Mayfair tends to be a fail safe area to head to if you’re in the mood for old-school, sophisticated dining, with stellar service. And it’s latest opening — 20 Berkeley — delivers this in spades.
Situated across multiple floors within a townhouse, it has been designed to look like a traditional country manor house. Think stained glass and comfy seating that you’ll want to spend hours in. The new opening focuses on British produce, but you won’t find a fuddy duddy menu of meat and two veg here.
There’s a playfulness that starts with warm, friendly service and this leads through in the origami-style menu. Cocktails are on point, whether you’re drinking or not (the non-alcoholic options don’t feel like an afterthought), and a sommelier who was keen to pair each course with a different, exciting wine (and who are we to argue).
We always think you can tell how good a place is from their bread offering, and here the oh-so-sticky glazed rolls, served alongside marmite butter, are well worth ordering. You’ll want to save some to mop up the bloody mary sorbet, served on top of juicy tomato tartare. It’s exactly the sort of fresh dish we wanted to eat during the recent hot weather. Elsewhere we tried one of the specials on that day, a spicy lobster salad, served with yet more tomato. Not that we’re complaining — when ingredients are at their peak like they were here, it’s nice to see a menu lean into them.
Meat and seafood were equally as strong — we tried both the Cornish cod with summer peas, clams and lemon thyme which was beautifully presented in a light, foamy sauce and topped with intricate lattice work. Meanwhile the lamb with tomato fondue, artichokes and peppers was satisfying and comforting, without unnecessarily weighing us down. We’d recommend the chunky grilled courgettes, with wild garlic and pesto, and the patatas bravas stack, with lashings of aioli on the side.
If none of that takes your fancy, or if you’re dining in a larger group, we’d suggest the “chargers for the table”. These sharing-style mains include lamb shoulder, porterhouse or grilled turbot on the bone.
In a herculean effort to cover the full menu for you, we just about managed to squeeze in dessert which we felt had more of an old-school appeal than the courses before them. We loved the nod to retro black forest gateau; and the chocolate and hazelnut tart, made with plant-based Land milk chocolate and malt ice cream was a decadent delight.
Considering the place had only been open for three weeks when we visited, service felt well-established, and the place had a definite buzz about it, making it a no-brainer for client lunches or special occasion dinner à deux.
