Game On! at the Cinnamon Club

After all the times I was told at school and university that I couldn’t eat in the library, it feels quite strange to have been sat in a restaurant whose walls are lined with books. I felt that I should be secreting the food into my mouth rather than sitting down to a meal in one of London’s most respected eateries.

This restaurant is very popular with MPs, and not only because it is a few minutes away from the Houses of Parliament. It is a place where English food is given an Indian transformation and its latest menu, Game On!, is sure to delight all members of the coalition.

For the Conservatives, there are many different types of game, allowing them a reminder of their vast estates and floating duckponds. For Labour, there is the multicultural twist of English meat being prepared with traditional Indian methods. And to keep the Liberal Democrats happy, it’s really not that spicy.

To start, my companion and I had the partridge breast with pickling spices and gooseberry chutney, matched with a glass of Givry Premier Cru Les Bois Chevaux. This was rather an unwieldy start with the chutney and the wine containing far too much spice, resulting in an unequal balance with the partridge. The edge was taken off by adding the buffer of the accompanying yoghurt and was much better received in this fashion.

The next course of stir fry of grouse in Kadhai spices and game soup was much more settled and the application of the Indian methods transformed the game into something very vivid and potent. It was also aided by the accompanying Saint Joseph Marsanne, which was able to match the grouse’s newfound vigour and give it extra resonance.

In order to ensure that we were able to cool off after such a piquant course, there then followed a lime and mint sorbet. This allowed my companion and I some degree of respite as well as being exquisite to the taste.

The second main course was saddle of oisin red deer with onion and fenugreek sauce. This was an excellent piece of meat that went very well with the subtle flavours of the sauce. The spicy nature of the accompanying Chateauneuf-du-pape gave the meat some edge but not too much to unsettle the balance of the dish.

There was to be no game in our dessert but the coriander, lime and corn cake with spiced ice cream was more than enough compensation. The mix of the spices along with the cooling influence of the lime provided a splendid end to the meal. At £55 per person, the Game On! menu is not cheap but well worth the outlay. And if I see this meal charged to my local MP’s expenses, I’ll write them a letter of approval, rather one of outrage.

The Cinnamon Club
30 Great Smith Street
Westminster
SW1P 3BU

Tel: 020 7222 2555