Christopher’s, Covent Garden

I must admit – it feels weird writing a review on a restaurant which is older than me. Christopher’s opened its doors in 1991, and many of the dishes on its menu are unchanged since that day (as the waiter was telling me), due to their popularity with their regulars, which over the years has mainly consisted of city workers.

The American restaurant has a very elegant feel to it, with an impressive entrance leading onto the bar area (where you’ll get sent if they figure out that you’re only here for dessert), or to the grand staircase on the left of the entrance which leads you to the main dining hall.

This review follows my second visit to Christopher’s. My first was for some of their dessert which I’m sure everyone has seen all over Instagram, but the second time was for a full meal to allow me to share with you whether or not I think it’s worth visiting for dinner.

It was a Friday night, and naturally I hadn’t booked a table (being the last-minute and spontaneous person I am), so we rocked up to the restaurant in hope of finding a table. The bar seemed to be overflowing with guests, however the restaurant was only half-full, which was a delight as the service was prompt and attentive.

After a long day of work, we were very hungry – so opted for a full 3 course meal and a drink each. Not many of the dishes on the menu are suitable for a Halal diet, only 2 options from the main menu, and a few Fish/Vegetarian options from the starters, therefore we relied heavily on our waiter to give us some recommendations.

(Note: Halal chicken can be ordered in with 48 hours notice, however they do tend to keep some Halal Chicken ready for weekends.)

Starters – For our starters, we tried the Crab cake and some Shrimp.

Maryland Crab Cake (Arugula, Red Pepper Mayo, Tomato Jam) / £15

As soon as our first course reached our table, it was obvious that Christopher’s take huge pride in their presentation. The crab cakes were soft, perfectly cooked, and the red pepper mayo sauce drizzled on-top gave it the perfect finish and left us wanting more. The plate didn’t look that presentable for long – within a few seconds I had mixed up the cake with the tomato jam, which gave it a great kick.

Blackened Shrimps (Black Bean Salsa, Zucchini Corn Cake, Tomato Confit, Louisiana Dressing) / £12

Those who read my reviews will know I’ve got a newly-found love for Shrimp. I was once a wimp who would squeam at even the thought of biting into some, but now I’m a huge fan – and Christopher’s definitely did the Shrimp justice. Again, top notch presentation and the burst of flavours from the salsa was a great start to the meal.

Mains – As we hadn’t notified them in advance that we’d be coming along and looking for Halal meat, we were left to 2 choices on the menu: the Wagyu burger and the Rump steak – so we gave them both a try.

Wagyu Hamburger / £18

The Wagyu burger doesn’t appear on the menu, so you will need to request it from your waiter should you wish to give it a try. Personally, I really enjoyed the burger.  It was juicy to the point where my fingers had meat juice all over them – which isn’t ideal at a fancy restaurant, but I was here to enjoy a good meal and wasn’t too fussed about getting judged for my wild eating manners. Plus, the meat was perfectly cooked to my specification of medium.

Australian Rump Steak 10oz / £25

As an honest review, I wasn’t a massive fan of the steak. It was cooked as requested, however I felt that it lacked flavour, and didn’t have the same WOW factor that I’ve gotten whilst eating steak at other restaurants such as Zelman Meats in Knightsbridge. The presentation wasn’t too eye-catching either, as we received the steak as just a block of meat on a huge plate (had to couple it with the chips to get a good pic).

Dessert – Having previously visited and praised the French Toast like crazy, my friend who I made this visit with had his heart set on trying the dessert, so we ordered the French Toast again (I wasn’t going to say no!), and we also tried the Brownie.

Chocolate Brioche French Toast (Milk or Dark), Vanilla Ice Cream, Chocolate Sauce / £12

The French Toast, as with my previous visit, did not disappoint. The presentation was impressive, tasted great, and we had good fun pouring the chocolate all over the bread. My only issue was that it’s definitely a very heavy dessert and tough to finish off after a solid starter and main. I’d definitely say one portion is enough to share between two as a sweet end to the meal.

Warm Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, Praline Crumble / £9

I couldn’t visit twice and try the same dessert both times, so I just had to pick something else from the dessert menu. I went for the brownie, and I honestly think I preferred this to the French toast! My friend who dined with me is the biggest brownie fan I know and his exact words were ‘I think this is the best brownie I’ve eaten’, which definitely isn’t something I’ve heard him say before. The menu said there was Praline in the dish, and they sure were right – the nutty after-taste gave it a perfect finish.

Drinks – there isn’t a massive selection of non-alcoholic drink options.

No Jito / £6, Virgin Rose / £6

Was I blown away by the drinks? I wouldn’t say I was, but they complimented the food well. As with our visits to most fancy restaurants, both drinks were finished in 3 or 4 sips and then the rest of the meal we opted for water.

All-in-all, a solid 8 out of 10 meal I’d say. Albeit a bit of a let down with the steak, other than this we really enjoyed the food. The starters and desserts probably rank higher than the mains, but overall the experience was great and I would return. The service was fantastic, the waiter kindly notified us of any starters which contained Alcohol or were not suitable for a Halal diet which was very helpful to us – so if you visit then be sure to make clear to your waiter that you are after Halal food, and to point out anything with Alcohol in it.