Background
Brooklands is the rooftop restaurant at The Peninsula London, which opened in October 2023 and received two Michelin stars within four months of operation.
The restaurant is led by renowned chef director Claude Bosi and chef de cuisine Francesco Dibenedetto, and is a fine dining venue which uses traditional French techniques alongside ingredients sourced across the British Isles.
The restaurant is named after the renowned Surrey-based racetrack, which is well known as the birthplace for British motorsport and aviation – and famously home to the supersonic Concorde.
The venue
Brooklands is located on the eighth floor of the hotel, though its entrance is not obvious when you enter the lobby. You have to take a right as soon as you enter and meander through the tables of the Lobby restaurant to reach the dedicated entrance and lift bank.
It’s then very obvious that you’re in the right place, with a vintage 1933 Napier Railton race car on display – the vehicle that set the all-time lap record at Brooklands in 1935. There are also original passenger seats behind glass and various black and white photos of the Brooklands racetrack, with the collection of memorabilia set to rotate over time.
Elevators to the eighth floor are outfitted with wicker to resemble hot air balloons, though I found the strange noise as you ascend off-putting and gimmicky.
The eighth floor, however, is impressive thanks to the Archer Humphryes-designed spaces – all guided by motor and aviation engineering. The design is more geared towards motorsports when you exit the lift, with eye-catching paintings of vintage vehicles and the racetrack along with emblems from car manufacturers.
Brooklands dining room quickly shifts the focus to aviation, with a silver colour palette and futuristic touches.
Guests dine beneath a scale aluminium replica of the Concorde, with highly pinchable miniature versions used to hold napkins in place (these were wisely removed from the table when our napkins were laid), and a deep blue constellation-themed carpet adds to the space-like design. Lighter hues emanate from the digital abstract artwork at the end of the room, which I’m told signifies a journey through the atmosphere.
Tables are dotted throughout the room and feature swivel chairs by French designer Pierre Paulin. This might seem like an odd choice for a Michelin-starred restaurant but the seats are more fixed in place than you might imagine, and you’ll rather appreciate the ability to spin once full of food.
The restaurant also has floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking a vast Mediterranean-style terrace, which will be popular in the spring and summer months.
Food and drink
Brooklands offers a three-course à la carte menu, or a tasting menu with either five or seven courses – with vegetarian menus on offer as well. The restaurant also offers a three-course Concorde Lunch.
The menu immediately highlights the kitchen’s local produce, with the first page featuring an illustrated map detailing the areas of Britain where the likes of snails, cheese and eel are sourced. Signature dishes are also signposted with a CB (Claude Bosi) label, encouraging diners to seek out the kitchen’s favourites.
We opted for the five-course tasting menu, though note that this tallies up to more courses once you’ve enjoyed the amuse bouche, palate cleansers and petit fours – no complaints here!
Our meal kicked off with a beautifully layered amuse-bouche fava bean tart with feta, mint and cured St Ewe yolk – I could have eaten a whole tartful.
The basket of nutty, darkly-crusted Coombeshead buckwheat bread is also addictive, particularly as it’s paired with two spreads – a deep yellow salted butter and a popcorn-looking virgin butter from the Isle of Wight, which features a high percentage of buttermilk.
Tableware is entirely white, allowing the team to add creativity into the presentation of each course – products are laid at various angles and perch off the plates at times to produce an artistic display and fascinating shadow play.
Standout dishes include the Great Fen Farm celeriac nosotto with crab and coconut, which reminded me of a silky laksa, as well as the meaty Devonshire monkfish with smoked eel and red pepper miso, and the Scottish cèpe, banana and crème fraîche dessert which inventively pairs funghi and fruit for a delicious denouement. We also enjoyed the choice of a juice shot rather than sorbet or ginger for a palate cleanser during the dinner.
Gioele Musco is an excellent head sommelier, selecting wines that pair perfectly with the courses. The meal started off with a glass of the Deutz Cuvée Peninsula Brut, and followed with Les Vaux Louis Vouvray Chenin Blanc and Gaumur Champigny Coup de Foudre 2018 – we noted down his choices as we’re keen to order these again in the future.
Service
Service is excellent and in keeping with the five-star status of The Peninsula. We were well looked after by Mario, with each dish explained in detail, and impressed by the wine selection throughout. Staff were attentive but not disruptive during the meal.
Verdict
Brooklands is a great fine dining spot which lives up to its starry location on Grosvenor Place, with the thread of motorsports and aviation running throughout the entire experience. The accolade of two Michelin stars within four months of operation is fittingly speedy for a restaurant inspired by the supersonic Concorde.
The departure gift ties up the theme, with your bespoke menu enclosed in a date-stamped airmail-inspired envelope alongside a paper Concorde plane and a delicious orange-infused chiffon cake in a beautiful magnetic box.
Hours
Tuesday-Saturday 12pm-1.30pm for lunch and from 6.30pm-9.30pm for dinner.
Price
Three-course à la carte menu costs £145; five-course tasting menu costs £175; seven-course tasting menu costs £195 per person.
An additional wine pairing ranges from £105 to £205 per person.
Contact
1 Grosvenor Place, London SW1X 7HJ; 020 3959 2888; peninsula.com
For more information on the hotel, see our review:
