuries of our riper years.
Visit Sketch at 9 Conduit Street and here.
Photographs from Sketch
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