FOOD: The Oscar Wilde Menu at The Cadogan Hotel

(Reviewed by Eden Carter Wood)

*****

I arrived for dinner at The Cadogan Hotel somewhat drenched yesterday evening, but forgot my damp hair pretty quickly. I wouldn’t usually give a meal a star rating, but in this case I have to go for a five.

So what’s so special? To commemorate the arrest of Oscar Wilde in Room 118 in 1895, The Cadogan have a special menu in the drawing room, featuring some of Wilde’s favourite cocktails and dishes. The hotel’s drawing room is beautifully elegant, and we were seated in large well-worn armchairs by a window next to a beautiful bunch of lilies. Nice. There were three other tables occupied by what appeared to be hotel guests. It made for a really relaxed atmosphere; quiet and exclusive without being intimidating.

Wilde’s menu offers the choice of three cocktails. I decided to go for Oscar’s Absinthe Special (£7.50), made of absinthe, gin, gomme syrup, a dash of orange bitters, angostura and a star anise floating on the surface. It had a great aniseed flavour and I imagine they might prove addictive. My friend went for the Hock and Seltzer (£7.50) German Rhine Wine and Soda with curls of lemon rind. ‘It’s really nice,’ she commented happily. ‘I could drink it all day.’

On to the food, and again the menu features Oscar’s favourites. The Consommé Prince of Wales (£7.50), a clear beef and veal stock with turnips, served in a terrine and baked in pastry was amazing both in presentation and flavour. I don’t use the term amazing lightly, either; I was actually still awake at 1am thinking about how good this was. Incredibly rich and delicious, I don’t think I’ve ever had a soup so good before.

Finally it was time for the Classic Victoria Sponge with clotted cream and fresh raspberries (£7.50). Again, this pretty much rendered us speechless; a long, delicate slice of very thinly layered sponge, beautifully light and sweet with plenty of raspberries on top. The coffee was great too.

So there you have it; I couldn’t recommend this menu more highly. If you can get yourself to Sloane Street even just for the Consommé Prince of Wales, do so. You won’t regret it.

One final thing: Wilde fans will be interested to note that an Art School collaboration is underway between Central School of Saint Martin’s and The Cadogan Hotel. The Cadogan has approached the MA Fine Art students at Central School of Saint Martins to put together an exhibition which is inspired by the life, work and era of Oscar Wilde. The student’s artwork will be displayed in the hotel for three months, tentatively scheduled to open in September, with guests and visitors voting on which art piece is their favourite. A panel of judges will also judge the artwork and the student who wins will receive the opportunity to exhibit in the Kings Road Art Gallery.

The Cadogan Hotel

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