the dessert restaurant at Hotel Café Royal is the chef’s first permanent location outside spain
London’s Regent Street is about to get sweeter as Chef Albert Adrià’s new castle of confectionery graces Hotel Café Royal. The playfully-titled ‘Cakes & Bubbles’ will offer a perfect synergy of culinary tradition and modernity to the mighty English capital, with all the whimsy and playfulness that has come to define Adrià’s work. Expectations are high, and they will be met – after all, Adrià is The World’s Best Pastry Chef (as voted by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants). His first permanent establishment outside of Spain will include many of the desserts developed during his time at the legendary three-Michelin-star elBulli. There, while working with his brother Ferran, he discovered he was happiest in the pastry kitchen.
The menu at Cakes and Bubbles will include ambrosial delights such as his classic Spanish cheesecake and renowned ‘Tickets’ cheesecake, a delicate and exquisite dessert with notes of hazelnuts complete with a non-traditional rind of white chocolate. It will also feature classics such as egg flan with dark caramel, homemade doughnuts and decadent fruit cakes that include firm favourites like pineapple with palm honey and strawberries with fresh orange jus. Those with a sweet tooth will find their new Nirvana, and those that don’t will still find themselves sorely tempted.
If you are wondering about the ‘Bubbles’ in the name, well, that’s because there will be a wide selection of champagnes and sparkling wines by the glass and by the bottle available for some creative pairing with your chosen decadent treats.
“I believe London is the capital of the world, and I’m looking forward to this new challenge,” says Adrià. “(Cakes & Bubbles) is a project that excites me as a pastry chef – I’ve never opened anything specifically related to the sweet world. Our approach and menu will be a cross between the classical and contemporary. I am looking forward to bringing this concept to Hotel Café Royal, London’s only modern grand hotel and the place I feel I belong whilst in the city.”
And with that said, it is time for dessert.
