The Balcon, Pall Mall

Today Laura, Jaimee, Natalie and I had our monthly long lunch. This time it was my choice and on the basis of an Emerald Street (regular email) recommendation I went for The Balcon in town. It's in the Sofitel Hotel which would normally make me run a mile, but the £17 Bloody Mary Lunch was appealing so I set my judgement aside.

The dining room is big, high-ceilinged, light-filled room which I liked. And the decor is (I think) part french, part art deco and I really liked that too. We were seated at a big round table by the window with a banquette which afforded a great view inside and out (the London Marathon was on today so we could see the fit & healthy types wander past while we ate our 3 courses!).

The service was impeccable. Our coats were checked, and we had a selection of fresh warm bread with two types of butter to choose from as soon as we sat down. Natalie doesn't enjoy a Bloody Mary (I know, how couldn't she!?!) but they happily swapped it with any other drink of her choosing. And throughout the meal the staff were very attentive but not overbearing or rushed. And there was no hint of the service being downgraded just because we were opting for the special lunch menu (which I am always suspicious of).


I enjoyed the meal as well - it was really quite good considering the price. The Bloody Mary was good. We could choose how spicy we wanted it. It came with celery (mandatory for me) but could have used an ice cube. The charcuterie was a tasty, simple starter (from an extensive charcuterie menu). We had roast chicken with a sausage, bacon, roast tomato and potato wedges with a side salad for lunch. Again, very simple but very meaty! I probably didn't need the sausage. Dessert was a cherry clafoutis which was lovely and moist. They do tend to be a bit dry but I was nicely surprised. I had a coffee to finish which was disappointing and a little cold but the french never do good coffee so I let them off the hook.

A really good choice I think. I'll be going back to check out the bar for a cocktail sometime soon. And I may be forced to review my opinions on hotel dining.