Harry’s
Bar is a beautiful Italian restaurant in St Christopher Place, just off Bond
Street and when my friend Vicky suggested meeting up for brunch, I was just so
excited. Because although I had to bring Alfie with me, she only recommends
nice restaurants, so I knew it would be good! It turns out that there are so
many restaurants and hotels that don’t allow babies or children for brunch,
especially at the weekend, and while Harry’s Bar don’t have rules in place and
were accommodating, I would recommend going sans-child/ren. During our brunch,
there was a family with toddler maybe slightly older than Alfie, but there was
just the two of them in the restaurant. However, the staff were friendly, looked
after him and kept him entertained. When his meal arrived, they even tied a
napkin round him, which was super cute and kept his smart shirt clean.
Vicky
had requested a highchair and we were sat on a table for two, which was fairly
cramped anyway. Throw a little person into the mix as well as a round of drinks
and meals for all, and there was very little table space or room for manoeuvre.
The restaurant oozes Italian glamour, with banquette seating, which was so
comfortable; artwork from a bygone era and large mirrors on the walls. The bar
area at the entrance was well-stocked and totally 1950s inspired – in my
opinion, it wouldn’t look out of place in a gangster movie. It was just very
classic.
I’d
clocked the menu beforehand but didn’t know what to order. There was the usual
a la carte menu as well as the brunch offerings. One thing was certain though,
and that was that I was going to order a Bellini! The glassware was beautiful,
although I’ve never been served a Bellini in anything but a flute before. I was
slightly envious of Vicky’s drink of choice: the Amalfi Royale; it came served
with sprigs of thyme and lavender and I could just imagine drinking that on a
cliff-top bar or hotel while holidaying on the Amalfi coast!
Ordering
for Alfie was easy. Obviously being a nice restaurant that doesn’t typically
attract little people, there was no children’s menu. However, lucky for us,
Alfie isn’t a fussy eater. I ordered him the waffle & bacon. Needless to
say, he left the streaky bacon, which was underdone to my taste anyway.
Thankfully, each element came in a separate dish and I was able to choose his
waffle toppings. As he didn’t eat the bacon, I left the chives and sour cream,
opting for maple syrup and blueberries instead. He loved it and ate it all
(nearly) before moving on to help us with our meals!
To
start, Vicky and I shared the calamari fritti, which was so beautiful. The polenta
coating was so light and crisp, while the squid inside was cooked to
perfection. The dish came served with a lemon garlic aioli which was to die
for! I could have eaten two portions of it alone... the squid I mean, not just
the aioli!
To
follow, Vicky chose the truffled chicken, which definitely didn’t disappoint.
She was umming and ahhing over it and I decided not to order it as I didn’t
think I’d be able to eat half a chicken. When it arrived, it was deboned and
didn’t look as big as I’d been expecting, so I think I’d have been able to
manage. It looked delicious, with a mascarpone truffle sauce and sautéed mushrooms.
Vicky ordered two sides: the garlic & rosemary chips (which I think Alfie
had the majority of) and the green beans with chilli, garlic & olive oil.
Yep, I got food envy and ended up regretting my choice.
After
much deliberation, I went for the pollo Milanese, with asparagus spears, shaved
parmesan and herb hollandaise. The portion was huge, with two pieces of breaded
flattened chicken and a large asparagus ‘salad’,
as well as lashings of hollandaise, which I actually enjoyed (I’m not usually a
fan). I struggled to eat it all, but luckily Alfie was on hand to help with the
chicken. I found it a little bit dry and do regret not also going for my
original first choice, the crab Benedict.
Vicky
had been to Harry’s before and on the previous occasion, sampled Harry’s
Toadstool for dessert. She recommended we share it, which was an excellent
choice as not only would I have struggled to eat it all myself (yes, even with
my sweet tooth!) but it tasted just as good as it looked. It’s definitely up
there with the Instragrammable desserts of London! It really was a spectacular
piece of art, almost too good to eat! The variety of textures and flavours
balanced each other nicely and it was just a perfect end to a lovely brunch and
catch-up.
The
brunch was on the pricy side, but that was to be expected. The food was
excellent, the cocktails went down easily and the staff were friendly – not overly
intrusive but ensuring that Alfie was okay and we were happy with everything. I
would without a doubt return to Harry’s in the future, maybe just minus a
toddler-in-tow!
Love,
Lucy xx
No comments
Post a Comment
Enjoyed this post? Let me know. Leave a comment, or find me on social!
Love, Lucy xx