Thursday 3 February 2011

The Petrichor Restaurant @ The Cavendish Hotel



For those regular readers of Access London, you will already know about my series of posts on our recommended hotel for 2011 - The Cavendish. If this is your first visit to the blog, you can find out more about The Cavendish in our previous posts.

Today's post focuses on the AA Rosette restaurant at The Cavendish - The Petrichor Restaruant. It also includes an interview with Petrichor's Head Chef, Nitin Padwal.

I have been lucky enough to have dined twice at Petrichor - once for their evening A La Carte menu and the other to take advantage of their Pre-Theatre dinner menu.

Petrichor is located on the first floor of The Cavendish Hotel. If you are in a wheelchair or use a mobility scooter, Petrichor can be accessed by taking one of the lifts to the first floor and then using the restaurant's moveable ramp to get inside. Once on the main restauarnt floor, all of the tables are on the same level.

The restaurant itself is decorated with paintings in the style of Rousseau's jungle paintings. They make a bold yet chic statement on the walls and are a joy to look at. The menu changes bi-monthly but always includes a mouth-watering selection of meat, fish and vegetarian dishes that are presented elegantly and with style. The staff at Petrichor are extremely friendly and helpful and really help to make your evening special.



PETRICHOR Q&A
How would you describe the food and menu served at Petrichor?
Splendid food created with the most seasonal and sustainable ingredients.

Who or what inspires you to create the dishes on your menu?
My Suppliers. I talk to them on a regular basis to understand what's best in season and based on that, we create our bi-monthly menus.



What does the Petrichor do when trying to source and use sustainable ingredients and products? How important is this?
Petrichor has been involved in many sustainable activities over the last year: I took the Food and Beverage Team to visit Wicks Manor Pork Farm in Essex and Garson's Fruit and Vegetable Farm in Surrey (we even picked berries). These trips help us to ensure that our suppliers are providing the most sustainable and environmentally friendly produce. I also organise menu-tasting panels for the Front of House Team to increase their product knowledge.

I think it is particularly important for the business to take these sustainable measures now as I believe in supporting British farmers who are generally more interested in animal welfare and sustainable measures, which in turn results in a better quality product, minimised waste, cost savings and reduced CO2 emissions.



What would your dream 3 course meal be to cook and serve at Petrichor?
There are many dream dishes that we create for our menu. From this bi-monthly menu, I would choose:
STARTER - Wicks Manor creamy smoked ham hock soup with seasonal vegetables.
MAIN - Mildly spiced Scottish cod fillet served with curried potato fritter, baby spinach and creamy coconut sauce
DESSERT - Kent Discovery apple and cranberry crumble with Brandy custard.

Can you sum up in 5 words the Petrichor experience for your diners?
Friendly staff and superb food (I hear that regularly from our customer satisfaction surverys)



Access London would like to say a big thank you to Nitin Padwal for taking the time to answer our questions and to all the restaurant and hotel staff at The Cavendish.

Whether you are looking for a meal with a stylish touch, a pre-theatre dinner to kick off your evening or, celebrate a special occasion, Petrichor is the place to be.

For more information about the current menu, individual requirements and to make a reservation, contact the Petrichor on: 020 7389 3500.

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COMING SOON: The National Gallery and Phantom of the Opera

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