Galvin La Chapelle Taste of Summer menu

Last Updated on August 27, 2026

Summer in the City

4.5 out of 5.0 stars

The Galvin brothers, Chris and Jeff Galvin, owners of Galvin La Chapelle, have been synonymous with the London restaurant scene since 2005, when they opened their Bistrot de Luxe on London’s Baker Street. With its sophisticated, intimate and urbane high-quality French bistrot offer, the restaurant changed the London scene, which had been in thrall to the super-brasseries of the 1990s such as Quaglino’s, Mezzo and The Bank.  Successive restaurants were established; Galvin Windows at the Hilton on Park Lane gave us rooftop glamour and Galvin at The Athenaeum took the brothers’ classic dishes into the West End’s hotel scene

The brothers now have two restaurants in London based on one site in Spitalfields. Galvin Bistrot & Bar is fun and informal with a Mediterranean-inspired menu. Their Michelin-starred flagship restaurant, Galvin La Chapelle, focuses on fine dining, and we are reviewing their five-course Taste of Summer menu, priced at a very reasonable £49.00 per person, including a complimentary glass of 2025 ‘Symphonie’ Rosé from Château Sainte Marguerite, Côtes de Provence. There’s also a classic wine pairing for £41 or a Sommelier wine pairing for £66. The menu is available until 15 September for lunch and dinner, and similar offers are available at Galvin Bistrot & Bar and Galvin Green Man in Chelmsford.

Galvin La Chapelle is situated in a former Victorian school in the heart of Spitalfields. It has an interior that is an elegant fusion of the contemporary and the antique, with a high vaulted ceiling, wooden beams and marble columns framing the more modern elements.

We opened the proceedings with a glass of the Galvin House Champagne, with its fine mousse, pear, and light brioche notes, whilst we nibbled elegantly on some Sardinian Carasau flatbread that came with a gentle anchovy cream emulsion.

Next up was the light, summer strawberry sparkle of the Rathfinny Rosé Brut from Alfriston in East Sussex, matched with our supplementary bread dish: a fluffy seeded potato bread, a crisp, crusty sourdough, and a pillowy Focaccia, all perfect for dipping in a fruity, peppery Picual extra-virgin olive oil.

Then it was time to delve into the Taste of Summer menu itself, starting with some top-notch snacks. “Memory of a bruschetta” was a reconstructed version of the classic Italian bread and tomato dish. A tomato and basil foam sat on a base of oil and fine breadcrumbs, creating a textural contrast with the original dish. A Carlingford oyster was dressed with a tangy sliver of finger lime and a briny oyster emulsion, and a duck liver parfait with Moroccan spices and a cherry chutney on a sliver of brioche was a brilliant reworking of a classic combination. 

We moved on to a honey-coloured white wine; Avignonesi Da Di is a four-grape blend from the Cortona region in Italy fermented in amphorae, which gives it a luscious tropical character along with some citric freshness. It was a great match with our starters, balancing the acidity of roasted yellow pepper escabeche topped with a fishy tonnato sauce and fresh stringy stracciatella.

A plump, sexy little Dorset crab raviolo came with charred fennel and a beurre blanc where you could taste the vinegar in a good sort of way.

For our fish main dish, we drank an organic and biodynamic 2025 ‘Symphonie’ Château Sainte Marguerite, Côtes de Provence that was light and delicate, full of strawberry, raspberry and wild flower notes. Cornish seabass was seared to perfection plated with a crisp charred baby gem a Caesar dressing and a crunchy Parmesan topping. 

The spicy flavours of a Cheverny blend of Pinot Noir and Gamay from the Loire Valley added value to a deconstructed cassoulet with Dingley Dell pork belly and a deliciously sweet Tropea onion. The pork was a little undercooked, and the beans were too al dente for an authentic cassoulet experience.

With our desserts, we drank a Rastignac Pineau de Charentes, a blend of cognac and sweet wine with a honeyed sweetness and a bit of bite. An exemplary Amalfi lemon tart had excellent pastry, a tart lemon gel. burnt soft meringue, and a dollop of coffee ice cream on the side

Baba au tiramisu, ideal to share, is the signature dessert and a fab piece of table theatre with lots of flames. The baba was doused with rum then topped with coffee, mascarpone and a sprinkle of chocolate to create a genuinely indulgent dessert. 

I don’t think there is a better value tasting menu delivered with Michelin-level finesse and charming service on offer in London at the moment, but the Taste of Summer menu is only available until 15 September.

On Monday 5th October 2026, Galvin La Chapelle will host a one-night-only chef collaboration dinner bringing together two exceptional culinary voices: Tom De Keyser, Head Chef of The Chalk Freehouse in Chelsea, and Arturo Granato, Chef Director of Galvin Restaurants.

Tom De Keyser was Head Chef of the two-Michelin-starred Hand and Flowers in Marlow, the first pub in the world to hold two stars, and the evening will unite De Keyser’s precise, ingredient-driven British cooking with Granato’s elegant, Mediterranean-influenced technique, honed across two decades in some of Europe’s most acclaimed Michelin-starred kitchens. The dinner is priced at £125.00 per person, including a glass of champagne on arrival, with wine pairing priced at £75.00. For this special dinner, book here.

Galvin La Chapelle Taste of Summer Menu

35 Spital Square, London E1 6DY

020 7299 0400