Celebrity chef Theo Randall’s Italian restaurant at the InterContinental is a polished spot off Park Lane that’s spacious, buzzy, and full of international guests who are obviously charging dinner to the business account. In short, your typical hotel dining room. Not the vibiest space in the world, but a fitting place for a chef with international acclaim to showcase his high-end food.
If anything can make up for the room’s lack of ambience, it’s the excellent modern Italian cooking. Off a large menu split into classic collections of antipasti, primi and secondi, the winning dish was the signature baked zucchini and cheese soufflé: a fluffy, savoury number, made with spinach, cream and parmesan, that came oozing with rich cheese fondue. After you’ve ordered that, go straight for the pasta section. Plates are reasonably priced considering their quality, and available in small or large portions, which means you can – and should – order a few to share. The ravioli di zucca was perfectly al dente, filled with spinach and ricotta then topped with delicious crispy sage leaves, while the wintry chestnut risotto was also a delight: light, nutty and perfectly cooked so the rice still had a tiny bit of toughness to it. Later, there was large plate of supremely tender roast lamb surrounded by winter vegetables, swimming in a rich, addictive zhu that we scraped clean off the plate.
Although everything you’ll eat Theo’s is delicious, I have to warn you to order carefully. It’s expensive. Too expensive. Get carried away and you’ll blow the budget very quickly. Oh, and the cheapest bottle of wine was £48. Think about that before you say yes to the pairings.