The background

Seven Park Place by William Drabble is the newly relaunched restaurant at St James’s Hotel & Club Mayfair. Drabble has been the head chef at the restaurant for 10 years and has garnered a Michelin star for his wonderful French cuisine crafted from the finest British ingredients. The restaurant is a real hidden gem on the London restaurant scene, and to celebrate its 10^th anniversary it recently underwent an extensive and beautiful refurbishment by Russell Sage Studio.

The space

The restaurant is warm, quiet and welcoming. It’s the perfect spot for a date or celebration, as well as being fantastic for entertaining clients. The new design has introduced walls of gorgeous florals, natural tones and deep greens, plus deco elements and rich velvets. The space is elegant and intimate while being distinctly contemporary and comfortable.

The menu

The highlight at Seven Park Place is the Gourmand Menu – seven courses of meticulously and lovingly prepared French cuisine. The restaurant is quite focused on meat and fish but offers wonderful and considered vegetarian options on request. Some of the most interesting dishes include the deliciously rich seared hand-dived Scottish scallops with salsify purée, champagne sauce and caviar; a refined poached tail of Dorset blue lobster with cauliflower purée, lobster butter sauce and Périgord truffle; and the delicate and moreish griddled south coast line-caught fillet of seabass with braised Jerusalem artichokes, wild mushrooms, parsley purée and red wine jus. A selection of cheeses can be added as a supplement to the Gourmand Menu and we would strongly recommend including this as part of the experience – the cheese trolley is a wonder to witness and even more fun to taste. To finish, the most exciting dessert on the menu is the passion fruit soufflé with dark chocolate sauce, brought puffed up and warm to the table before the rich, velvety sauce is poured into the centre, creating a deliciously tart and rich, fluffy result.

The drinks

Consult the expert sommelier for a selection of wines to accompany your meal, or plump for the Gourmand Menu’s wine pairing. The wine selection is interesting and extensive, with a huge number of bottles from France, including some rare Bordeaux. There’s also an extensive list of whites from Germany and Austria and reds from Spain, as well as a large selection of non-vintage and vintage champagnes.

The bill

The Gourmand Menu is £95 per person and a wine pairing is an additional £75 per person, or £130 for a premium wine pairing. There is also an à la carte menu available, with two courses at £65 or three courses at £75.

In summary

Seven Park Place is cosy and refined and a fantastic choice for a celebration or an intimate dinner. The quality of the cooking, together with the warm, welcoming service, makes it a place you’ll want to return to time and again.

Seven Park Place at St James’s Hotel & Club Mayfair, 7-8 Park Place, London SW1A 1LS; stjameshotelandclub.com/en/restaurant-seven-park-place