Hunter 486 Marble Arch
The Arch London, 50 Great Cumberland Place, Marble Arch, London W1H 7FD
0)207 724 0486/reservations@thearchlondon.com
I had never heard of The Arch hotel but then I’m a rather feckless character rather than the sleek business types or Hollywood stars who make up its clientele. Situated a stone’s throw from Marble Arch in a Georgian mansion it is both comfortable and elegantly modern in its design and has all the mod cons you might hope for. The in-house restaurant is called HUNter 486 which I guess is rather sexily named after the original Marylebone phone number. The manager told us that they were going for a Gatsby/1950s mood in the restaurant which shows an interesting historical conflation of decades that is not realised in the design. It is however quite chic and curtained-off bays offer ample possibilities for discreet liaisons.
In a city like London with such a thriving food scene it is hard for a new hotel restaurant to achieve any kind of visibility without bringing in a celebrity chef to create media interest.
So would HUNter 486 stand out from the crowd? Certainly the menu is of the ‘don’t scare the horses’ variety- a succession of European classics alongside a stone-baked oven pizza selection. There is also a two course (£19) and three course (£21) Express Lunch menu that is French based and reasonably priced.
Smoked salmon
We considered the menu options over a glass of dry prosecco. I started with a decently portioned plate of Smoked salmon (£10.50) that was classically presented with brown bread and butter and lemon in a muslin. The salmon was good quality with a gentle level of smoking and was perfectly matched to my glass of Chablis.
Green Asparagus
Green Asparagus (£9.50) was served hot with hollandaise sauce and was delicious. Served just warmer than room temperature the asparagus flavour was really sweet and barely needed the sauce.
Fillet of Beef Wellington
Fillet of Beef Wellington with madeira truffle sauce (£29.50) was a trickier proposition as is always a challenge to serve individual portions of beef rare which was how Fiona ordered it. It took the kitchen a couple of attempts to get it right but they dealt with the issue with good grace!
Grilled Troncon of Scottish plaice
Grilled Troncon of Scottish plaice with spiced lemon butter and a warm potato salad (£17.50). A Troncon is an unusual cut for plaice in this country and this came from a 2 kg fish. It was beautifully cooked, meaty but with that unmistakeable plaice flavour and made a refreshing alternative to turbot or halibut.
Creme Brûlée
For dessert I had the Creme Brûlée. It was creamy with good vanilla flavour and a crisp burnt top.
HUNter 486 provides an oasis of calm away from the hurly-burly of Oxford St. The cooking is precise, the ingredients well sourced and the atmosphere civilised. If you were in the area working, shopping or sightseeing it would be a good bet for lunch or dinner.
Disclosure: The Hedonist was a guest of HUNter 486
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