It's possible to walk by its Conduit-entrance lost for twenty-minutes, at least that's what we did before inquiry with the Westbury Hotel valet who patiently pointed us in the right direction. By day a tearoom known as The Parlour entertains a cutesy fashion-set and dapper businessmen in a French-inspired drawing room with mismatched sofas and seating areas decorated like a well worn home (albeit a posh one). Adjacent to the café is the Gallery Restaurant, serving-up delectable lunches in a comfortably entertaining environment. The brainchild of superchef Mourad Mazouz of Momo, the Gallery is a large informal space on the ground floor open to the public throughout week as a video gallery (changing every six weeks). The Gallery is transformed for dinner, although video projections remain. Michelin-rated Library Restaurant is only open for prix fix dinner. Open throughout the week, the restaurant attracts a style-savvy crowd of fashion plates and their million-dollar boyfriends. The East Bar and Glade features a lively bar crowd with light-bites, upscale mingling and dressed-up diners moving from the various dining rooms.
The Food
If you eat anywhere at Sketch, you’ll want to make a reservation at least a week in advance. The menus feature French-inspired dishes such as Sea Bream pan-fried with bean sprout, spring onions, green apple and salsa, or lamb in spice crust with aubergine, prunes with hazelnut and yogurt. Organic vegetables are on the upswing in the UK so go with something fresh, the soup trolley offers several intriguing options, a small pasta section offers gnocchi, fusilli and spelt risotto. The emphasis is on natural produce, with seasonal garnishes. And the scene is alive and vibrant, with people drifting in from the bar, enjoying a meal, and continuing their evening in the Gallery which doesn’t close until a ripe-2am.
Last Word
Did we forget to mention the toilets? Perhaps the best part of the restaurant, which explains the line, these white cocoon-like pee vestibules will make you want to linger a bit before leaving the loo.
