So what can you tell me about Galoupet?
Nestled away in a Knightsbridge side-street, Galoupet is an all-day restaurant/wine bar with a strong focus on its wine list and the seasonal aspect of its sharing menu.
Who's it aimed at?
Given the emphasis placed on wine - there's a string of enomatic machines as you enter the restaurant - it's certainly looking to attract passing wine buffs and help to educate the rest of us. As for the food - the variety of sharing dishes mean it's perfect for stopping by for a quick bite and respite from shopping.
We'd certainly have no problem recommending it on the food alone and the small private area and bar downstairs would also be perfect for a small private party.
Where should I meet for a drink?
Our favourite place in the area by far is Bar Boulud, just outside Knightsbridge tube station. It's a perfect place to meet up first and only about five minutes walk from Galoupet. Alternatively, if you get to the restaurant first, you can always take up position on the stools by the window and start working your way through the adjacent enomatic machines.
And where should I sit?
We'd recommend anywhere on the right of the room, which gives you a good view of the restaurant and the view outside.
Onto the food - is bread included?
It isn't, but the first thing on the menu is olive oil crispbread with a seasonal dip. On our visit it was a rather wonderful butternut squash dip that had us practically licking the dish clean.
And what should we order?
Galoupet's menu is laid out all in one as a selection of sharing dishes. They recommend picking six of these and we'd agree with that limit, having greedily gone for eight - all in the aim of research, of course. Everything is delivered in the order it is presented on the menu and, thankfully, only one dish at a time, thus avoiding the every-plate-at-once rush that sometimes comes with sharing dishes.
The food is highly seasonal, with the menu changing regularly so numerous trips back will always reveal something new. For reference, we were eating from the Autumn menu which should be changing some time in December.
Among the highlights of the night were the chilli pork, with pumpkin chilli and corn - this was a perfectly grilled and seasoned dish, with a light touch on the chilli. We were also impressed by the stone bass in a crimson beetroot risotto, the rich braised beef cheeks with liquorice carrots and wet polenta, and the spiced pigeon with coconut and lime.
It took us an age to decide which dishes to zero in on - always a good sign - and we'd happily go back to try more.
Of course, we still went for dessert, taking into account the recommendation of the chef and ordering the vanilla and olive oil hazelnut cake, served with a butternut sorbet (giving a nice symmetry to the meal). The sorbet was certainly an odd choice - and quite unlike any sorbet we'd tried before - but worked surprisingly well to accompany the light cake.
Anything for vegetarians?
Six of the items on the menu when we visited were suitable for vegetarians (excluding desserts) such as the burrata with grilled fennel and purple shiso, which was excellent. Less is available if you're going dairy-free too, though. One of us was also going wheat-free on this occasion, and there were plenty of options to suit with the staff being very helpful on wheat/gluten-free questions when asked.
What about wine?
All the wines on the menu are available by the glass and they focus on smaller, artisanal producers.
The wines are all served as 125/175/250ml and by the bottle with the cheapest white being the Insolia Fuedo di Butera at £4.45/£6.20/£8.90/£26.75 and the cheapest red being the house red from Cotes de Provence at £5.70/£7.90/£11.40/£34.25. The list has about eight whites, reds and rose on the menu as well as a good selection of sparkling and sweet.
You can choose to match any of the dishes with a glass of wine but we thought we'd like to be able to walk out of the restaurant, so we simply went with a few recommendations that would work well with the various stages of the meal. Particularly worth mentioning was the house rose at £10 and the glass of Johann Donabaum Gruner Veltliner at £11.90 (both 250ml).
Overall thoughts?
We'd have absolutely no trouble recommending Galoupet based on our visit. The food was, in the words of Kool and the Gang fresh and exciting, the wine we were recommended matched it well and the staff were lovely. If you're in the area, particularly whilst shopping, it's one to seek out.
Hot Dinners were invited to eat at Galoupet. Prices are correct at the time of writing.
