The restaurant scene in London is awash with well-known overseas chefs. And now, the two Michelin-star pedigree, Moreno Cedroni has brought his Italian charm to the five-star luxury hotel in Kensington.
The Italian chef opened his London restaurant last month, bringing an avant-garde spirit to Italian cuisine, Cedroni’s style incorporates contemporary techniques combining traditional and modern Italian food with an emphasis on raw fish – or susci as they call it in Italy. The posh restaurant is located in the Baglioni Hotel‘s current Brunello restaurant.
The elegant restaurant has a very chic interior, sumptuous fringed seats and use of rich colours give the place a grown-up look – and the bar and uber-luxe lobby seamlessly amalgamate into one.
Cedroni has installed Antonio Bufi as head chef, who will work alongside the existing brigade and the hotel‘s executive chef, Andrea Vercelli.
Menu highlights by the chef include; veal shank with lentils and smoked potato puree, tempura of scallops in black squid ink, clams and courgettes, warm sea bass Carpaccio with lemon mashed potato and rocket sauce and parmesan cheese tortellini with meat, tomato sauce and balsamic vinegar jam – feeling peckish?
For starters I ordered the salted cod served with ‘mayonnaise’, (don’t think it was Hellmann’s or actual mayonnaise) cherry tomatoes, black olives and fried wild rice. The dish was beautifully presented and was a delight to eat, fresh, delicate and extremely light. My main was white seafood lasagne, coconut and parsley sauce and lime peel. This is a contemporary twist on the lasagne, the sauce was pleasing and really worked, but the seafood was not to my liking, I didn’t clear my plate. Before dessert a cappuccino amuse-bouche was served, which was a killer, I loved it. Usually when I’m out at a restaurant I can’t manage three courses but the food at the Moreno is so light you can easily order dessert. I ordered the tiramisu – lavazza coffee ice cream with mascarpone sauce resting on ‘old bread’ (I don’t think it was stale or was it? But it was definitely soggy) and kahlua jelly, which was served in an uncharacteristically small portion that I barely noticed it on the plate. As they saw in showbiz, always good to leave ‘em wanting more.
The service is slick and the attentive staff make the luxury London restaurant a great place to head for lunch or a quiet romantic dinner, the Baglioni Hotel is situated in the heart of London, opposite Hyde Park with charming views of Kensington Gardens and Palace.
Moreno at Baglioni, 60 Hyde Park Gate, London SW7 5BB, England, baglionihotels.com
