DB Eats: The OXO Tower Restaurant

The OXO Tower

The OXO Tower, the slender, glinting emblem of Art Deco elegance that stands skyscraper-like on the Southbank, its once copper crown now mint green through oxidation pushing heavenwards and scarlet lettering illuminating the London skyline at night like a floating game of noughts and crosses, could have looked very different.

The structure, the closest the city gets to the silver spired splendour of New York’s Chrysler Building, was originally built towards the end of the 19^th century as a power station for the Post Office and was later acquired by Liebig’s Extract of Meat Company (Lemco), the manufacturers of OXO cubes, for conversion into a cold store.

In 1928 the space was rebuilt in an Art Deco style by Albert Moore. Much of the original power station was demolished, but the façade was retained. As part of the design, the company wanted to include illuminated signs advertising OXO cubes on the tower to bring attention to the product. When the proposal was refused, Lemco responded by furnishing the tower with four sets of three vertically-aligned windows in the shape of a circle, a cross and a circle, spelling out OXO.

The OXO Tower Restaurant

In 1996, the tower reopened with renovation work designed by Liftschutz Davidson that included residential apartments, bijou arts and crafts shops, exhibition space for artists and a restaurant on the 8th floor owned by Harvey Nichols boasting a 250-foot terrace offering spectacular views across London. If you haven’t already fallen in love with London all over again after the Olympics, then the view of St Paul’s’ defiant dome from across the River Thames will make your bosom swell with national pride. The light-flooded, glass-encased space has been engineered to make the most of the view. At night, the city lights shine like new pennies beneath the sleek glass walls. In keeping with the British theme, executive chef Jeremy Bloor has devised a menu of seasonally-focused British and modern European dishes with a playful twist, while the monumental wine list carries over 800 bins from around the world.

I visited the tower on one of England’s rare blazing hot summer evenings. As tends to happen on those idyllic days, the edges were smoothed over and the scene bathed in a pleasant haze, though perhaps that was due to my having already enjoyed a bottle of Bollinger and Provençal rosé during a lazy picnic in Hyde Park with my dining companion. Ushered to a table on the terrace directly opposite St Paul’s, the view was so magnificent I almost began to weep, and the light so bright I had to keep my shades on until the sun dipped behind the buildings at 9pm.

Scallops and lemon curd

Our meal began in style when our French sommelier, Florian Monnier, suggested we might like to try a flute of English fizz in the form of Herbet Hall Brut Rosé 2010, grown in the garden of England: Kent. Unfamiliar with the producer, the salmon pink wine was self assured, with a feminine bouquet of strawberry, raspberry and red currant.

While perusing the menu, we were presented with an amuse bouche of Scottish langoustine crafted into a contemporary ragout featuring cooling cucumber squares. Fresh, light, and with a hint of spice, it cleansed the palate and whetted the appetite. Going slightly off-piste due to the unseasonal heat, I opted for a series of starters rather than a hefty main, beginning with the daring pairing of scallops and lemon curd served with a lithe Serrano ham cracker.

The curd could have easily overpowered the delicate flavour of the scallops, but the risk paid off, the lemon adding zing and sweetness to the slightly smoky scallops, the ensemble made even more vivid by the accompanying Domaines Pattes Loup Chablis 2009, a crisp, citrusy mouthful with a saline mineral core.

Lobster tempura in a lobster consommé

Next came a clever concoction: lobster three ways, formed of tempura talons jutting out of an OXO cube-brown lobster consommé, its meaty claws nestling in a separate bowl among an aerating wasabi salad, the rich tempura tempered by the amaretto-laced consommé. Another fish dish followed: Devon crab topped with a deep-fried vine leaf and prettified with lime green cubes of apple jelly. I love the idea of being able to eat the leaves from the vine; that no part of the plant goes to waste. While the crab was clean and precise, given a citrus kick by the exploding apple cubes, the comforting crunch of the vine leaf added texture.

Moving on to the meat of the matter, paper-thin slithers of tender veal carpaccio generously drizzled with drops of sweet truffle honey made for a heavenly forkful, while a canary yellow duck egg yolk atop gammon pink strips of smoked duck surrounded by an eruption of spicy popcorn created the unappealing illusion of an edible volcano. The silky yolk oozed over the smoky duck proved a punchy flavour combination, but while the popcorn was a playful addition, it added little in terms of flavour and took away from the finesse.

Devon crab and apple jelly

The main white of the night however, Eric Forest Les Crays Pouilly Fuisse 2008, was enchanting: creamy and weighty from the oak, the palate chimed with lemons, golden delicious apples and butter, with mineral accents, herbal hints and a hazelnut finish.

Dessert – soothing panna cotta topped with a thirst quenching, Sicilian inspired almond granita, was a pleasingly restrained affair, cleverly matched with an orange peel, honey and apricot-scented glass of Austrian sweet wine King, the late Alois Kracher’s Cuvée Auslese 2010, though I was tempted to order Napoleon’s Last Wish – four desserts matched with three rare Courvoisier Cognacs – purely on the brilliance of the name.

The OXO Tower is a destination restaurant, and a visit a statement of intent. Prices aren’t cheap, but the service is impeccable, the food painterly in presentation, and the wine list inventive. Save a visit to OXO for a first date, a special anniversary, or for anyone you’re keen to impress. Only the iciest of hearts would fail to be wooed by this room with a view.

The OXO Tower Restaurant, OXO Tower Wharf, Barge House Street, London, SE1 9PH; Tel: +44 (0)20 7803 3888.