Ducksoup part two - review

I DON'T often review restaurants twice.

It seems unfair on the competition but a return visit (twice) this week to Duck Soup and I am bowled over by its progress. I took a pal who lives in Paris who rated it two notches over one of our favourite places there.

Trust in the Duck - a good idea

Before you reach for the phones, just check out my earlier official review six months ago which gives you the context. It is more anti-restaurant than restaurant.

Here's a picture gallery of what we ate. Feast your eyes.

Ducksoup - the peas. Braised lardo with fresh peas

Ducksoup - the fritters. Deep fried courgette flowers with almond aioli

Ducksoup - the brains. Pan fried veal brains with gribiche

Ducksoup - the lamb. Roast lamb with apricot and curd

Ducksoup - the lamb x2

Ducksoup- the potatoes. Broad beans and Jersey royals with rosemary oil

Ducksoup - the rice pudding. Rice pudding with mango

Ducksoup - coffee

Everything - except perhaps the Jersey Royals – was exemplary.

The wines too are very good – 'trust in the Duck' means they pick for you. A good idea. Trust in the duck.

Even the coffee is reconstructed back to the basics – no espresso machine, filter in a jug.

Last time my heart said I wanted to give it 17 but being churlish and not wanting to raise expectations (pace England FC) I gave it a modest 12. This was a 17.

In the brilliant HHhH by Laurent Binet translator Sam Taylor uses a word I had not come across before – hypotyposis, meaning in his context overdoing things to the point that they become sterile, which is pretty much my feeling about 90 per cent of restaurants, even 100 per cent outside of the M25. Duck Soup does not overdo things which is one of those guiding virtues for example of good Italian cooking. It does not need to. It is an original article.