The perfect Sketch

Sketch’s egg-shaped toilets have become an Instagram-favourite among both tourists and London locals, but if you were to ever venture up to the restaurant’s first floor, a much more interesting experience awaits.

With a surrealistic interior and a rather over-the-top welcome, The Library and Lecture room at Sketch is a truly unique Michelin-experience.

My mother (my dinner date for the evening) and I arrived at the restaurant a bit early, giving us time to enjoy a drink at the bar – a dark, cosy room, giving me the feeling of walking into an enchanted forest. The friendly bartender happily recommended us a crisp Reisling, which was just what we wanted. The bar itself was lively, but classy, and it was the perfect place to start the evening.

When our table was ready, a waiter wearing a rather swanky suit came to pick us up, placing our glasses on his tray and led the way towards the grand staircase leading up to The Library and Lecture Room.

Surrealistically, the stairs were closed off with a chain of giant paperclips, and a woman wearing an outfit like that of Effie Trinket in the Hunger Games, elegantly unhooked them and let us pass, making us feel rather special.

The carpeted stairs were colourful and luxurious, looking like something taken straight out of Alice in Wonderland. As we reached the top of the stairs, our host gave his tray to a woman waiting by the door, absurdly dressed in an old-fashioned maid’s costume, before he turned to a large, majestic door. With his back towards us, using both hands, he pushed open the door saying, in an adventurous way “welcome to the library and lecture room”.

What awaited us on the other side left us astonished, and the only thing we managed to say was a breathless “wow”.

The restaurant resembled what I would imagine the inside of Taj Mahal looking like. In the first room, the ceiling was high and white, with classy and elegant patterns. The tables were, in true Michelin-fashion, covered with perfectly ironed, white tablecloths and the chairs were made of colourful velvet. At the end of the room, there was a colourful glass arch leading to the next room.

Another high ceiling, here with a pastel pink and blue pattern and beautiful ceramic details, this room had windows covered by pearl curtains and walls jewelled with beautifully coloured mirrors. In the corners there were huge, baby blue, ceramic vases, and the velvet chairs were as comfortable as they looked.

Our wine glasses from downstairs were put on the table and white napkins were smoothly placed on our laps. We were then introduced to our waitress who talked us through the menu, and I opted for the vegetarian tasting menu with the paired wines.

It did not take long before the petit fours came to the table. The waitress explained what we had in front of us with an enthusiastic smile. She was relaxed, whilst maintaining a class and elegance befitting of a star restaurant. The most noteworthy of the petit fours was the oyster tartare – very refreshing and beautifully presented in the oyster shell.

The first dish to arrive was the endive salad with orange, kiwi and pear dices, raw Paris Mushrooms, mascarpone cream and a dash of lime. The wine served was a 2015 Laufarie-Peyraguey from Bordeaux. The sommelier spoke passionately about the wine and the pairing, without at any point sounding lecturing. The bitterness of the endive and the fruit in the wine was a brilliant match.

The second dish was a poached hen’s egg with a chestnut mousse, wood-ear mushroom and a faom-like parmesan cream. The dish was paired with a 2015 Beaujolais. The wine was low in tannins, which worked well with the egg. It was richer than most Beaujolais, with a tasteful fruitiness, something that went superbly with the sides.

Next was a dish they called “perfume of the Earth” – braised carrot, glazed beetroot and Choux Farci, a type of cabbage roll, topped with smoked butter with tapioca. The smoked butter was delicious and did not overshadow the sweet tastes from the root vegetables and the cabbage. The wine, a 2015 cool-climate Syrah from Rhone, was another brilliant pairing. The earthiness of the wine suited both the dish and its name. The tannins of the wine went well with the fattiness of the butter and the sweetness of the vegetables suited the aroma and flavour of berry in the wine.

The fourth dish was a fried artichoke with Cremona fruit mustard, radicchio and puntarelle, paired with a 2017 rosé from Provence. The fruitiness of the wine toned down the bitterness of the artichoke, making it a brilliant combination. The fruitiness also complimented the Cremona fruit mustard very well. It was a light dish, with a wine choice that did not overpower it.

The fifth dish was a roscoff onion soubise - a creamy onion sauce with black winter truffle. As a lover of truffle, there was no way this could go wrong. It was paired with a 2014 Coteaux Champenois from Champagne. The fruitiness of the wine matched the sweetness of the onions and the high acidity in the wine balanced out the fattiness of the dish. The earth-like tones of the wine complimented the truffle excellently.

For the dessert we could pick between a tempting selection of cheeses or six miniature desserts. As tempting as the cheese was, my sweet tooth swayed me towards the desserts, and I was not disappointed. It was the perfect combination of chocolaty, creamy and fruity. Some of the desserts came in the form of a cake, some of a mousse or a pudding and some as ice cream. Paired with a 2014 Monbazillac, the desert was a brilliant ending to a brilliant meal.

Sketch was an astonishing restaurant, and I was not surprised that shortly after our visit, it gained its third Michelin star. The service was excellent, the food was delicious, and the surroundings were mesmerising. Our visit at Sketch will not be forgotten and I will definitely come back.

This is a review from my visit to the restaurant in 2019.