Christopher's

Above the bar, the first-floor restaurant, reached via a sweeping stone staircase, is a large room with high ceilings, a fireplace, mirrors and some banquette seating. It opened its doors in 1991 and has been trading in America's cuisine ever since, to some acclaim, judging by the crowds. Lobster and steaks (some imported from the USA), the latter cooked exactly to the customer's request and served with chips and perhaps peppercorn sauce, form a sizeable chunk of the menu, and elsewhere there may be baked halibut with parsley dressing, roast peppers and fennel, or slow-cooked belly pork with Boston baked beans, feta and celeriac slaw. The Stars and Stripes is represented by Caesar salad among starters, the range broadened by the likes of carpaccio, and goats' cheese soufflé, while bringing up the rear are New York-style cheesecake, and pecan maple tart with vanilla ice cream.