We’re going to Home tomorrow night for the first time and I’ll report back.
Well, we duly went and we rather enjoyed it. We had the 11-course version of the tasting menu (they offer tasting menus only - no ALC available) and the food was pretty good. There is some usage of tricksy techniques but less so than in many such places, and in no case was this approach redundant, as all of this stuff contributed positively to the respective dishes in which they were comprised. A couple of dishes were a little over-salted, even for my taste as one who has a high tolerance for salty food. I'd say the food was close to one-star Michelin standard, if not actually there. I know that Richard commented unfavourably on the wine list but it may have improved since his visit because it was at least acceptable on this occasion.
The staff were friendly, knowledgeable and helpful and the service was generally good. Moreover, despite the rigidity of the menus (the following statement appears on their website:
Please note that we are unable to cater for dislikes/preferences and can only cater for a limited number of allergies) they willingly accommodated requests by the other couple in our party to change dishes containing elements which might have caused them illness (oysters and wild mushrooms respectively), by simply substituting the corresponding dishes from the vegetarian menu.
This is however one of those restaurants that has an annoying, slightly bossy website, laying down various rules and instructions, which makes it sound as though the restaurant is doing you a favour by allowing you to go there.
Another annoying point (to say the least) was that the bill stated that it contained a
compulsory "cover charge" (not service charge) of 12.5% "as agreed", which implied that it must have been in the T&Cs at the time of booking, and thus a contractual term. I then noticed that the small paper menu provided to each diner (a nice touch - although rendered a little meaningless by the modish usage of three-word descriptions of dishes, simply listing their main ingredients) also contained reference to this. I've not come across a restaurant imposing a "cover charge" in the UK for many years and, of course, I'd not checked the full T&Cs when I booked (does anyone ever do so?). So we paid the bill (without adding any tip) and the next day I looked at the T&C's as published on the website. They contain the following:-
All bills are subject to a 12.5% service charge, itemised separately on the receipt. This is to ensure transparency rather than absorbing the cost into our prices, and we feel it encourages the recognition of service as an equal part of the dining experience as food or wine. Our service charge is not a tip.
OK, so it was really a service charge and not a cover charge, and it was compulsory. But to say that this is imposed "to ensure transparency" is disingenuous. The wording used in the T&Cs implies that 12.5% covers all the service-related costs of the restaurant, which can't be right as the waiting staff alone will cost more than that. If it's a compulsory charge, reflecting the restaurant's costs, it really ought to be built into "[their] prices". As it is, I can't see customers being prepared to add a tip on top of the complusory service charge, so the staff presumably miss out (unless they get some or all of the compulsory charge).
So, a decent enough restaurant was let down by some of the commercial aspects of their operation.
Would I go back? Probably not.
