Our friend S had commented that he thought the restaurant at the top of the Gherkin was pretty good, better value for money than the Oxo Tower Brasserie. So when it came to finding somewhere to go for 6 of us for my birthday, I thought it worth a try. The restaurant is called Helix and is run by Searcey's. The nearest I could get a table was a few days before the actual day, and it then transpired the others couldn't make that date, so I changed it to just the two of us.
At the ground floor reception we have to go through an airport style security check, then take a lift to the 34th floor. There we are relieved of our coats, and take a second lift to the 39th floor. There is a bar on the floor above with a 360 degree view apparently, but we go straight to our table, a nice one by the window. Unfortunately the weather isn't very good, so the view is a bit limited - and the window isn't very clean either, which doesn't help. There are also quite a few tall buildings nearby. Nonetheless, we can see the top of Monument, some of the river and views down to the towers at Nine Elms, and in another direction the Barbican and St Pancras station.
Most of the tables by the window are for two people - there is one for 5. If there had been 6 of us we may have had to sit further inside with less of a view. When we arrive only two of the other tables are occupied, but there is something about the music playing (upbeat 80's) and the hard surfaces that makes hearing difficult. But surprisingly as it fills up that seems to improve. It does get very nearly completely full, with all the window tables and most of the second row taken. Many of these are people having afternoon tea and champagne.
The friendly waiter takes our order for wine - the best I could find was a SA Chenin Blanc (Kleine Zalze) at £46! He then brings some bread - two rolls, with butter on a slate. The set menu options are very limited - just 4 dishes a course. So avoiding the heritage beetroot and pumpkin soup, we choose chicken liver parfait (me) and smoked salmon (B). The parfait is unremarkable, coming with "soldiers" of brioche, but B is more impressed with her salmon, which comes with a good sharp horseradish cream.
There's "heritage" on the main course options too - cauliflower with gnocchi. Instead I have the beef and oyster sauce, with some chips (triple cooked, obvs). The sauce comes in a smart copper jug, with actual pieces of oyster. There's a nice onion compote too. But the beef itself is seriously unimpressive. It's more like pulled beef or even a tin of braised beef. B has the Goosnargh chicken which comes with lentils and kale. The chicken is tasty and moist, with some good skin. It is however just a simple roast chicken, nothing special.
So far, so disappointing. But things brighten up with the desserts. My chocolate and malt tart is lovely bitter chocolate on a crisp base, well supported by candied orange. B eventually chooses the Black Forest pavlova, when she realises it isn't the gateau. This with its kirsch cream and cherries is also a success.
The set menu is £54 a head (the sparkling afternoon tea is £56), so with a second bottle of wine, the chips and standard 12.5% that brings the bill to a whopping £230. Staff have been friendly and fairly attentive (though this dropped off a bit as the place filled up - there seemed to be more supervisors than servers). But overall not value for money I felt, despite the view, and I was glad in the end that it hadn't been the 6 of us.
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