Caviar House Piccadilly

£20 - £200 / Seafood, Vegetarian options

161 Piccadilly, London

Awards

Caviar & Champagne 2024

Opening hours

11AM-10PM

Sunday 11AM-10PM
Monday 11AM-10PM
Tuesday 11AM-10PM
Wednesday 11AM-10PM
Thursday 11AM-10PM
Friday 11AM-10PM
Saturday 11AM-10PM

Exceptional Seafood Experience in London's Heart

Ah, Caviar House and Prunier, the Piccadilly gem that attracts both the worshipful caviar connoisseur and those with a mere fleeting escapist desire for luxury. With expectations as lofty as the Gherkin, I approached this reputed sanctuary of opulence bracing for either divine revelation or debauchery disguised as decadence. What unfolded was a mixed symphony—a palate dazzler with occasional notes akin to a soggy symphony rehearsal. Let's start where it's rosy: the setting. The establishment has undergone a facelift, shedding its previous garish colours for a more muted elegance, averting an existential clash between outlandish decor and culinary expectations. Stepping inside feels like descending into a titan temple of gourmet self-indulgence.

The service? Olga is a wonder to behold—not quite levitating, but every bit the omnipresent saviour many reviews rightly laud her to be. Her suggestions on caviar teased what discernment I imagined I'd cultivated over the years, and Tom, perpetually grinning with the promise of refilled vodka, ensured our cups spilleth over metaphorically and literally speaking. The seafood platters, indeed priced as if gold were at sea level, were alternately capable of gastronomic arias and moments of blaring kazoo solos—particularly concerning a certain shrimpy fellow who seemed to have lingered unwelcome in the steam room. But when the stars align, bite into the oysters or let yourself go where champagne and foie gras converge, and you might just glimpse nirvana. While moments of culinary ill-preparedness did nibble at the edges of nirvana, dear reader, remember the immortal words of one reviewer: when dished out alongside Olga, pop that slight disorder back with a glass of champagne; it's mostly fun and thoroughly quintessential "London nice." — Penelope Savory