Le Relais de Venise l’Entrecote, Marylebone, London
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Le Relais de Venise l'Entrecôte is one of the few French restaurants in London to truly capture the French irreverence of frippery and flourishes in the face of excellent ingredients combined with care, attention and skill. Dine at Le Relais de Venise l'Entrecôte and you will be transported to the backstreets of Paris by the first mouthful of house red past your lips and the sharp crunch of crusty baguette between your fingers.
Already missing French food despite having only just returned to London after spending six months in Paris, you can imagine my elation when I stumbled upon Le Relais de Venise l'Entrecôte, the faithful sibling of Paris' famed steak restaurant. The first branch of this fine establishment was founded long ago in 1959, when Paul Gineste de Saurs invested in an Italian restaurant on the Boulevard Periere in Paris' 17th arrondisement. Originally intended as a clever marketing ploy to introduce Parisien's to the wine produced at his family's Château de Saurs, the menu was kept to the bare minimum: salad to start followed by steak covered in flavoursome butter sauce, served with frites and accompanied by a select menu of their own wines and a small variety of traditional desserts. The simple concept and fine ingredients quickly won over the hearts of locals and de Saurs' restaurant became so well-loved for its classic cooking that it is even now often referred to by Parisien's merely as ‘L' Entrecôte'.
When, in 1966, his daughter took over the business she exported the restaurant's fine crafts across the world but remained faithful to the original principles: simple food, relaxed setting , no menu and no booking. While the emphasis is on good, well-cooked food, the restaurant makes no bones about requiring a swift turnover. In fact, the website advised that the average duration of a meal was less than an hour. I speculated whether this was a reflection on the size of the portions or the briskness of the staff, only to later discover that it was simply the result of calm efficiency. In a world where the customer is king and choice is the buzz word of the day Le Relais de Venise l'Entrecôte is violently refreshing; they have discovered the secret of good restaurant management and won't be swayed.
Having been warned of the possibilty of lengthy queues I reached the quiet side street off Marylebone High Street just before 7 pm. There was no line of waiting people to be seen; I wondered if my adviser had been exaggerating. We were shown to our table by the beaming restaurant manager, a well-dressed lady with an intelligent look in her eye. She seated us next to a pair of ladies having an animated conversation over their plates of salad, which paused briefly as one of them hastily moved her shopping from my place on the banquette next to her. I squeezed into the seat and the table was pushed back into place to form a neat row. I looked around to note the restaurant was already half full; noisy chatter echoed around the mural-covered walls and darkened mirrors and you could almost feel the buzz radiating from the happy diners.
Our waitress arrived, a slim young woman dressed in the restaurant's black uniform which closely resembled a chic version of a french maid's outfit, complete with white collars. With a strong French accent she proceeded to relate the ethos of the restaurant, checked how we liked our steaks (medium, still pink), inscribed our choices on the tablecloth and asked us what we would like to drink (a bottle of house red and a carafe of water). Less than a minute later she was back with a bread basket and the water. Seconds passed and another monocrome-clad young lady arrived with our wine, an excellent bottle of red, which she expertly opened, poured and then abandoned on our table so we could help ourselves as the thirst took us.
It was like an evening at the theatre, but where the props and the stage hands were the stars of the show. Motionless items were manoevered stealthily on and off our table as we chattered away obliviously. One minute it was an empty table and the next two plates of assorted lettuce leaves dressed with walnuts and mustard dressing were before us. I greedily began my meal, gorging on the crisp leaves doused in creamy dressing and enjoying the dull crunch of the walnuts as they found themselves trapped between my teeth. All too soon my plain white plate with its red rim was empty, bar a few snail trails of dressing, and it was then immediately whisked away. A few sips of wine later and the smiling waitress was back again, sporting two plates of beef drenched in thick, green sauce, and on her tails was another bearing a gigantic platter of frites, which she carefully spooned onto our plates. There was no need to catch the eye of a waitress here, the food arrived promptly and without ceremony. What better way to receive steak frites?
I sliced into my Aberdeenshire beef steak, the flesh was rose pink and as soft as freshly neaded dough. I spread the morsel with Le Relais de Venise's special sauce and raised it to my lips. In my mouth it had just the perfect combination of bite and melting softness that can be so hard to achieve and the sauce added an unexpected piquancy. With hints of pepper and pine nuts the butter-based sauce gave an air of mystique to a traditional dish which shouldn't have worked, but it did. I dived into the frites, hand-chipped on the premises from French Bintje potatoes, finding that they were crisp without being crunchy, soft without seeping oil. The perfect foil for a celebrity steak.
Having ploughed through my plate at an unhealthy speed, pausing only to make brief comments and sip more wine, I was already feeling rather full and in need of a breather. I twisted round in my seat and took a peek at the door. My eyes widened in surprise at the impressive queue that had already formed. It wasn't yet 8 pm on a Thursday night and already it stretched past the front of the restaurant. I grinned, pleased that we had opted for an early dinner.My smile was soon wiped off my face by the arrival of the waitress, bearing a dish of yet more meat and announcing the second serving. My tummy was straining against my jeans but how could I refuse?
When we could take no more we put down our knifes and forks and our plates miraculously vanished once more. There was to be no rest for the wicked though and our faithful waitress soon reared her head once more, brandishing the dessert menu inscribed completely in French and asking if we would like coffees. Having spotted the ladies beside us polishing off a plate of profiteroles earlier in the meal I ordered one dessert with two forks and then requested an espresso to finish off the incessant parade of food. Dessert arrived, a moutain of soft choux puffs filled with icy vanilla ice cream and topped with decadent hot chocolate and flaked almonds. It was so good that we argued over the last one and ended up splitting it in two. The neighbouring ladies laughed and congratulated us on our excellent choice of dessert.
Swift on the tail of dessert came our coffees, which we lingered over, trying to turn our 45 minute slot into double. All too soon the bottom of my cup was dry and it was time to leave. I scooted past the new diners at the table next door and we filed past the waiting queue outside the front, which had lengthened since my last sighting. Stepping out into the evening light I found myself surprised by the red brick buildings and the traditional pub facade opposite and realised that for the past hour and a half I had believed myself back in Paris.
A starter and main course at Le Relais de Venise l'Entrecôte is priced at £20 per person and desserts or a cheese plate range in price from £4.50 to £6.50. Wines are available by the glass (from £4.25), by the half bottle (from 8.50) or by the bottle (from £14.95).
Marylebone Lane 120, London, UK
Contact tel: +44 20 7486 0878
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Le Relais de Venise l'Entrecote
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