L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon

Tokyo, Paris, New York and Hong Kong - all places where you can break bread at Joel Robuchon's table. A star amongst stars in the French culinary firmament, there are other equally glamorous spots around the world where he has taken his style of modern French cooking, presented in the 'atelier' (or workshop) manner allowing the diner to get close to the action. Here in London, head to the heart of the West End. Up on the top floor is a bar (Le Bar) which is fabulously, decadently done out in sumptuous red, gold and black. On the first floor is La Cuisine with its black and white checkerboard theme, and on the ground floor L'Atelier itself, where diners can sit at high stools at a long sushi-style counter to watch the chefs at work in an open kitchen, turning out small-but-perfectly-formed tapas-sized hits of unerringly modern French food. It's the same menu wherever you sit, and there are larger portions available for die-hard traditionalists. The super-cool space has a tangible Japanese influence and is decidedly, self-consciously glamorous. Robuchon's style has its roots deep in French classical techniques, but here the culinary cultures of Spain and Japan play their part too, everything based on magnificent raw materials. Pig's trotter on parmesan toast is a gloriously luscious and simple example of the style, or how about razor clams stuffed with shallot butter and flat leaf parsley? Tartar of yellow tail with fines herbes comes with a fennel mousse, langoustines in a crisp fritter with basil pistou. Finish with a selection of traditional tarts, or perhaps a warm yuzu soufflé with a vanilla-infused raspberry sorbet.