Full disclosure: I am not what you’d call posh. It is only by practice and commitment that I can drag myself into some seriously posh places that come with the territory in this job and not make a total tit of myself with every twist and turn. I did a sociology degree: I know about Bourdieu’s notions of Habitus, and it’s totally true. It’s been a hard struggle to get to the point where I can start enjoying these things now, through a lot of practice eating in posh places. I know - poor me!
At this point, I treat going to really posh places with what could be deemed a mischievous sense of glee. There’s much fun to be had. With that, I booked a table for two at a place that is so posh, The Queen goes there. So posh, that Kate Middleton had her wedding thing, or whatever, there.
I took a solidly middle class friend, albeit one with class-consciousness, purple hair and a septum piercing, to enjoy this feast. I have long been admiring chef Shay Cooper’s recipes on the site, and was curious about the melding of traditional, well-loved (by the Queen Mother) dishes with some of his more experimental touches.
Let’s start with the Edwardian dining room - it is quite unlike anywhere I have been before - a kind of creamy, hazy, sparkly place, with glittering lilac chandeliers. Somehow everything about this place is ‘just so’ - the perfect temperature, the perfect muffled hum of conversation, and yes - the perfect staff, who were utterly charming in every way.