I have “write blog post – on anything” on my to-do list. So despite the fact its 00:20 on a Sunday night (technically its morning I guess) here goes.
The other day Elaine and I went to one of our favourite places in London to eat supper: Carousel. For those who are unacquainted – the concept is revolving chef residencies by up and coming chefs, offering four to five course menus for a fairly economical GBP35 pp prepaid (you purchase a ticket for the meal beforehand). Full disclosure – this does not include drinks or extra courses on the day, which typically would add another GBP50-70 to the final bill for two.
Why do we love Carousel? For one, its always interesting, and you never know what you are going to get. The service is friendly, and the bar tenders are more than competent, so drinks are always good. The atmosphere is relaxed and welcoming.
I have eaten at Carousel close to ten times by now and the quality has always been consistently high, without a single real disappointment. And from time-to-time you get some stunning meals, like this one.
Today’s guest chef was Angelo Sato. I’m going to save everyone’s time by copy pasting directly from the website:
Sato landed his first job when he was just thirteen, gutting fish at Tokyo’s Nagahama Ichiba fish market. It was the beginning of a remarkable culinary journey that’s seen him rise through the ranks of some of the world’s most revered kitchen brigades: Narisawa (**) and Ryu Gin (***); Restaurant Gordon Ramsay (***) and Trinity (*); Eleven Madison Park (***); and, most recently, Restaurant Story (*), where he was head chef. Sato describes his style as “progressive Japanese with a European accent (or vice versa)”, and his Carousel menu promises to be a taste of things to come.
The photos speak for themselves, but they don’t tell you the whole story. They don’t tell you how well balanced the flavours of the various dishes throughout the exquisite menu were. They don’t tell you how delicately crafted were some of Angelo’s intricate creations. Or how well-portioned everything was. This was a truly talented chef, and an intelligent melding of Japanese and Western gastronomy.
Normally with a restaurant review, one of the functions is to encourage readers to visit said place to try the fare for themselves. With Angelo Sato’s residency well over by now this isn’t exactly a possibility. But I would still recommend any adventurous foodies to check the Carousel website to see who the upcoming guest chefs are, see what they fancy most, and pick up a couple tickets for themselves and a loved one.
I confirmed with Angelo on the night that he plans to open a restaurant in London this year. According to Carousel’s website, his first solo project ‘Omoide’ – Japanese for ‘Memories’ – is set to be one of the stand out openings of 2018. If this fine meal was anything to go by, that may well end up being true.
Score: 8.5/10
Carousel London
http://www.carousel-london.com/whatson.html
71 Blandford Street, Marylebone, London, W1U 8AB
Seiji Nishimura 