Can you believe the perseverance of master chef Gordon Ramsey who took a whole year to give the final touches to garnish o a dish? You can get to see this curious spread for yourself when Ramsay introduces it with the inauguration of his first hotel and restaurant - The York & Albany.
With Ramsay’s new Regent Park food joint in Camden, London you will get the taste of a five-star hotel without it actually being so. This is Ramsay’s way of bouncing back with a bang, after the Connaught broke its partnership with Gordon and his woman assistant Angela Harnett in the last year. He was replaced by the French chef Hélène Darroze, who had two Michelin stars to her glory.
No doubt, both Ramsay and Harnett had their reasons for contention against the Connaught for being unfairly treated. It so occurred that as the talks for the new restaurant deal failed, both of them were excluded from The Michelin Guide in January 2008. Instead, they have decided to hit back with his new invention The York & Albany that is a £4 million property of the Gordon Ramsay Holdings (GRH).
It contains a European restaurant that will serve you with all the delicious Italian recipes that you longed to taste. Harnett is to be in possession of this European kitchen and Ramsay claims that it is to have far more upgraded cuisines than that of the Connaught. You will find these dishes made to suit your modern taste and having a set of distinct British characteristics to their credit. For Ramsay and Harnett, the objective is not to make it large in size, but definitely so in quality.
Ramsay is so confident of his renewed endeavor that he does not hesitate to compare it with the opening level of some of the most posh London hotels. In order to make the most of it, Ramsay has appointed the erstwhile Claridge manager James Partridge to head his hotel. The threesome has surely some great plans in their minds when it comes to ensure better customer satisfaction.
As you step up in The York & Albany, the first thing that will strike you is the reduced pries of a range of spreads. You can book a room for £180 as against the £500-a-night rate offered by Connaught. A three-course lunch will cost you £15 and you can easily afford the most chosen dinner starter for £9. Make your choice among the mouth-watering cuisines like the piperade fish stew, the red-leg partridge with curly kale and truffle chips. You can also try out the Mercurey 1er Cru Les Puillets vantage wine.
If you have a mind not to stay but just to drop in Ramsay’s eatery, you can head for a deli or tapas in the bar. You can also have a bite of the wonderful pancetta and puréed white truffle pizzas. Very soon, you will get another array of options with the new Nonna Italian food line that Harnett is all set to open.
Just like the food, you will also develop a close affinity to the interior decoration of the hotel. The 17 shades of “Eurobland greige” in the dining room will induce a tranquil effect on you. The furniture is equally interesting with a variety of effects added to keep you seated! Alternately, go for the Regency Suite and enjoy a helluva of undisturbed private time and space.
The only negative point of The York & Albany is its problematic road access. You may face a little difficulty tracing your steps to the restaurant from Camden Town Tube because of the alienating ambience of drunkards. You would do better to approach it from the Primrose Hill route. In addition, you will find the dining room in the downstairs quite stuffy. The noise level of the front rooms is very high because of the absence of double-glazing. The bathrooms also have not received their final finish.
However, if you consider the fact that Ramsay’s project is predominantly a restaurant and a secondary hotel that is coming to its own, you can rule out the odds. Gordon Ramsay has let out an assurance that The York & Albany will soon even its accommodation issues. For now, it has carved its niche as a top class eatery.
