Harden's survey result
Summary
Some “stunning” meals (“you just can’t beat the tipsy cake!”) are still reported at Heston Blumenthal’s Knightsbridge outpost, but the feeling that it’s losing its way is stronger than ever. Despite a menu shake-up in 2020 (a shift away from its increasingly stale menu of Ye Olde English dishes to a more mainstream ‘Edible History’ menu), its ratings continue to disappoint across the board. The chief complaint is that it’s “so overpriced and overhyped”, not helped by its bizarrely high rating from Michelin (who are asleep at the wheel on this one, presumably because they don’t want to upset Heston by downgrading it). Too often reporters have “no idea how this place got two stars”, saying that “whilst technically the dishes aren’t wrong, for the most part they are utterly pedestrian. We paid £660 for 2 for lunch with 5 glasses of wine between us. Off the top of my head, I can think of 20 restaurants in the capital alone that are more interesting and better value”. And it’s not as though the hotel-style dining room provides much in the way of compensation, either: “like sitting in an airport lounge… just with even less personality…”.
Summary
“If you can overlook the stratospheric prices, and don’t go often enough to tire of the historical menu” (“we’ve all heard about the Meat Fruit now, thanks!”), then Heston Blumenthal’s Knightsbridge dining room can, say fans, “still deliver stand-out dishes with precise execution, Heston-eque flourishes” and “bold and exciting flavours”. Even supporters, though, caution that “you must get someone else to pay” (“even with great cooking, the bill’s terrible value”) and to its worst critics it’s becoming “a horrible and stale experience”, especially given an environment that feels ever-more “soulless and hotel-like”.
Summary
“If you can overlook the stratospheric prices, and don’t go often enough to tire of the historical menu” (“we’ve all heard about the Meat Fruit now, thanks!”), then Heston Blumenthal’s Knightsbridge dining room can, say fans, “still deliver stand-out dishes with precise execution, Heston-eque flourishes” and “bold and exciting flavours”. Even supporters, though, caution that “you must get someone else to pay” (“even with great cooking, the bill’s terrible value”) and to its worst critics it’s becoming “a horrible and stale experience”, especially given an environment that feels ever-more “soulless and hotel-like”.
Summary
“Heston Blumenthal would do well to pay attention and create some new ideas” at this Knightsbridge dining room, where ratings this year are continuing on their remorseless march south (and whose ongoing inclusion in William Reed’s World’s 50 Best awards seems to represent the worst kind of spineless kowtowing to celebrity). Undoubtedly, there are many loyalists, who “love the menu that’s full of history” (being researched from medieval recipe books), and who feel Ashley Palmer-Watts and his team deliver “entertaining”, “alternative” cuisine that’s “so impressive”. There are too many reporters however, for whom it’s becoming an “overpriced nightmare” – charming “extortionate prices” for “mediocre” or even “dreadful” fare. Despite its park views, reporters are also increasingly “not sure about the dining room” either: “all dark wood and posh design looking into the kitchen, it lacks intimacy” and can seem totally “atmosphere-free”. STOP PRESS – after the fire at the hotel in June 2018, the restaurant was reopened on 4th December 2018
For 31 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).
Have you eaten at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal?
Restaurant details
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal Restaurant Diner Reviews
"Perfectly consistent. Superb service"
"I hadn't been for a while, the food is still wonderful and the service manages to balance professionalism with warmth. It's certainly expensive but worth it as an occasional treat if you can afford it (or know somebody who can). I can't agree on the meat fruit getting boring, it is sublime and I will never be able to resist ordering it."
Prices
| Availability | 2 courses | 3 courses |  |
 |
 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Always | £135.00 |  |
 |
|
| Cost | Availability | Courses | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Menu1 | 135.00 | Always available | 5 |
Traditional European menu
| Starter | Main | Pudding |
|---|---|---|
| £30.00 | £56.00 | £20.00 |
| Drinks |
|
|---|---|
| Wine per bottle | £55.00 |
| Filter Coffee | £0.00 |
| Extras |
|
|---|---|
| Service | 13.50% |
Mandarin Oriental, 66 Knightsbridge, London, SW1X 7LA
Opening hours
| Monday | 12 pm‑2 pm, 6 pm‑9 pm |
| Tuesday | 12 pm‑2 pm, 6 pm‑9 pm |
| Wednesday | 12 pm‑2 pm, 6 pm‑9 pm |
| Thursday | 12 pm‑2 pm, 6 pm‑9 pm |
| Friday | 12 pm‑2:30 pm, 6 pm‑9:30 pm |
| Saturday | 12 pm‑2:30 pm, 6 pm‑9:30 pm |
| Sunday | 12 pm‑2:30 pm, 6 pm‑9:30 pm |
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