The Times
Jay Rayner savoured a meal of “only highlights” from ex-Cycene chef Theo Clench, who has taken over the live-fire kitchen of what used to be called Humo. The experience is best enjoyed from the counter, he said, while watching the young chefs as they “press hunks of charcoal, glowing red through moody lighting, against cuts of pristine seafood”.
The food is clever, ambitious and executed with expertise but not too much pomp, and most importantly, it is “properly delicious”. Courses include a bao-bun made from Yukon Gold potatoes and served with Indian-spiced whipped butter and a tomato broth; slices of aged yellowtail served on a skewer with nashi pear; barbecued oyster in cucumber beurre blanc; a stew of cuttlefish and smoked eel; breast of duck whose confit leg turns up as glazed bonbons; and desserts of blackcurrant ice in a deep green puddle of blackcurrant oil and smoked tofu ice cream with chocolate sauce.
“I have long suspected that many chefs who serve multi-course tasting menus have never sat through them. They have no idea how relentless they can be. This one is not. We are fed but not overfed. The rhythm is perfect, the show divine.”
Jay Rayner - 2026-09-13
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