• Home
  • Cocktails
  • Culture
    • Dance
    • Opera
    • Theatre
    • Outdoor
    • London Sights
  • Featured
    • Books
    • Home Delivery
    • Recipe Kits
    • Giveaways
    • Homes and Gardens
  • Recipes
    • Meat
    • Soups
    • Lunch
    • Starters
    • Mains
    • Sides
    • Desserts
    • Cakes and Sweets
    • 5:2 Diet Recipes
    • Fish and Shellfish
    • Meat
    • Poultry
    • Vegetarian
  • Restaurants
    • Bloomsbury and Fitzrovia
    • Bermondsey, Borough and London Bridge
    • Chelsea
    • Camden
    • City of London
    • Clerkenwell
    • Covent Garden
    • Docklands
    • East London
    • Kings Cross
    • Knightsbridge
    • Kings Cross
    • Kensington
    • Marylebone
    • Mayfair
    • Oxford Circus
    • Oxford Circus
    • Paddington
    • St James
    • Soho
    • South Bank
    • South London
    • The Strand and Embankment
    • North London
    • Victoria and Pimlico
    • West London
    • Out of London
    • Miscellaneous
  • Travel UK
  • Travel Europe
    • Belgium
    • Croatia
    • Czech Republic
    • First Visit
      • Bulgaria
      • Netherlands
      • Poland
      • Romania
      • Slovenia
    • France
    • Germany
    • Greece
    • Italy
      • Sicily
    • Ireland
    • Portugal
    • Spain
    • UK
  • Travel Other
    • Caribbean Travel
      • Antigua
      • Barbados
      • Grenada
      • St Lucia
    • Ecuador
    • Egypt
    • India
    • Qatar
    • Mexico
    • Oman
    • Rodrigues and Mauritius
    • Sri Lanka
    • USA

London Unattached - Luxury London Lifestyle

Luxury London Lifestyle for Metropolitan Singles and Couples - food, travel, restaurant reviews - London Unattached

You are here: Home / Restaurant / Ametsa with Arzak Instruction

Ametsa with Arzak Instruction

February 13, 2016 by Fiona Maclean 12 Comments

Tweet
Pin
Share
Flip
Share

Last Updated on December 14, 2016

Basque Michelin Dining in London – Ametsa with Arzak Instruction at The Halkin:

I’m in the process of planning a trip to San Sebastian and the Basque region.  It’s a part of Spain well known for a concentration of excellent restaurants and bars – including Arzak – a three-star Michelin restaurant.

Exterior Halkin Hotel

In the meantime and with some serendipity, I got an invitation to visit Ametsa with Arzak Instruction – a unique collaboration between Elena Arzak, her father Juan Mari Arzak, and Mikel Sorazu, Igor Zalakain and Xabier Gutierrez.  Executive Head Chef, Sergi Sanz trained with Arzak in Spain after starting his career working under Ferran Adria at the El Bulli Hotel Hacienda Benazuza in Andalucia.  At Ametsa, the menu is an innovative display of fine dining with clear references to both Spanish heritage dishes and to molecular gastronomy.  The restaurant is based in The Halkin hotel, a discrete, luxurious place in a quiet road just off Hyde Park.

Dining Room Ametsa - Halkin Hotel

Our charming host, restaurant manager Ednor Pronjaj suggested that we tried the lunch tasting menu with matched wines.  Who would dare to contradict such a fine suggestion?

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - ham test tubes 2

Along with a glass of classic Spanish Cava,  El Celleret  we enjoyed three aperitivos.  First, ham test tubes, tiny cork-sealed glass tubes filled with a roll of spiced stuffed Iberico.  Very delicate and very moreish.

Onion Rock with Marinated Anchovy - Ametsa - Halkin Hotel

We had to ask how the ‘Onion Rock’ was made.  It looked like a tiny volcanic rock, topped with a piece of marinated anchovy.  Apparently, dehydrated onions coloured with squid ink create the ‘rocks’.

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - scorpion fish

A spectacular construction held two scorpion fish pastries – each mouthful a soft, pink fish paste wrapped in what I believe was a shredded phyllo dough.

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - scorpion fish

The first of two entrees arrived, the curiously named ‘Scallops at Home’.

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - Scallops at home

We learnt that the cracker was made from plankton and king prawn.  Designed to look like the sea-bed, underneath hid a second beautifully cooked, tender, caramelised scallop.  Wine pairing for this and the aperitivos was Palo Cortado Delgado Zuleta Jerez-Xérès sherry.  Complex, rich and intense it worked brilliantly with the salty fish dishes.

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - egg with chistorra and crumbs

On paper, our second entree was the kind of dish that strikes fear into my heart.  I am really not an egg lover – and the idea of ‘Flor de Huevo’ was not the kind of thing I’d naturally have picked on a menu.  But, for those who pick their way through tasting menus, asking for ingredients they believe they don’t like to be removed I say you miss the point.  When a tasting menu is designed, the Chef creates a structure that takes the diner on a culinary journey.  Miss out one component because you think you don’t like it and you might just find that what follows is compromised.  Of course, I wouldn’t recommend someone with a genuine allergy or intolerance trying dishes…but, if you have ANY faith in the skill of the kitchen, please leave your food pre-conceptions behind when you try a tasting menu.

Here’s a great example of that strategy paying off.  I LOVED the dish – an egg which had somehow managed to be poached so that the white was firm yet not rubbery while the yolk was perfectly liquid, topped with yet more egg yolk and served with crumb and a chistorra (sausage) paste.  Now if every egg was like that, I might just convert…

Our pairing for this and the next fish dish was was valdebonita, a white wine made from 100% albillo grapes, from the Duero valley.  Toasty, fresh and nutty it was delicious and mine vanished rather too quickly.

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - Sea Bass with Celery Illusion

Next a fish course – Sea Bass with ‘Celery Illusion’.

‘I can’t tell you what the illusion is until you’ve tried it’ – we were firmly told.

The sea bass, a neat cutlet of fish, arrived served with a walnut crumb and what looked to us like a celery stick.  Two crisp, dehydrated celery leaves were unmistakable, but we both were completely mystified by the ‘celery illusion’ which had the texture of a cream cheese but a slightly fruity taste.  I was SURE there was celery in there somewhere.

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - Sea Bass with Celery Illusion

I did spot the apple – one component.  But, I’d never have ‘found’ the other ingredients – potato, leek and pineapple.  Not only did it look stunning but it was a perfect pairing with the sea-bass.

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - Beef Fillet

Next carne – beef fillet with green tomato.  By now we knew the drill – the beef fillet would be served with something that looked like a green tomato but wasn’t.  And, we’d try to guess and fail.  Actually we did pretty well here – we DID spot the avocado, though failed to pick out lime as the second ingredient.  And the creamy white sauce was, apparently, yoghurt.  A glass of Bastión de la Luna accompanied the meat – a red wine from the Rías Baixas, fresh and expressive with lots of ripe fruits and spices.

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - pre dessert

Pre-dessert was more of a kind of rocky creation, this time small mouthfuls of something with a custard like filling.  We learnt it was a sea buckthorn cream in a cocoa butter shell with peanut crumbs and beetroot powder,  quite delicious and very light.

The main dessert was a pretty dish of chocolate and fruit marbles with an oregano custard.  With both we enjoyed a glass of Arima by Gorka Izagirra, a late harvested sweet wine from vineyards near Bilbao.  A fitting way to bring the meal to a close.

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - pre dessert

Finally, coffee was served with some tiny spiced ‘grapes’ made from chocolate, cardamon and cinnamon.

Ametsa - Halkin Hotel - Grapes

I was thrilled with lunch at Ametsa.  The food genuinely exceeded my expectations and the ambience of this stunning restaurant was perfect.  Sitting looking out over the pretty garden courtyard of The Halkin hotel was a perfect way to spend an afternoon.

 

Ametsa with Arzak Instruction
The Halkin by COMO
Halkin Street,
London
SW1X  7DJ

 

 

Disclaimer:  I dined as a guest of The Halkin Hotel.  All views are my own and I was not obliged to write a positive review./

Filed Under: Restaurant, Victoria and Pimlico Tagged With: Fine Dining, Michelin, Michelin Star

About Fiona Maclean

London based freelance writer and marketing consultant. I edit London-Unattached.com and write for a number of other publications. With a music degree and a background in marketing across many sectors, my passions include all types of music, food, restaurants, wine and travel

Comments

  1. Anna @ shenANNAgans says

    February 22, 2016 at 8:46 pm

    London really does set the standard for the rest of us. I remember working at the Covent Garden Hotel a bazillion years ago, they were doing weird things like serving food in test tubes, it literally didn’t come into fashion until last year in Aus. I cannot wait till we catch up again. The food all looks amazing. Like Krista said, art on a plate.

    Reply
  2. Elaine J. Masters says

    February 22, 2016 at 4:09 am

    Such an exquisite experience. I loved your pictures and the delicacy of each dish. Truly a feast.

    Reply
  3. Ana O says

    February 21, 2016 at 11:10 pm

    What an experience! I e=joyed the read but some things, like the oregano custard for dessert are a bit counteractive. Maybe I should book a table there and see for myself 🙂

    Reply
  4. Holly says

    February 21, 2016 at 4:02 pm

    Wow what an interesting meal. At first I was like I think I would still be hungry, but it looks like it just kept on coming. So maybe not.

    Reply
    • Fiona Maclean says

      February 22, 2016 at 8:25 pm

      Neither of us were in the least bit hungry – there’s a lot of protein in there – and 2 desserts!!!

      Reply
  5. Rosemarie says

    February 21, 2016 at 12:44 pm

    Food in test tubes! That’s so creative!

    Reply
  6. Elissa says

    February 21, 2016 at 12:40 pm

    Wow, looks amazing

    Reply
  7. Eileen | The Food Avenue says

    February 21, 2016 at 10:39 am

    The food looks incredible! And very creative. Ham test tubes? Very interesting.

    Reply
    • Fiona Maclean says

      February 21, 2016 at 2:40 pm

      the parent restaurant is (literally) one of the leading restaurants of the world and has 3 stars. He is credited as being the father of molecular gastronomy!

      Reply
  8. Paula McInerney says

    February 20, 2016 at 2:03 am

    We are great believers in serendipity. Ametsa looks amazing, and would love to experience this.

    Reply
  9. Krista says

    February 19, 2016 at 9:08 pm

    What an incredible meal!! Each plate is like a work of art. 🙂

    Reply
  10. Stevie Wilson says

    February 16, 2016 at 2:34 am

    What an incredible meal! That would be such a treat.. and an adventure.. to try it!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Follow Us

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

About London-Unattached

  • Enquiries/PR
  • London Unattached Contributors
  • London Unattached Privacy Policy
  • Media Pack

London Unattached Newsletter

Sign up for our newsletter here. We promise not to spam - and you can unsubscribe at any time

Recently Published

  • A Perfect Home with Poster Store
  • Burlesque Idol at Lola’s, The Hippodrome Casino
  • Samson et Dalila at the Royal Opera House – Review

The Frugal Flexitarian

Looking for more recipes? Check out our new site, The Frugal Flexitarian, for easy, cost effective recipes to enjoy at home.
Find My 5:2 Diet Recipes quickly and easily

Find Us

blogl
VuelioTop10Badge2020

Copyright © 2022 · Magazine Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in