(Relaxnews) – A French restaurant that holds the bragging rights to being the longest-running restaurant to hold three Michelin stars in Britain has been voted the best London-area restaurant by Zagat readers.
The Waterside Inn, helmed by second generation chef Alain Roux in Bray, unseated Notting Hill eatery The Ledbury in the 2013 London Survey Results, a restaurant which for the last two years held a stranglehold in the category of top food.
For 40 years, the Waterside Inn has been a popular fine dining destination for its picturesque location along the River Thames and serves haute, classic, French cuisine.
Zagat members used words like “ magical” and “romantic” to describe the waterfront restaurant, as well as “breathtaking in every way, including the price.”
While menus change with the seasons, an eight-course “menu exceptionnel” clocks in at £153 (€191) for a meal that starts with a lobster salad and is highlighted by a filet of turbot, roasted venison, duck and ends with a Mirabelle soufflé.
The Ledbury, meanwhile, slipped six spots to land the seventh position in the top food category.
Another noteworthy restaurant on the London Zagat survey is Barrafina which leap-frogged over its competition from the 48th spot last year to the fourth spot. According to Zagat readers, the Spanish tapas restaurant offers “sublime,” “flavor-packed” dishes that are worth the mile-long queues.
On offer is authentic tapas fare and small plates like marinated olives, ham croquetas, tortillas and chorizo Iberico.
Meanwhile, readers of British, crowd-sourced restaurant guide Harden’s named Dinner by Heston Blumenthal the best meal of the year, while The Ledbury was voted the top-rated fine dining restaurant overall.
For this year’s Zagat survey, nearly 2,000 restaurants were rated and reviewed by 9,583 surveyors.