Nopi – 21-22 Warwick Street, London W1B 5NE

Nopi: 21-22 Warwick Street, London W1B 5NE
Contact: 020 7494 9584 http://www.nopi-restaurant.com/
Price: £90 for 4 small plates, 2 desserts, 2 mocktails and tea plus a tip

Food: ★★★★★
Service: ★★★★★
Style: ★★★★★

While the no booking policy trend at restaurants is great for making popular places more accessible, it is not so helpful when I am hungry and my grumpy meter is reaching the upper limits! Monsieur and I tried to get into Burger and Lobster in Mayfair on a Saturday afternoon for a late lunch and were faced with an hour wait for a table. We quickly resorted to plan B and got our iPhones out to make an old fashioned reservation through the new means of online booking.

Nopi is the restaurant from the people behind Ottolenghi delis, situated just off Regent Street. I love the food at the delis but always find it hard to get a seat at the communal table so I had been intending to try Nopi for a while. The online booking system informed me that a table was available in 15mins so we hot footed it over to the restaurant from Clarges Street to claim our place.

The restaurant itself is stunningly designed with a clean and fresh feel, just like the food. The white décor and gold accents are classy rather than tacky. Diners can choose from sitting at the bar, restaurant upstairs or communal table downstairs. Our reservation was for the upstairs dining room. Our fellow diners looked to be discerning, well-heeled customers.

The seasonal menu was packed with choice and a good range of vegetarian options. We went for 4 small plates and a side for some variety, mocktails and doubled up on desserts. The first dish of roasted beetroot, pistachio salsa and goat’s curd was a delight. The dish was well balanced and the textures complemented each other well. The asparagus, edamame, pecorino and truffle vinaigrette was fresh and crunchy.  The saltiness of the cheese went well with the asparagus.

The seared scallops, sea spaghetti, shiitake with soy and ginger sauce were truly delicious. I really thought the flavours were enough to rival Nobu on tastiness. The scallops were perfectly cooked and the presentation was intricate and beautiful.

The duck breast, red quinoa and hazelnut butter was intensely flavoured and rich. The succulent duck breast with the flavoursome sauce was a joy to eat. Served on a slate plate, the presentation was excellent was usual. The crispy bits added an extra dimension of texture.  I really enjoyed this dish.

Our side of truffle polenta chips was a real triumph. The polenta chips I’ve had before have been dry and grainy but these were crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. The truffle flavour came through and added the decadent edge to an otherwise standard side dish. Do not miss these if you visit!

The double dessert frenzy was almost abandoned when the waitress told us that the coffee and pecan financiers we ordered would take 10-15mins to prepare but we managed to correct our mistake before it was too late. The little cakes were hot and fresh from the oven and each one had a pecan in the centre. The cake was moist and well flavoured with coffee. Another unmissable item!

Our second dessert was a rhubarb Eton mess. The crunchy and slightly sour rhubarb was married with the sweetness of the meringue, pear sorbet and cream. We cheated a bit and dipped our financiers in the cream for an ultra-decadent taste experience – naughty but nice!

Overall, our Nopi experience was excellent and I’ll certainly be dropping in again for some more full-flavoured dishes and refreshing drinks. The polenta chips and financiers better still be on the menu otherwise I might get grumpy!