We visited Evelyn’s Table in 2024 and it now has a new cooking team.  Named for a character in Chinatown, the 12 seat counter tasting menu has had a one Michelin star rating since 2022.  In August of 2024 Seamus Sam took control of the kitchen.  Three chefs prepare your dinner in front of you and this visit they were more interactive than last one, although Sam was not there and one chef seemed to be in training.   The building has a bar upstairs where they invite you to have drinks before or after dinner.   For the tasting they offer wine pairings on two different levels but also have a by the bottle list.  We started with a Negroni cocktail and then enjoyed our own bottle own wine.  They do 2 seatings each night so they ask guests to arrive promptly.   The menu had one truffle supplement option.   The marble counter was set with large cloth napkins and music was in the background.  The stools are fairly close and the noise of the vent hood behind the kitchen counter was slightly bothersome.  It was a better experience than I had last time but the food was not compelling.

Set-up

 

Food

Several amuse bouche started the tasting.  A raw oyster in green gazpacho.  It was light and well balanced.

 

A langoustine consommé had Thai flavors, coriander oil and toasted chilies.  This had a good depth of flavor

 

A chawanamushi custard was topped with chives, smoked eel, croutons and bone marrow broth.  The custard portion nicely moderated the rich eel and the croutons added texture to the otherwise soft dish.  A good snack.

 

Cornish Red mullet was plated with watermelon radish, rhubarb, blood orange Nahm Jim (Thai dipping sauce).  The thin sliced fish was sandwiched between rhubarb and radish slices.  It was somewhat spiced but mostly mild.

 

A bread course was slices of sourdough, cheese twills, and buckwheat crackers (looked like leaves).  On the side were plain butter,  cheese and onion spread with honey and truffle and cashew nuts, barley and cheese relish.  The bread was good as were the twills but the buckwheat leaves were dull.  The spreads were good but plain butter is best.

 

Hand-dived Orkney scallop was plated with salsify, Bergamot kosho, and wild garlic.

 

Barbecued trout was sitting on a squid and fennel salad with North Indian spice on the crispy skin and winter tomato sauce underneath.  The trout was smoked then finished on the grill.  On the plate a potato was topped with crab salad and the sauce had a curry flavor.  It was good with the fish which was also fine on its own.  The sauce overpowered the mild crab stack.

 

Chinese Water Deer came with red cabbage kimchi, beetroot, pear and shiso.  A cabbage leaf was rolled around ground meat and the radicchio was on top of some belly meat.  The sauce was venison jus with smoked bone marrow.   The venison was a bit livery yet still nicely rare and good with the sauce.  The various other things on the plate took a lot of prep time but were too numerous to take note of any one – something was pickled, another puréed, ect.  The plate had some good bites but simplicity would have made it more memorable.

 

A pre-dessert was a custard made with duck eggs and topped with rhubarb and ginger jelly.  It was good but the straw filled bowl it came in was irritating cause it kept falling in your custard.

 

Todoli citrus, wild rose, and vanilla were garnished with Buddha’s hand for dessert.  Spongecake was topped with poached grapefruit and mandarin along with some gelatin cubes.  Then add vanilla, olive oil, wild rose granita, and yuzu sorbet before freshly grating Buddha’s Hand on it.  It was a lot of flavors, a sweet and tart bowl of various textures.

 

Last treats were a chocolate tart gilled with salted caramel and a black apple layered with something and dusted with granulated sugar.  They brought a moist cloth to clean up after these.