A demitasse velouté of pumpkin in the “elegant” surroundings of Hibiscus elicited murmurs of “sweet,” “delicious,” “velvety,” “gorgeous,” and “Mmmm mmmm”. The Times’ Ginny Dougary likes “dark, bosky” flavours so it was fortunate her next course of “rib-sticky” ravioli of hen and foie gras was a “triumph of dirtyness,” unlike the cleaner-sounding salad of Cornish crab with kohl rabi, chervil root puree & liquorice her friends enjoyed. She was also glad she chose the “deliciously dirty” roast Shropshire partridge with “dusky dribbles” of caper & raisin sauce, and “hallucinogenic” sides of “lurid” beetroot, “freaky” lime-green savoy cabbage puree, and “flaming orange” pumpkin. Dougary also enjoyed her hazelnut cheesecake and butternut squash ice cream despite its “slightly disturbing dung-coloured appearance.” The meal may have been “small” but it was “perfectly formed” and “so intense in flavour that any larger quantities would have been de trop.”
Compiled by Restaurant Magazine