The Daily Telegraph
William Sitwell found himself the lone guest for Friday lunch at a venue in York whose interior décor and furniture instantly repelled him – “I’d go so far as to say it is the worst-designed restaurant in the world, but I can’t be sure as I’ve only visited about 3,000 in the past 25 years.”
To match the interior, he ordered “what could be the worst named dish of any restaurant in the world: ‘smoked kipper carbonara’.” Much to his surprise, this turned out to be really rather good: a risotto made with smoked kipper, involving perfectly textured rice, some “silken Béarnaise” and a sprinkle of caviar. On the side, some “fabulous” fresh sourdough bread with soft and salty butter.
His veggie pasta and Yorkshire curd tart were not quite so good, but the British cheese was “very fine”, and the glasses of wine he was poured – a Riesling, a rustic Italian cabaletta and a ‘Little Red’ from Tropo in the Adelaide Hills – were uniformly excellent.
William Sitwell - 2025-10-26
