Aulis serves only 12 guests per night at a Simon Rogan restaurant in London.  The brand also has chef’s tables in Hong Kong, Phuket and Cartmel.  Opening in Nov 2017, it was awarded one Michelin star in 2024.  Chef Charlie Taylor has been running this kitchen for 4 years and was certainly talented but also quite personable.  The restaurant is open Tues through Sat for one dinner seating and offer an additional lunch service on Fri and Sat.   In a small 2 room setting the entry room was for pre-dinner drinks and snacks and the second room held the curved Italian slate chef’s counter where dinner is prepared in front of you, with much of the produce coming from Rogan’s organic farm in the Lake District.  Music was in the background and art was on the walls.  The pre-dinner room had a variety of seating options whereas the counter had comfortable chairs nicely spaced at the deep curving counter.  As the evening went on guests begin to talk to their neighbors as well as the chefs to make a convivial atmosphere – helped by the relaxed interaction between the several chefs.   It was a wonderful experience with fabulous food,  which I would heartily recommend you try.

Set-up

 

Food

They offered a list of specialy cocktails in addition to wines.  I chose the Three part Martini which  was their version of a classic gin martini.  It was nice.   The first snack was a Gooseberry tartlet with Dorset lobster, lovage, cherry belle radish, winter shoots and flowers from the farm.  It was intended to be one bite, which was tough but worth it.  The berries gave it a punch and it was stuffed with lobster meat.

 

Truffle pudding caramelized in birch was with Corra Linn cheese and Douglas Fir.  This was a take on bread and butter pudding made with truffle custard, birch syrup, aged cheese and pine vinegar.  They made the croissant like bread in house and it was lovely.  Birch syrup is not as sweet as maple and the end result was just the right balance of sweet and savory.

 

Large white pork and Devonshire eel doughnut was topped with cured pork fat and a blend of Petrosian caviar.   The smokey pork flavor was divine with the tender doughnut and the rich lardo topping.  Add some caviar and you’ve got a Yum x2.

 

Fuseau artichokes were buried under aromates with whipped ragstone, tarragon and stout.   The thin crust shell was filled with tender bits of Jerusalem artichokes and brown butter, tarragon, and onion ash.  It had great flavor and texture.

 

Our Farm Cinderella pumpkin and Kentish sea buckthorn leaf molds were presented with  Kombucha with pumpkin juices and celeriac leaf oil.  The molds had dots of sea buckthorn on top and had a subtle pumpkin essence in their thin crisp bites.  The drink was cool and not as flavorful but very refreshing.

 

We moved into the chef’s counter and started with an English seaweed custard that was with tendons, winter Chanterelles and roasted beef broth.  Some elderflower vinegar and beef fat added extra flavor components.  It was chawanamushi-like with an amazing depth of flavor and fabulous texture.  Another yummy dish.

 

Dorset Blue lobster tail was with fermented black garlic cloves and roasted shrimp sauce infused with rosehips.  The perfectly cooked lobster was grilled over the coals in front of us and was great with this rich, well flavored sauce.

 

Boltardy beetroots were smoked and salt baked with grilled Yarlington (bright, milky cheese with a cider washed rind), nasturtiums and vinegars.  The baked ones were so soft and the sauce had a smokey essence highlighted with cider vinegar.  The beets were delicious with the cheese sauce even though it was a mild flavor.  Some sour dough bread bits added a good texture to the dish.

 

Steamed west coast cod was with buttermilk, wild thyme and onions.  This was day boat cod from Cornwall that was cooked in browned butter with whey, thyme and red onions.  The buttermilk was in the sauce under the fabulous piece of fish.  It was really great.

 

Cartmel Valley fallow deer was with preserved walnuts and young variegated kale in elderflower.  the sauce was infused with fig leaf vinegar, tapioca and smoked bone marrow.  The loin cut was on the plate wrapped in rainbow chard with Peacock kale (a flowering kale) on top.  The venison sauce included tapioca that had been soaked n vinegar.  The belly meat was in a separate dish mixed with  green beans and topped with sourdough croutons.  Both were lovely.

 

Frozen Tunworth (British Camembert) cheese made by Stacey Hedges was topped with roasted spelt grains.  This cow’s milk cheese was mixed with borage, fermented honey and grains then the hand cut spelt grain sticks were arranged on top.  Both parts were a wow on their own and amazing when combined.

 

Dandelion root custard was combined with poached Conference pears in verbena, frozen sheep yoghurt and buckwheat.  The pears had been cooked in wine (Pinot gris) and the sheep’s yoghurt was like snow.  Great textures in this one from very smooth to quite crisp with yummy yet mild flavor.

 

Aulis woodruff mousse was on thin sliced Granny Smith apples and surrounded by juices infused with marigold.  It had a mild almond flavor but also hints of vanilla and cinnamon.  Very good and I loved the “Aulis” mold.

 

Last treats were a roasted juniper fudge tartlet with preserved Perilla (Asian leaves with mint/basil flavor) and Kendal Mint Cake ice cream (a peppermint confection from Cumbria, UK).  The tartlet was supposed to be a one-bite, but I tempted fate so you could see inside – it was really great.  The Kendal Mint was mixed with white stones, so be careful which one you pick to bite, but the stones were cold to keep it’s liquid center from melting out.  It was great too.  With the last bites the sommelier displayed a long curve of possible after dinner beverages which were fun to look at but after cocktails and wine, I’d had enough  A parting gift was a container of marigold salt to season your own cooking.  I failed to get a photo but it was a nice gesture.