Rockpool

Rockpool had a flashy atmosphere with a very fashionable clientèle. A starter of harbour prawn lasagne with asparagus and marsala had layers of natural lasagne pasta topped with black pasta containing whole tender prawns and sauce (16/20). A starter of tiger prawns in goat cheese ravioli featured burnt butter. Again there were tender prawns, in this case with fresh goat cheese taste, a slightly rich dish (15/20 despite the butter).

My wife had John Dory with Indian bread (paratha) and tomato sauce laced with coriander - a solid 14/20. Roast duck was pleasant. Chocolate orange mousse cake was odd in that the majority of the dessert was chocolate mousse, in which there were pockets of raw egg white. This sat on a base of thin chocolate sponge with thick slices of orange peel (14/20).

Overall this was a better meal tonight than my last one here. The best dish was a passion fruit soufflé with passion fruit ice cream - (16/20). The main problem was the high price - over GBP 70 per head, and though service was good, it all felt a bit precious.