The problem with London, as we soon discovered, was that there were too many places we wanted to eat and not enough time or money to make the smallest of dents in our hungry-hungry-hippo wish list. After a lot of back and forth, Jason and I decided that paying a visit to Jamie Oliver's flagship establishment was high on our list of must-eats. Aside from the fact that Mr. Oliver is a pretty damn fine chef in his own right, what he has created with Fifteen is downright amazing and we wanted to support it in our own small way.
A little background for those of you who don't know: Jamie Oliver created Fifteen London in 2002 with the goal of serving high quality Italian food while sponsoring an apprentice program for unemployed and under-qualified young adults between the ages of 18-24. Each year, the restaurant recruits fifteen young people from the local area and puts them through a rigorous 12-month apprentice program that trains them to become qualified chefs. Since 2002, more than 200 young people have graduated from this program and have gone on to run their own restaurants or work in highly acclaimed kitchens around the world; approximately 90% of program graduates remain in the industry. And if that's not cool enough, profits from this restaurant, as well as the two others that Jamie Oliver has opened, are reinvested in the training program.
It is an amazing and generous thing that Jamie Oliver has done ... to give young people a reason to believe in themselves and help them discover a means of success that they might not have otherwise had. And it's refreshing to see someone who has accomplished so much give back to the community in ways that make a real difference. The poor man tried to make a difference in the United States by attempting to educate school districts and children about the "food" they were eating on a daily basis. Turns out school administrators don't care about the meals that get served to students and students don't care if the only chicken in a nugget happens to be pulverized bones ... the response was pretty much the same: don't tell us how to eat, you limey know-it-all!
Ahem.
Jay and I arrived earlier than expected for our reservation but the staff was great, allowing us entry and providing a tempting bar menu with which to quench our thirst even though they didn't officially open until 6PM. There are actually two dining options at Fifteen, the Trattoria which features a more casual, relaxed atmosphere with rustic-style Italian food, and the Restaurant which is located on the second level and offers contemporary Italian cuisine. We were booked for the Restaurant, and it turned out to be fabulous!
Fifteen
Where are the drinks???
Quite possibly the cutest couple known to man
Interior - upper level Trattoria
Dining Room - Trattoria
There were a number of interesting cocktails to choose from, so it took some time for us to make up our minds; the drinks were terrific and really well made. Jay started off with a Dirty Spicy Martini which included a vodka we'd never heard of mixed with homemade chili and lemon brine. He said this drink was off the charts and was happy to finally order and receive a spicy drink that really had some heat to it. I chose Rum Punch with Apple and it was so so good! It was made with spiced blanco rum, overproof apple, lime juice, and homemade almond syrup. If they served this kind of rum punch on Disney Cruise Line I would have fallen overboard years ago!
Dirty Spiced Martini & Rum Punch
A second round of drinks had Jay ordering the Fifteen Bloody Mary which he said had enough heat to keep our hotel room warm for an entire evening. The rum punch was so damn good that I had to order another. Luckily for me, Stephanie ordered the other drink I had my eye on - The Dark and Stormy - and was kind enough to let me take a sip. This was also a tasty winner, made with dark rum, lime juice, pressed ginger, and raisin bitters. Ross went with Fifteen's version of a margarita which was really interesting - it included nardini acqua di cedro, tequila, lime juice, and a fresh chili. Wondering what that first ingredient is? It's a grappa-based liqueur made from the peel of the cedra lemon and is reportedly sweet, tart, and dry.
Fifteen Bloody Mary and more Rum Punch
Dark & Stormy and a Margarita
Once we were seated at our table, the four of us decided to split a couple of appetizers and chose Beef Carpaccio (Scottish Beef) with wild rocket, beetroots, and parmesan; and Pig Cheeks with cracked black pepper, wild rocket, and crostini. The carpaccio was some of the best I've ever had and I loved the meat salad presentation! As for the pig cheeks, they were nothing like I thought they would be. The dish looked like a miniature pulled pork sandwich instead of the succulent slices of cheeky pork that we expected. It was good, but nowhere near as good as we had hoped.
Carpaccio
Pig Cheeks
And now I must admit to an epic failure ... we didn't take any pictures of the menu that night because Jay and I assumed all the necessary information would be available on Fifteen's website once we got home. But that was not the case; so, while I have pictures to share of the rest of the meal, I don't have the descriptions of each dish and can offer precious little other than this: Fifteen is good eats!
Risotto - half order
Cappellacci
Lamb
Venison
Cheese Board
Tiramisu
Panna Cotta
Happy bellies; happy diners!
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