Galvin La Chapelle

Halal options require pre-ordering!

When I found out that Galvin La Chapelle can order in halal it piqued my interest, then I noticed they did a reasonable Sunday lunch roast for £35. I thought “I’ll have some of that.”

When I made the reservation I made sure that I pre-ordered the halal beef, as I wanted the Sunday roast beef and that’s the ONLY reason I wanted to visit.

However, despite confirming with the restaurant a week before and again the day before, I was informed once I sat down that they could not source halal beef and could only provide chicken. Well, as you may have gathered, I was not happy.

The venue is an old church and a beautiful airy space with stained glass windows and a high ceiling with exposed wooden beams created a lovely setting.

I started with the Charred Cornish Mackerel, served with compressed cucumber and pickled Tokyo turnip. Mackerel has a distinctively rich, fishy flavour and was a little overpowering.  The plate was beautifully presented and was a very simple dish. 6.5/10

Next came the main course and one that left me disappointed even before I ate it. When I sat down I really expected some red meat – lamb or beef is king when it comes to a Sunday roast. Sorry Mr chicken, you won’t cut it here.

Chicken breast, Yorkshire pudding, fine beans, roast potatoes and glazed carrots.

Overall, I was just so disappointed with the quality of the food. It was so simple and was on par with a pub Sunday lunch (I was with a few non-Muslims, their words). It was by no means a restaurant that holds a Michelin star. The potatoes were not to the standard I’d expect, not crispy or fluffy, It was the epitome of whenever I’ve had French cooking –  boring, simple and tasteless. Granted, I’ve only had French food a handful of times, but if you are reading this blog, chances are that you share a preference for food and palate similar to mine. 5/10

Valrhona Manjari chocolate fondant with crystallised pistachios and creme fraiche.  The dessert was another letdown. I was really expecting more. Instead, I had a chocolate fondant that had clearly been stuck in a microwave or at least tasted like it was. There wasn’t enough sweetness from the chocolate and the chocolate itself was harsh and sharp. Not a good dessert. 4/10

Overall, the atmosphere and decor contributed to a different experience, the venue is airy and lovely to eat in. The presentation of all the food was great, however, the food lacked any positivity or taste that would add cause for me to recommend this place. I have to mark down on service – not the actual service on the day, which was good –  but I expected better from a restaurant that holds a star. Making a reservation was difficult, I didn’t get any follow up confirmations as I would expect. I asked for the service to be removed from the bill, which it was.