Quo Vadis review

I have been a fan of chef Jeremy Lee for many years and will follow his smoked eel sandwich wherever it goes. I was delighted to find it still on the menu – it has happily become a Quo Vadis fixture – and knew that it had to be the sandwich for me. It is a thing of such beauty: the smoked eel is served between two slices of toasted sourdough bread spread with just the right amount of horseradish. On the side is a soft mound of perfectly pickled sweet onions that makes this a dish that perfectly illustrates the expression ‘more than a sum of its parts.’ It is sublime.

We both had the eel sandwich to start (I couldn’t be persuaded to share) and then ordered an extra salad of grilled squid, tomato, lemon and capers between the two of us which was a perfect light counterpoint to the rich smokiness of the eel and reminded us that it was, in fact, still summer. I followed this with the crab and mayonnaise with side orders of chips and a green salad – my idea of total heaven – while my partner enjoyed lamb sweetbreads, almonds, peas and mint. The crab felt very luxurious as I tucked into my bowl of picked white crab meat served with a rich, glossy mayonnaise the texture of which I can only dream about replicating at home (mine is always a bit limp and lacklustre, somehow). The sweetbreads were just as they should be: gently crisp on the outside and meltingly soft in the middle and they worked brilliantly with the fresh minted peas and chopped almonds – it was the sort of effortless combination that you can trust Jeremy Lee to come up with time and time again.

We didn’t ‘need’ a pudding but chose a lemon and almond cake to share so we had an excuse to order a glass of Sauternes to go with it – more golden, honeyed loveliness in a glass. The cake was all about the dense texture and the sharpness of the lemon and the rhubarb with which it was served – it was a perfect way to end the meal.

It is the service at Quo Vadis that bridges the gap between the formality of the dining room and the relaxed, pared-down style of the food – it is smart and professional but unstudied and friendly at the same time. Yes, there are endless folk pouring your wine or topping up your water glass or cleaning your linen tablecloth with a silver crumb scraper, but there is also welcome chat, excellent menu knowledge and plenty of charm. We felt extremely well looked after and very well fed. By the time we left, the forecast had improved to ‘very warm with regular sunny intervals' despite it having begun to drizzle in the Soho streets outside.