Harden's survey result
Summary
“Like The Wolseley, minus the poseurs and food-tourists” – Corbin & King’s “very professionally run” outpost on Aldwych is “not as hectic as its sibling” and boasts “uncramped surroundings” and “classy” comfy decor that make it particularly “perfect for business”, be it at breakfast (“feels like you’re being really spoilt”), lunch or dinner. It’s a natural for “sophisticated pre-theatre meals” too. The “ersatz Mittel-european dishes” (schnitzel, for instance) are “satisfying” to fans, but even some supporters concede “the menu can be a little pedestrian”, and a borderline-concerning number of visits were really “not very inspiring” food-wise this year. Top Tip: “marvellous Viennese afternoon tea at £19.75, with all the silverware and trimmings”.
Summary
“Not as grand as its sibling The Wolseley”, Corbin & King’s “glamorous” outpost on Aldwych “is in a similar vein, but feels less frantic”, and in its own more “intimate” way is “one of the classiest rooms in town”. “The cooking, in an Austrian bent, is OK without being fantastic”, majoring in “jolly gigantic schnitzel” and other “stodgy” (slightly “complacent and expensive”) fare. As with its Piccadilly stablemate, breakfast here is a prime strength – “a very civilised way to start the day” – and its “well-spaced”, comfortable and “old-fashioned” style similarly makes it a major business favourite, being “smart enough to impress, without being overbearing”. It’s “brilliantly convenient for pre-theatre too.” Next door, its spin-off, ‘The Counter’, “serves a great coffee and the pastries are to die for!”
Summary
Like its sibling, The Wolseley, Corbin & King’s “bustling and luxurious” venue on Aldwych “gives a very good impression of a middle-European café in the grand style”, and makes a supremely business-friendly choice. But aside from “wonderful old-school breakfasts” and “lovely afternoon teas”, the somewhat “unimaginative” cooking is “only OK for the price”, and has seemed even more “ordinary” of late. Next door, ‘The Counter’ is “The Delaunay’s little brother, serving light meals, coffee and cakes”.
Summary
“Less hectic than the Wolseley but with all the good bits” – Corbin & King’s “so-very-civilised” three-year-old, on the fringe of Covent Garden, is a less showy, more “luxurious” alternative to its bigger stablemate (and likewise “pitch perfect” for business). The mitteleuropean cooking “isn’t really the point”, but it’s usually highly “satisfactory” (in particular the “utterly fab” breakfasts and “most delicious afternoon teas”).
Restaurant details
The Delaunay Restaurant Diner Reviews
"We went following a matinee performance of Tina. This restaurant is ideal as it literally just outside the theatre. We arrived a little early, as we had been unsure what time the show finished. But no problem. We were immediately seated, and enjoyed a lovely meal. The staff were friendly and attentive, and the food was excellent. If I had one small criticism it was that as the restaurant filled up, it got a little hot. But not enough to spoil our meal."
"Very dependable location for lunch. Especially good for business lunches. Fast and professional service. I like the menu. It is narrow but has lots of mid European dishes that are rarely found in London. Wild boar sausage, bratwurst, tarte flambé etc. Menu rapide great value. Great location and ambiance."
"The best breakfast in Covent Garden, superb for a business lunch and spoiling for dinner. The staff are sublime at recognizing even vaguely regular guests and making them feel particularly special"
"Good for a pre-theatre dinner but seems to be catering to the tourist masses in search of a London cream tea."
"Sister restaurant to the Wolseley and just as disappointing. Here for dinner rather than breakfast,but served with a cold Lamb Goulash . reheated but only to be told that the chef knew the temperature was not as it should be. Once again 121/2 per cent service charge.Sorry but living on its name"
"Four of us were received without a reservation and given a two hour slot/ Service and food were excellent throughout. I liked the internal layout and decoration which was most pleasing. The size of the room was moat pleasing. We were not cramped and the size of the actual table was good. Altogether a very pleasant experience."
Harden's says...
The Delaunay WC2
From Corbin and King, a swish, Midtown brasserie, which has the hallmarks of an instant in-crowd classic, even if its looks are less stunning than its stablemate, the Wolseley.
What's in a name? Restaurant-maesters, Corbin & King's new Aldwych opening apparently follows in the footsteps of a turn-of-the century Gallic automobile marque (Delaunay-Belleville).
But whereas the moniker of their other car-brand - the Wolseley - exudes British-ness and evokes jovial Woosteresque japes, this new sibling (with a 'The' not a 'La') sounds more like a runabout for some Rockerfeller-era steel magnate.
And that's how it looks too: with its deep wood panelling, dark leather banquettes (so comfy!), marbled floor and subdued lighting, it would look more at home in some plush corner of Manhattan than in any Parisian arrondissement, however posh. It also seems instantly popular with the kind of besuited crowd who over lunch discuss pushing around companies with the same ease that they handle their knives and forks.
Hang on, though. The Wolseley this place certainly isn't - there's no exhilarating Edwardian architecture here. The ceiling's a bit low, and the proportions are a bit boxy. And the restrained style may strike some as simply unimaginative.
Our charming waitress politely enquired if we'd like to order. After a few fobbings off, the enquiries came with a fair amount of steely implication that it was now time to stop messing about. A 12.15 table can, after all, be turned at least once more during the lunch service...
The menu is very broad, and the mittel-European shtick (sorry 'Café in the Grand European Tradition') with which The Wolseley was launched is ladled on thicker here. Wiener or Schnitzel anyone? There's crustacea, caviar, savouries, sandwiches, plats du jour: and that's just from the all-day a la carte menu! (with separate menus for breakfast, afternoon tea and brunch).
Despite our waitress's impatience, our starters didn't arrive with undue haste. Chopped chicken salad with soft herbs (£9.50) was beautifully perky and fresh - a better choice than the baked romano pepper with spiced aubergine (£7.50), which resembled an OK result at a veggie friend's house.
It seemed rude not to have a schnitzel. It was warming, hearty, perfectly well made, but perhaps a reminder of why Austrian cuisine has failed to make waves globally: much of the interest came from the yummy accompaniment of sprouts with a creamy chestnut sauce. The calf's liver at £19.75 went down fine, but with little comment.
Sheiterhaufen (£7.50) with Calvados sauce was chosen largely for its splendid name, and was translated for us as, 'like bread 'n' butter pudding'. Well sort of. Like the schnitzel it was crafted with care, deftly crisped, but veering towards the stodgy end of expectations.
Anything opened by Corbin & King suffers under the burden of humungous expectations, and to find a newcomer that looks so immaculately crafted and seemingly self-assured so soon after opening must be counted as another success for this dynamic duo. And its position, next to what was for many years 'Bank' is a reminder of the steady demand in 'Mid-town' (between Theatreland and the City) for a swish, professional, all-hours brasserie that does a mean power breakfast.
Anyone expecting evident culinary fireworks or architectural electricity, however, might consider looking elsewhere though. The diecast of this metropolitan motor is so classic that excitement-hungry souls might find its handling a tad staid. The fast crowd, though, may come to adore it all the same.
55 Aldwych, London, WC2B 4BB
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Opening hours
| Monday | 11:30 am-12 am |
| Tuesday | 11:30 am-12 am |
| Wednesday | 11:30 am-12 am |
| Thursday | 11:30 am-12 am |
| Friday | 11:30 am-12 am |
| Saturday | 5:30 pm-12 am |
| Sunday | 5:30 pm-11 pm |
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