{"id":291,"date":"2010-08-12T16:00:41","date_gmt":"2010-08-12T15:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/philonfood.com\/?p=291"},"modified":"2010-08-12T16:00:41","modified_gmt":"2010-08-12T15:00:41","slug":"12-years-and-still-my-favourite-restaurant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/philonfood.com\/index.php\/2010\/08\/12\/12-years-and-still-my-favourite-restaurant\/","title":{"rendered":"12 years, and still my favourite restaurant"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Having spent yesterday in London, I thought I\u2019d make the most of my visit and catch-up with my friend Mike.\u00a0 And it wasn\u2019t really a surprise that we ended up at Pierre Victoire<\/a> on Dean Street.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Because although I don\u2019t get to go there that often, I loved it from my first visit around 12 years ago.<\/p>\n

At the time, my lovely wife-to-be and I were fresh out of uni, living in London, and on a seriously lean budget.\u00a0 So when we saw vouchers for the then restaurant chain Pierre Victoire, we thought we deserved a well earned meal out.\u00a0 When we got there, it turned out that the franchise chain had disappeared, but the restaurant had stayed open under the old name.\u00a0 Not that it mattered – the French-accented food was great, it had a wonderful ambiance, and the guys serving us were incredibly nice.\u00a0 And besides, we didn\u2019t get out much at the time so it was a real treat!<\/p>\n

Over the years from time to time we\u2019ve gone back, enjoying the intimate atmosphere, ad-hoc pianist and ever-changing menu.\u00a0 And 12 years on from my first visit, it is just as good.\u00a0 Granted, the menus aren\u2019t hand-written every night, but last night I had a perfectly cooked ribeye steak with a delicious pepper sauce (with just a hint of blue cheese) followed by an elderflower and honey parfait with berries, and the two (now slightly older) men that greeted me on my first visit were there to give me another warm welcome.<\/p>\n

It may be partly due to sentimentality, but I do think the atmosphere and great food play a large part in it being my favourite restaurant for over a decade.\u00a0 I heartily recommend – so long as my recommendation doesn\u2019t make it too busy for me to get a table next time!<\/p>\n

(Sorry for the poor photo – an iPhone in dim light shining in the wrong direction is never a good combination, no matter how much you try and post-fix it!)<\/p>\n