Christopher's - Martini Bar and Restaurant Review

My friend and I wanted to meet for a long-overdue catch up and decided on brunch, as our meetings always appears to centre around our love of food. Covent Garden’s repertoire of restaurants is ever expanding and having previously worked in the area, I was fully aware of the quality and quantity of restaurants.

I’d heard about Christopher’s through it’s reputation and a recommendation from a friend and after 5 seconds of browsing their brunch menu, it was a no-brainer. Reservation made. The only one issue I have, is that I have to always read reviews before I visit any establishment, moreso for restaurants and hotels. Obviously, I wouldn’t do this for McDonalds or Starbucks coffee but you get the jist. Does anyone else do this or is it just me?

The reviews online were pretty outstanding overall, and though reviews of dishes can always vary as everyone has different tastebuds, there was was one dish that had an overall consensus - the French Toast. That was definitely on my “to-eat” list at Christopher’s.

The day my friend and I met, was an unusually beautiful and sunny day in London. Does anyone else feel like London is the most beautiful city when it’s sunny? When it’s raining and miserable, my body screams out for Vitamin D but when it’s sunny, I’m like holiday schmoliday!

Upon arriving at Christopher’s, we entered a grand building which I later found out is a Grade II listed building. We were greeted by two professional (not so smiley) receptionists who told us because we were early (so sorry for being early), we had to wait until the exact time of our reservation. I’ve never had a restaurant not cater to, or take into consideration early arrivals. They suggested we could grab a drink in the Martini Bar downstairs and return to them when it hit the exact time of our reservation. FYI, we were only early by 10-15 minutes and not 1 hour.

5* service is allowing clients to relax in the bar and then informing us when the table is ready and that is what most quality establishments do, but hey ho, I wasn’t going to let this little situation ruin our day and it was after all, an excuse to have a drink. I chose the Ginger Mule (feat. rum and ginger beer) and my friend chose the Gin & Regret (feat. gin, apple juice and kiwi fruit). Our cocktails looked and tasted as good as I would expect it to, at £12 each.

As predicted, we were only down to a third of our cocktail when the exact time of our reservation came about. The bar waitress informed us that she would bring the cocktails up for us, which was a nice touch and meant my friend and I had free hands, to walk up the stairs and take photos of the beautiful stairs and light fixtures. That’s Instagram sorted then!

For brunch, we arrived at the first floor which looked like a formal dining room and were seated away from the main crowds (which I always prefer). From reading reviews, I understand there are some seating areas with a view, which I requested but we unfortunately didn’t get. What’s the point of a comments section for requests if the restaurant doesn’t listen; I asked for a view, not a personal butler. The restaurant itself was quite busy but this was to be expected for Sunday brunch time, with clients ranging from couples to tourists galore.

My friend ordered the Eggs Maryland (Poached Egg, Crab Cake, Spinach and Hollandaise Sauce) £18 and I ordered the Lobster Benedict (Half Grilled Lobster, Spinach, Poached Egg and Béarnaise Sauce) £26. It was only right that we also ordered a side dish of Parmesan Truffle Fries at £7 each. In honesty, both were pretty bland, and we needed to dress it up with my trusty friends called salt and pepper. The poached eggs were cooked beautifully but everything else was a bit meh, including the truffle fries which I never thought I’d hear myself say.

Lobster Benedict - Christopher’s Covent Garden

Though we were almost full, it made absolute sense to order the star dish Warm Brioche French Toast (Roast Peach, Vanilla Mascarpone & Maple Syrup) at £12 each. My friend initially didn’t want to order a dessert but I convinced her to get one. She then tried to suggest sharing (normally I wouldn’t mind) but one glance at my eyes told her, this wasn’t a sharing dish. Thank God we didn’t share because we both finished our plates with ease. I can completely understand why the French Toast was the most talked about dish; though simple, it was beautifully made, with the Vanilla Mascarpone complementing the Peach and Maple Syrup. It was so good, my friend and I were messaging each other about it on the way home. She then messaged me the following day telling me she could eat another one! That says it all :)

Warm Brioche French Toast - Christopher’s Covent Garden

Final Thoughts:

Service - 8/10. The service in the dining room was impeccable and very attentive. I also appreciated the bar waitress who brought our cocktails upstairs for us. They lost out on points due to the receptionists/ front of house, who really should be on point considering they are the first faces clients see.

Food & Drinks - 7/10. If it was based purely on the French Toast, I would have gladly given 10/10. Overall I give them 7/10, but I would like to go again and maybe try dishes from their non-brunch menu.

Decor - I loved the Martini bar, and the stairway to the dining room. Though the dining room was clean, it looked like a hotel’s formal dining area and lacked personality - much like the eggs we ate.

The total bill came to £123.75 - I wouldn’t say it’s worth the price, however I would like to return just for the French Toast. Yummers!

Until next time xo

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All pictures in this post are my own.