Cooking runs in the blood for Sophie Michell, the head chef at Belgravia’s all day eatery, Pont St: she comes from a long line of professional cooks and foodies and is Britain’s youngest female executive chef (and if the food is anything to go by, this means she’s the culinary equivalent of a teenage young piano prodigy tinkering on the keys at The Albert Hall).
Pont St. does everything from brunch to small plates and even Sunday Roasts. So, when they say “all-day” they mean it. You really could spend a whole day there, relishing every course from breakfast to dinner like some bloated sultan. Sadly, I didn’t get this privilege, but I did have a fabulous supper that began with aged parmesan chunks drizzled in a truffle honey that was throat-tinglingly rich – in a good way. Then came a game terrine made from venison, duck, and Armagnac (Cognac’s more rugged cousin) that was every bit as plummy and robust as I had hoped – the sharpness of the apple chutney served alongside it nicely undercut those earthy flavours.
For main, it had to be Dorset crab raviolis: as a long time crab enthusiast who rarely cooks the stuff at home, I seize the chance to tuck into it whenever I eat out. Ravioli was a refreshing autumnal take on crab-pasta (usually a summertime classic made with linguini or spaghetti, of course). My dining partner opted for an English Rose veal fillet that, I must confess, invoked that most regrettable of feelings in me: food envy. Oh, all this was all paired with a Domiane La Croix Belle Chardonnay that more than stood up to the crab – woe betide the sommelier who recommends a watery and impotent white wine with seafood.
To finish, it was a gloriously British classic in the form of a deep treacle tart with clotted cream: heavenly, just like the rest of the menu really. I’ll be coming back for breakfast, brunch, lunch…