Azura Restaurant – Radisson Hotel, Canary Wharf, London

Last year, we’ve been to a restaurant in Canary Wharf, at the Radisson Hotel, called Azura. I’ve had many beautiful experiences with this hotel back in Bucharest, where they organize some delicious brunches around the pool, so I came here with great expectations. And they were beyond what I could’ve imagined, to my culinary satisfaction.

You know you had a great meal at a restaurant  when all the talking was revolving around the food you were being served. And this lunch had lots of “Awww” and “Wow”s.

The restaurant looks impeccable, minimalist, with natural light, right on a river bank. The cuisine is English with a modern twist. I was extremely delighted with my choices, along with my eight friends. I’ll be making a brief description of what some of us had that day, leaving the pictures to do all the talking.

As an entrée, I had seared scallops with  pancetta, leek purée and aromatic oil. Simple and perfect.

Damaris had ham and prunes terrine, pickled vegetables and basil oil. Looked more than appetizing…

Delia had baked pumpkin, anchovy, red pepper, chestnuts, pumpkin seeds salad with honey dressing. She said it was so tasty, I had a bite, it was amazing. Let’s not talk about the perfect plating…

My husband had an onion cream soup with cidre and Stilton croutons. He didn’t like cream soups before, but this one converted him in a heart beat.

The service was irreproachable, with three promptly waiters. After a walk on the terrace, where we took some pictures and admired the river, O2 Arena and the beautiful buildings across the bridge, we continued our lunch.

Damaris had chicken breast stuffed with leek and feta cheese, potato fondant and rosemary sauce. It looked great and the meat was so tender, I had to try it myself.

I had cod with butter, purée, lentils and chorizo spicy sauce. I’m not sure why, but every time we eat at a restaurant, I order fish in every possible way. Well, this cod must be the most delicious one I’ve ever tasted! I have lentils at home and have no idea what to do with them, but I must recreate this dish, it is too good to be kept a secret.

Most of the boys ordered beef macerated for 28 days with grilled tomatoes, chips and peppercorn sauce. I tasted a bit, and even if I don’t fancy stakes, especially medium rare as they had, it was so good. The boys were mega-uber happy about their choice.

Paul had pork chop with purée  veggies and apple sauté. Doesn’t it look yummy?

For dessert, I had warm apple pie with caramel sauce and ice cream, but I totally forgot to take a picture. It was delicious after all. Ducu had chocolate fondant, vanilla ice cream and black chocolate sauce.

The best thing on this lunch was the black bread ice cream. I never had this, initially I thought it was hazelnuts ice cream, anyway, it was delicious, so good and original.

In conclusion, I recommend you try this restaurant. It is a posh experience, as Londoners say, the food is great, A plus for plating, balanced price-quality rapport and an exceptional service. Beside, between us, foodies, I learned so many ways of plating;)