It had been at least six months since I last visited Purnell’s. This is unusual as I have dined/lunched there countless times since 2008. The reasons for my prolonged absence had been a less than perfect dinner I had held there in May 2023 to celebrate my birthday, the increasingly unchanging nature of the menu and the presence of a number of other fine restaurants which proved more alluring. The thrill of Purnell’s had faded, the wit of the dishes had shrunk away, the lure of specialness was lacking. In short, Purnell’s personality had become middle aged and unrefreshed. Head Chef Luke Butcher departed from his post at the end of December 2023 and recently two longterm Purnell’s kitchen staff (Sam Luck and Tom Blakemore) were appointed to be dual heads. Perhaps this was to be the start of a new era. I was interested to find out.
The meal began, comme toujours, with gifts from the kitchen, and included a new tarted up version of the once clever squid ink meringue ‘edible charcoal’ which mainly involved putting little spots of the delicious chorizo mayonnaise straight on to the meringue rather than the diner being presented with a pleasing small bowl of the mayonnaise in which to dip the charcoal.Not only had the amount of mayonnaise provided as a ‘gift’ been severely cut back but also the number of ‘charcoal’ blocks had been reduced to the bare minimum - that is - one per diner. Gone too were the rather comforting black potatoes. The minuscule amounts of chorizo mayonnaise resulted in the diner having very little opportunity to enjoy the pleasing flavour of it and, in parallel I suppose, reduced the amount that needed to be made to produce it and hence reduced the cost of ingredients to the kitchen.
While on the subject of reduced costs, the restaurant appeared to have fewer front of house staff and the theatre of presentation of dishes had been reduced. Perhaps this cost cutting is necessary as the restaurant was only half full on a Friday lunchtime when in the past it would have been a vibrant, buzzing place with not a table spare and waiters parading in and out of the kitchen on their way to and from serving the diners. I suppose many of the local office and business workers now “work from home” and on a taxing four day week so that while Purnell’s was in the right location for success in the 2010s, post-COVID that is no longer the case. Post-COVID Britain is a very different place from when Glynn Purnell, young and dynamic, first opened his restaurant in Cornwall Street.
So what was the food like? As a starter I chose Loch Duart salmon served with a hint of heat from wasabi, apt sweet and acidic pickled cucumber and the summer splash of fresh peas and pea purée. The dish looked attractive and was enjoyable though it did not set my pulse racing as dishes at Purnell’s once did.
My chosen main was supremely well cooked cod, with the air of the sous vide about it. This was served with excellent plump pickled mussels, Roscoff onion and pieces of green strawberries which played a role but not a large one. Again, a pretty dish which scored more points for its look than for its flavour, despite the necessary hits of acidity which helped it along. But, again, where was the thrill? My lunch companion thought I was being a little too downbeat but this is 2024 not 2007 nor 2014 and cuisine has evolved and Purnell’s is starting to feel just a little antediluvian.
Purnell’s has long been a place where good pastry can be experienced and I enjoyed my tart of crispy pastry filled with blueberries, lemon cream and delicious blueberry sorbet. I do like a restaurant where the pastry chef produces, er … pastry.
So, all fine dishes, attractively presented but not very different from those we may have found being served at Purnell’s ten to fifteen years ago. Is evolution needed there? I suppose if sufficient numbers of diners continue to eat there then the answer is “No” - but other cutting edge restaurants continue to appear in the city and will the Purnell’s brand be enough to compete with them?
Rating:- 🌞
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