Siren

NOTE: Siren has now permanently closed.

Siren is here.

Whoop whoop.

Why all the hoopla? Well, the chef behind this place is none other than Nathan Outlaw, whose two Michelin Star-winning eatery in Cornwall has put him up on the slim pedestal occupied by the nation’s/planet’s greatest seafood chefs. Plus, we all know how outlaws tend to attract sirens.

You’ll find his new London-based endeavour within the palatial and not-at-all-new Goring hotel in Belgravia. It’s understandably quite nice to look at with all manner of ornate Versailles-esque rugs underfoot, glittering chandeliers overhead, and plush armchairs, velvet curtains, and moulded plaster walls filling your eye-line with elegant nautical iconography.

It’s all crowned by a stunning orangery, whose wall-to-wall windows open out to the immaculate garden beyond. Glance upwards, and you’ll notice a pair of steel fishing cages filled with crystal lobsters clutching lightbulbs in what must be the most creative lighting fixture within several square miles.

On the menu, it’s classically inventive Nathan Outlaw fare with starters like cuttlefish black pudding with apple & kohlrabi; or crispy oysters laid on top of a wedge of cabbage and bathed in oyster salad cream. The larger stuff includes a Dover Sole decorated with cockles & clams draped in a heart-stopping clotted cream sauce; as well as some baked hake with fennel and seaweed hollandaise.

If fish isn’t your thing, and someone dragged you here, then you’ll be happy to know that you aren’t going to be palmed off with a microwaved afterthought – you’re getting a ribeye steak with smoked mushrooms; or light summer vegetable gratin with hazelnuts & herbs.

And for dessert? You can hardly go wrong with a rich raspberry ice cream choux bun dressed in dark chocolate sauce. In fact, you can probably hear it calling to you…

NOTE: Siren has now permanently closed.

The Goring | 15 Beeston Place, SW1W 0JW

Like seafood… but want somewhere a teensy bit less extravagant? The Oystermen would like a word.