Medlar opened in 2011, gaining a Michelin star in 2013 before losing it in 2015. The chef since the outset has been Joe Mercer Nairne, who used to work at Chez Bruce, and before that at Savoy Grill as well as Rockpool in Sydney. The restaurant is named after the medlar winter fruit, which was cultivated in Roman times and is related to both the quince and apple. The dining room is quite long with a skylight at the back, and tables were well spaced. Three courses at lunch was priced at £45, with dinner £70.
I have written previously about the unusually good wine list here, but today we took advantage of a cheap corkage deal on Mondays. Gougeres were excellent, having soft choux pastry and plenty of Comte cheese flavour (15/20). My first course was raw tuna with ponzu dressing, a little chilli, ginger, sesame seeds, coriander and a blob of avocado puree. The dressing was nicely balanced and the tuna was good, the dish topped with an unusually light tempura prawn. I have eaten a lot of tempura in Japan, and most versions in London are crude by comparison, but this featured a precisely cooked prawn and delicate batter (15/20).
For the main course I had Scottish venison with braised venison shoulder, along with crushed carrot and swede, completed by a bed of Savoy cabbage with bacon and chestnuts. The venison was lightly cooked and had very good flavour, decorated by some bitter leaves and working well with the earthy cabbage and slight sweetness of the cabbage and swede. The bacon added a pleasing hint of smokiness (15/20).
We shared an apple tarte tatin made from Braeburn apples. The pastry was bought in rather than made from scratch (puff pastry is labour intensive) but was cooked well, and the apples were nicely caramelised and had just enough acidity (15/20). Coffee is from Union, a quite big company, and although it is decent, it would be nice to see a specialty coffee in a restaurant of this level.
Service was charming. The three-course lunch was just £45, which would scarcely buy you a main course in Mayfair these days. The bill came to £68 per person including corkage, which seemed very fair indeed to me. Medlar is a very enjoyable restaurant to eat at, with an appealing menu and capable cooking. I have no idea why Michelin removed its star some years ago, but it is certainly operating at a level higher than plenty of places that currently have a star.
Further reviews: 02nd Jun 2023 | 19th Jun 2021 | 22nd Dec 2019 | 05th Feb 2015 | 22nd May 2012
Ian Brown
A really fine restaurant that is always a pleasure to retun to. The wine list is excellent, the corkage charge especially, at lunchtime, is unmatched by any other restaurant of this quality in London. I would score Medlar 17/20 and £££££ value for money.
Jonathan Rose
Totally agree it is a mystery why it has no star. It is so much better than nearly all one star restaurants in France I have eaten in lately. The service in Medlar is charming, friendly but not intrusive. It is perfect for a long lunch, or dinner.