Pétrus (restaurant)

Last updated

Pétrus
Petrus restaurant logo.jpg
Petrus restaurant london.jpg
The exterior of Pétrus, in its second location
Petrus (restaurant)
Westminster London UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location in City of Westminster
Restaurant information
Established22 March 1999;24 years ago (22 March 1999)
Owner(s)Gordon Ramsey Restaurants Limited
Head chefOrson Vergnaud [1]
Chef Gordon Ramsay
Food type French cuisine
Dress codeSmart jeans accepted, but no sportswear or shorts
Rating Etoile Michelin-1.svg (Michelin Guide)
AA Rosettes Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
Street address Kinnerton Street, Belgravia
CityLondon, SW1
CountryUnited Kingdom
Coordinates 51°29′59″N0°9′23″W / 51.49972°N 0.15639°W / 51.49972; -0.15639
Seating capacity50
Other informationNearest station:
Underground no-text.svg Knightsbridge
Website GordonRamsay.com/...

Pétrus is a restaurant in London, which serves modern French cuisine. It is located in Kinnerton Street, Belgravia and is part of Gordon Ramsay restaurants owned by celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay's Gordon Ramsay Restaurants Ltd. It has held one Michelin star since 2011, and 3 AA Rosettes.

Contents

Description

The current Pétrus restaurant is located in 1 Kinnerton Street, Belgravia, London, where it was opened on 29 March 2010 under head chef Sean Burbidge. [2] He had worked in other Gordon Ramsay restaurants including Restaurant Gordon Ramsay and Gordon Ramsay au Trianon, [3] but it is his first position as head chef. [4] Currently head chef is Russell Bateman, who in 2014 won the prestigious National Chef of the Year competition. [5]

The interior of the restaurant has been designed by the Russell Sage Studio, who also worked on other Ramsay establishments, The Savoy Grill and the York and Albany. The claret red theme of previous incarnations of the restaurant has been maintained, and was coupled in the design with leather and polished metalwork. [2] The layout includes a chef's table for six people which overlooks the kitchen. [2] The wine list includes more than 2,000 bottles of wine, and includes 34 different vintages of the French wine Pétrus. [2] They are located in a circular glass room located in the middle of the dining room. [6]

Petrus' kitchen at 1 Kinnerton Street Petrus (London) Kitchen.jpg
Pétrus' kitchen at 1 Kinnerton Street

The menu at Pétrus is split into several fixed price menus, [7] containing modern French cuisine. [8] It has been described by Zoe Williams as being distinctly Gordon Ramsay in composition, despite the influences of head chef Sean Burbidge. [9] The meals come with an amuse-bouche, a pre-starter course, and after dinner chocolates in addition to the items listed on the menus themselves. [10] A number of pan fried fish dishes have been on the menu, including mackerel with tomato chutney and a niçoise salad, and a sea bream course served with brown shrimp, samphire and an oyster velouté sauce. [9] Further seafood related dishes include a langoustine and watercress soup entrée which was praised by food critic Jay Rayner. [11] Sauces are generally delivered to the table in small jugs and are poured tableside. [10]

Elements of the dessert course are served on dry ice, such as small round white chocolate balls of ice cream, [9] which has been taken from the menu at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay. Other desserts on the menu include a hollow sphere of chocolate, which a hot chocolate sauce is poured over to dissolve the sphere in order to unveil the ball of milk ice cream within, [11] and a fennel crème brûlée served with Alphonso mango. [10] The wine list starts from around £25, and moves up to a 1961 magnum of Pétrus at £39,000. [11]

History

Pétrus was opened in March 1999 as a joint venture between chef Gordon Ramsay and his father-in-law Chris Hutcheson as Ramsay's second restaurant after Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in Chelsea. [12] [13] It was opened at 33 St James's Street, London, on 22 March 1999 under head chef Marcus Wareing. [14] The name came from the French wine Pétrus, which was Ramsay's and Wareing's favourite. [15] Whilst located at St James's Street, it was nearby L'Oranger, which Wareing had run for A-Z Restaurants, which reopened shortly after Pétrus, but with Wareing's former sous chef as head chef. [16]

Giorgio Locatelli allegedly caused criminal damage to the restaurant later in 1999 by spitting at the wallpaper, resulting in an estimated £1,300 worth of damage, however the case was dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service. [17] In July 2001, the expenditure of a group of six investment bankers at Pétrus made national news in the UK. Together they spent more than £44,000 on wine, resulting in the restaurant giving them £400 worth of food gratis. [18]

In 2003, Gordon Ramsay Holdings took over the location previously used by the restaurant Vong at The Berkeley hotel in Knightsbridge, London. Ramsay signalled his intention to move Wareing and Pétrus into the location after the arrangements between chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten and the Savoy Group were not renewed. This resulted in both restaurants at The Berkeley coming under Ramsay's control. [19] The restaurant was one of those run by Ramsay that he imposed a smoking ban in from 2004 onwards. [20]

The Berkeley Hotel, Knightsbridge, former home of Petrus The Berkeley Hotel.jpg
The Berkeley Hotel, Knightsbridge, former home of Pétrus

In May 2008, it was announced that the hotel intended to work directly with Wareing rather than through Gordon Ramsay Holdings, as the lease on Pétrus' location inside the Berkeley Hotel was due to lapse in September 2008. [21] This deal resulted in a public war of words between Wareing and Ramsay, [22] with Wareing opening his restaurant Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley in the space previously occupied by Pétrus, and Ramsay's holding company retaining the rights to the Pétrus name. [23] Wareing described his new venture as being a renaming of Pétrus. [24] Originally it was expected that the name would be transferred to another restaurant already held by the company. [23] A spokesperson for the Michelin Guide stated that Pétrus' Michelin stars would stay with the property, expecting "that things will change very little" when it was reviewed for the 2009 guide. [23] Before Pétrus closed at The Berkeley to be rebranded, all of the potential customers in the reservations book were contacted to say that their reservations had been cancelled and to offer them a place at another Ramsay restaurant. [25]

Wareing later criticised Pétrus when it reopened at 1 Kinnerton Street, [26] and said that while any restaurant could be named after a bottle of wine, the real Pétrus remained his restaurant despite the name change. [15] The new location was nearby the former premises, but the menu was described as being distinctly "Gordon" rather than "Marcus". [27] Jean-Philippe Susilovic, who was the Maître d'hôtel for five years at Pétrus in the Berkeley, moved over with the restaurant to the new location. [27] Pétrus has a twenty-year lease at Kinnerton Street. [15]

Following the sacking of Hutcheson by Ramsay from Gordon Ramsay Holdings, Hutcheson attempted to take control of Pétrus in its new location as he argued that he had listed himself as sole shareholder of the company "Pétrus (Kinnerton Street)" on the documentation filed with Companies House in April 2010. [13] The issue was settled when Ramsay bought out Hutcheson's stake in Gordon Ramsay Holdings, and transferring the restaurant to Ramsay's new company, Kavalake Limited. [28] In June 2014, Neil Snowball took over from Sean Burbridge as head chef at the restaurant. [29]

Reception

A sea bass main course dish served at Petrus Sea bream at Petrus.jpg
A sea bass main course dish served at Pétrus

Tracey Macleod ate at Pétrus for The Independent shortly after it opened in 1999. She thought that certain touches would impress the Michelin inspectors, and that the dishes were suitably elaborate. [30] Jay Rayner visited the restaurant whilst it was at the Bekerley Hotel in 2003 for The Observer . He thought that the menu was over complicated, and not all the elements of the dishes worked together. [31] Gillian Glover of The Scotsman thought in 2005 that some of the food served was forgettable, but stand out elements included frog leg lollipops which came with her main course of baked seabass with garlic puree. [32]

Zoe Williams reviewed the restaurant for The Daily Telegraph in 2010, after Burbidge became head chef. She found issues with some of the dishes, such as a mackerel which wasn't properly filleted, and some overcooked samphire. [9] However she thought that the dessert was perfect, stating that "It was enough to make you wonder why anybody ever makes custard without fennel". [9] Fay Maschler visited the new establishment in April 2010 for the Evening Standard , who disagreed with the idea that it was a reopening and said that it instead should be considered to be a new Ramsay restaurant. She was impressed by the majority of the food, especially the desserts, however felt that the service was a little alien. Marina O'Loughlin for the Metro in June 2010, thought that the food was fine and although the restaurant seems to have been entirely designed with gathering Michelin stars, it seemed that everything on the menu had been done somewhere else but better. [33] Time Out's review of the restaurant rated it at four out of five stars, being impressed with the quality of the food and describing the wine selection as "crammed with class". [34]

Ratings and awards

The restaurant won its first Michelin star under Wareing in 2000, [35] and was awarded a second star in 2007. [36] It became only the fifth London based restaurant to hold stars at that level. [37] Following the split with Wareing, the restaurant at the new location gained a new single Michelin star in the 2011 list. [38]

Whilst under Wareing's lead, the restaurant was rated the best overall restaurant in London by restaurant guide Harden's in 2008, but was beaten by Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in the best food and service rankings in the £80+ bracket. However, in 2009, it was ranked once more the best overall in London, and in those categories as well. [39]

It holds five AA Rosettes. [40] However, in 2002 editor Simon Wright resigned as he believed that the managing director of The Automobile Association intervened to prevent Pétrus from receiving a fifth rosette at the recommendation of the AA's inspectors. Ramsay reacted by threatening to take legal action in order to ensure that none of his restaurants were featured in the 2003 edition of the AA's restaurant guide. [41] This was followed by the resignation of inspector Sarah Peart over the same issue. The AA eventually relented and awarded Pétrus five rosettes. [42] Wareing said of the issue at the time, "I'm delighted to get the fifth rosette, it's a great achievement. Every AA inspector believed we deserved five rosettes, it was only the guy at the top, Roger Wood, who didn't. As far as I know, he still has not eaten at Pétrus and I would not welcome him here now." [43]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gordon Ramsay</span> British chef, restaurateur, and TV presenter (born 1966)

Gordon James Ramsay is a British celebrity chef, restaurateur, television presenter, and writer. His restaurant group, Gordon Ramsay Restaurants, was founded in 1997 and has been awarded 17 Michelin stars overall and currently holds seven. His signature restaurant, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in Chelsea, London, has held three Michelin stars since 2001. After rising to fame on the British television miniseries Boiling Point in 1999, Ramsay became one of the best-known and most influential chefs in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcus Wareing</span> Michelin-starred chef (born 1970)

Marcus Wareing is an English celebrity chef who was Chef-Owner of the one-Michelin-starred restaurant Marcus until its permanent closure in December 2023. Since 2014, Wareing has been a judge on MasterChef: The Professionals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Sargeant</span> English chef and restaurateur

Mark Sargeant is an English chef and restaurateur from Larkfield, Kent.

Jason Atherton is an English chef and restaurateur. His flagship restaurant Pollen Street Social gained a Michelin Star in 2011, its opening year. He was the Executive Chef at Gordon Ramsay's Michelin starred Maze in London until 30 April 2010. In 2014 he co-hosted the Sky Living TV series My Kitchen Rules.

The Wright Taste is a five-part BBC Wales documentary series that started in late October 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Box Tree</span> Restaurant in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, England

The Box Tree is a restaurant located in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, England. Owned by the Newett’s, who are operating the restaurant with an emphasis of remaining very current within the fine dining offering and experience. Current Executive Chef, Kieran Smith, has been leading the kitchen since 2020, growing its ever strong reputation and now currently offers a new tasting menu on a monthly basis. The Box Tree was previously operated by chef Simon Gueller and his wife, Rena, from 2005 to late 2022. Under their management the restaurant has been redecorated, although elements from the original owners of the restaurant remain. Reception by food critics has improved over the years; the restaurant held a single Michelin star until 2019 and three AA rosettes. A sister company is also run by the chef, called Box Tree Events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ockenden Manor</span> Restaurant in West Sussex, England

Ockenden Manor is located in Cuckfield, West Sussex, England. The building itself dates from 1520 and is operated as a hotel and restaurant by the Historic Sussex Hotels group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zafferano</span> Restaurant in London, England

Zafferano is a restaurant in London, originally run by Giorgio Locatelli on behalf of A–Z Restaurants until 2005. The restaurant was awarded one Michelin star in 1999, which it held until 2012.

Amaryllis was a restaurant located in the One Devonshire Gardens hotel in Glasgow, Scotland. It was opened by chef Gordon Ramsay, with David Dempsey operating the restaurant on a daily basis for the celebrity chef. It was awarded a Michelin star in 2002, which it held until the restaurant's closure in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hélène Darroze</span> French chef (born 1967)

Hélène Darroze is a French chef. She has 6 Michelin stars and three restaurants, Hélène Darroze at The Connaught in London with 3 stars, Marsan par Hélène Darroze in Paris with 2 stars and Hélène Darroze à Villa La Coste in Provence with 1 star.

Steve Drake is a British chef who has held a Michelin star at three restaurants, including his current establishment, Sorrel. He has previously worked under a number of chefs, including Nico Ladenis and Marco Pierre White.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hibiscus (restaurant)</span> Restaurant in London

Hibiscus was a London restaurant which was owned and run by French chef Claude Bosi. It was opened in 2000 in Ludlow, Shropshire, and won its first Michelin star within a year, and a second in the 2004 Guide. In July 2006, Bosi and his wife Claire announced that they were to sell the location in Ludlow and move closer to London. The property was sold to Alan Murchison, and Bosi purchased a new site on Maddox Street in London. The restaurant closed in 2016.

Harveys was a restaurant in Wandsworth, London, run by chef Marco Pierre White between 1987 and 1993. Its French cuisine was warmly received by food critics, and it was named Restaurant of the Year by The Times in 1987.

Aubergine was a restaurant in Chelsea, London. Owned by A-Z Restaurants, it was opened under chef Gordon Ramsay in 1993. Aubergine was awarded two Michelin stars in 1997, which it held until Ramsay left the restaurant in July 1998 following the sacking of Marcus Wareing from sister restaurant L'Oranger. It subsequently reopened and held a single Michelin star under William Drabble until he left the restaurant in 2009. Aubergine closed in 2010, pending a relaunch as an informal Italian restaurant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maison Novelli</span> Restaurant in central London

Maison Novelli was a restaurant in Clerkenwell, Central London, located opposite the Old Session House. It was opened by chef proprietor Jean-Christophe Novelli, and held a single Michelin star in the 1997 Michelin Guide. The restaurant's holding company went into liquidation in 2000, and the restaurant was sold to JJ Restaurants with Novelli remaining on the staff as a consultant and advisor. Maison Novelli was closed in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angela Hartnett at The Connaught</span> Restaurant in London, England

Angela Hartnett at The Connaught, also known as MENU, was a restaurant owned by Gordon Ramsay Holdings and run by chef Angela Hartnett. It was located within The Connaught in Mayfair, London. The restaurant was opened following Ramsay's successful opening of Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's, within the Claridge's hotel, which is owned by the same equity group. Ramsay had originally been asked to move Restaurant Gordon Ramsay into the space, but suggested that Hartnett should run a new operation there instead. The restaurant was awarded a Michelin star in the 2004 guide and held it until it closed in 2007.

Paul Ainsworth is a British chef from Southampton, England. He is chef-patron at Paul Ainsworth at Number 6 in Padstow, Cornwall which was awarded a Michelin star in 2013 and has four AA Rosettes. After studying at catering college, Ainsworth worked for Gary Rhodes, Gordon Ramsay and Marcus Wareing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Aikens</span> English Michelin-starred chef

Tom Aikens, also named Tom Aitkens, is an English Michelin-starred chef. Aikens briefly worked for chefs in London and Paris restaurants. Under his tenure from 1996 to 1999 as head chef and then chef patron, Pied à Terre earned its two Michelin stars in January 1997.

References

  1. ↑ "Our Team".
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Gordon Ramsay's Pétrus reopens in March". Design Restaurants. 22 February 2010. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  3. ↑ "Sean Burbidge – Head Chef". Gordon Ramsay.com. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  4. ↑ "Sean Burbidge, Head Chef, Petrus, London". The Staff Canteen. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  5. ↑ "Russell Bateman wins National Chef of the Year 2014". The Staff Canteen. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  6. ↑ Maschler, Fay (8 April 2010). "Gordon Ramsay's back, and in style at The Pétrus". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  7. ↑ "Pétrus Menus". Gordon Ramsay.com. Retrieved 24 June 2012.
  8. ↑ "Pétrus – Gordon Ramsay". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 24 June 2012.[ permanent dead link ]
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 Williams, Zoe (28 June 2010). "London Restaurant Review: Petrus". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  10. 1 2 3 Markwell, Lisa (25 April 2010). "Petrus, 1 Kinnerton Street, London SW1". The Independent. Retrieved 24 June 2012.
  11. 1 2 3 Rayner, Jay (25 April 2010). "Restaurant review: Pétrus". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 June 2012.
  12. ↑ "Gordon Ramsay Holdings". 17 May 2006. Caterer and Hotelkeeper. Retrieved 24 June 2012.
  13. 1 2 "Chris Hutcheson takes control of Pétrus". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. 15 November 2010. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  14. ↑ "In Brief". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. 11 March 1999. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  15. 1 2 3 Hickman, Martin (6 June 2009). "Battle of the chefs as Ramsay opens new Petrus". The Independent. Archived from the original on 25 January 2013. Retrieved 23 June 2012.(subscription required)
  16. ↑ Fingleton, David (26 June 1999). "Restaurant: Petrus and L'Oranger". The Spectator. Retrieved 23 June 2012.(subscription required)
  17. ↑ "In Brief". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. 12 August 1999. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  18. ↑ "Bankers 'sacked' over £44,000 meal". BBC News. 25 February 2002. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  19. ↑ Harris, David (20 February 2003). "Ramsay adds Vong to his empire". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  20. ↑ "Ramsay smoking ban on diners". Daily Record. 23 June 2004. Archived from the original on 22 February 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2012.(subscription required)
  21. ↑ Afiya, Amanda (27 May 2008). "Marcus Wareing leaves Ramsay to work directly with Berkeley hotel". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  22. ↑ Sharkey, Gemma (28 July 2008). "Marcus Wareing breaks his silence on his split with Gordon Ramsay". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  23. 1 2 3 Afiya, Amanda (27 May 2008). "Ramsay to transfer Pétrus name following split with Wareing". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  24. ↑ Kühn, Kerstin (28 August 2008). "Marcus Wareing confirms Petrus rename". Caterer and Hotekeeper. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  25. ↑ Thomas, Daniel (7 October 2008). "Ramsay left Wareing with empty reservations book, says critic". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  26. ↑ Birkett, Rosie (11 May 2010). "Ramsay's new Pétrus 'beige', says Wareing". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  27. 1 2 Vines, Richard (5 June 2009). "Chef Ramsay to Open Petrus Near Ex-Friend's Rival Restaurant". Bloomberg. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  28. ↑ Hall, James (1 June 2012). "Gordon Ramsay counts cost of feud with father-in-law". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  29. ↑ Michel, Melody (24 June 2014). "Neil Snowball takes the helm at Petrus". Big Hospitality. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  30. ↑ Macleod, Tracey (8 May 1999). "Restaurants: Star in the ascendant Gordon Ramsay protege Marcus Wareing is (quietly) serving up Michelin- quality cuisine in the heart of St James's". The Independent. Archived from the original on 25 January 2013. Retrieved 23 June 2012.(subscription required)
  31. ↑ Afiya, Amanda (30 October 2003). "Review of the reviews". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  32. ↑ Glover, Gillian (23 July 2005). "Restaurant Review: Petrus Berkeley Hotel, Wilton Place, Knightsbridge, London". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 25 February 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  33. ↑ O'Loughlin, Marina (15 June 2010). "Pétrus: New venture's rocky start". Metro. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  34. ↑ "Pétrus". Time Out. 6 October 2011. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  35. ↑ "Chef Conference workshops". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. 16 March 2000. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  36. ↑ "We should be celebrating more Michelin stars". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. 24 January 2007. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  37. ↑ Vines, Richard (24 January 2007). "Ramsay's Petrus Restaurant Wins Second Michelin Star (Update2)". Bloomberg. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  38. ↑ Wallop, Marcus (18 January 2011). "Michelin Guide 2011: record number of UK stars". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  39. ↑ "Petrus 'London's top restaurant'". BBC News. 28 August 2008. Retrieved 22 June 2012.
  40. ↑ Frewin, Angela (23 February 2010). "AA rosette-rated restaurants". Caterer and Hotelkeeper. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  41. ↑ Ghafour, Hamida (26 July 2002). "AA in U-turn after row over Gordon Ramsay's restaurant". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  42. ↑ Bentham, Martin (28 July 2002). "Row over Gordon Ramsay prompts second resignation from AA Guide". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  43. ↑ Sawer, Patrick (16 September 2002). "Now AA gives Ramsay 5 rosettes". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.