Coq d’Argent

Coq d’Argent is accessed via a private lift, which speedily delivers City suits to a verdant rooftop garden, complete with its own lawn, trailing vines and ringed walkway. In summer, it’s a great choice for alfresco dining, and the location offers striking skyline views across London. Indoor attractions include a circular bar, brasserie and corporate-styled restaurant. Expect regional French cooking, occasionally inspired by forays further afield.

A first course of flavoursome beef carpaccio, topped with lightly pickled wild mushrooms and crunchy garden vegetables, benefited from an umami boost of dried pounded black olives. Crisp-skinned sea bass fillet, jauntily perched over softened, sliced fennel and courgettes, and sauced with a rich saffron-tomato velouté, also worked well as a main. Sadly, though, braised chicken cooked with mushrooms and baby onions was not a success.

Pale, flaccid-skinned chicken, dense mash and an unforgivably oily bread croûte delivered nothing of note. Desserts – tiramisu and roast plums – were OK, but no more. Well-meaning service wasn’t as on-the-ball as expected, but despite misgivings, it’s a buzzy destination of choice for bankers and their clients. And the cooking is decent enough – in parts.