Dinner at The Shard.
The Shard was on my list ever since I came to London.
Until now, I had only visited Sky Garden, which is public space garden on the 37th floor at 20 Fenchurch Street (also known as The Walkie-Talkie skyscraper because of its shape). The views across the city are breathtaking and it is highly recommended to book a free visit at London’s highest public garden.
But The Shard is another story… It has become a landmark and has dominated London’s skyline with its imposing figure!
The Shard
It’s the tallest building in the United Kingdom (309.6 meters) and Western Europe.
Architect Renzo Piano designed a vertical city, a skyscraper with multiple uses that is as energy efficient as possible. The exterior is made up of 11,000 glass panels and has a total area of 56,000 square meters. The 95 floors occupy 32 world-class offices, three award-winning restaurants, a five-star hotel, 10 luxurious apartments and The View from The Shard, a viewing gallery offering 360-degree views across the city on levels 68, 69 and 72.
Aqua Shard
As for us, we visited Aqua Shard, one of the three cosmopolitan restaurants on level 31st.
The reason? Anniversary! ♥
The dress code is smart casual, and I had just bought a dress (I bought it for Secret Cinema Casino Royale, but I loved it anyway). Always in style and it never fails. ♥
Once we arrived, we went through a quick security check that is a body and metal scan and then we took the lift for the 32nd floor. The lift speed is 6 meters per second and it is very smooth.
The entrance of the restaurant is a striking 3-storey high atrium with a staircase that leads to the 31st
Upon arrival, at 8:00pm (and after some jaw drops because the place is exquisite), we were given a warm welcome before they put us to a table for two. They wished us a happy anniversary and we were looked after maître d’.
The time was just perfect! We had the chance to see London’s skyline during day, sunset and night.
The dinner
The restaurant serves innovative contemporary British cuisine, and all the dishes we ordered had excellent taste and quality! The low lighting of the restaurant gave a more dominant character to the view and it also provided privacy among the customers. While we were dining we could see the amazing sky colour changes in the London skyline from day to night.
For starters, we ordered a Colchester rock oysters gratin (sauce Mousseline, parsley crumb, foraged sea herbs) and a Marinated yellowfin tuna (avocado cream, Bloody Mary jelly, compressed cucumber, vanilla dressing).
For the main, we ordered a Pan-roasted seabass (shellfish &saffron risotto, crab bisque, lemon, basil) and a Seared halibut (blackened leeks, egg yolk sabayon, brown shrimp, caper& soft herb dressing).
For the dessert, we ordered a Chocolate sphere (dark chocolate sphere, chocolate mousse, thyme Pana cotta, Griottine cherries, cherry sorbet).
Just before our dessert, they asked us if we want to move to a table that is close to the window. We also had a surprise dessert from the restaurant saying Happy Anniversary. ♥
The colour of the sky was dark blue by that time, while London was illuminated from the city lights. The world is very small but it couldn’t be more perfect!
Before we leave, we saw the English actress Gwendoline Christie entering. She potrayed Brienne of Tarth in Game of Thrones.
Could it end better?
Until next time! ♥
