Located in the recently refurbished Jumeirah Lowndes Hotel, Mimosa offers high quality food for a crowd of Knightsbridge folk.

The Venue
Mimosa is the restaurant at the Jumeirah Lowndes Hotel, the sister hotel of the well known Jumeirah Carlton Tower (and it’s equally well known restaurant, The Rib Room). The Jumeirah Lowndes is just around the corner from its big sister, in ritzy Knightsbridge practically around the corner from Harrods. Although this hotel is a bit less lavish and a bit smaller than the other, it’s no less luxurious.

The restaurant isn’t particularly large but it’s a decent size and there is lots of space between the tables, as well as an alfresco area for summer dining. The decor is a bit like the 1970s has updated for the 21st century, but without the cheesiness. Warm yellow seats with deeply curved backs sit at each table and alongside the far wall is a suede beige banquette. The artwork is neutral, and framed black and white photos of plants and flowers, and a curtain separates the restaurant from the area with the small, curved bar. Another retro touch is the bulbous lamps hanging from the ceiling, made out of see-through yellow plastic.

The Atmosphere
Understandably popular with hotel guests as well as Knightsbridge locals, this restaurant isn’t exactly on a main thoroughfare. The diners here are longtime favourites or foodies seeking it out after hearing about it, and despite its close location to Harrods it’s mercifully free of tourists. Weeknights the vibe is quiet in relaxed, although it should be busier on weekends. The staff are effortlessly polite but still very friendly and approachable; if you’re not used to eating at restaurants where they change the silverware for each course, you won’t feel uncomfortable here when they do. As further proof of their un-stuffiness, they offer 45 minute lunches and hold cocktail making classes.

The Food
The menus come dressed in a thick leather booklet (yellow, of course) and looks much larger than its actual three pages. There’s still plenty of choices though, including several vegetarian options which is a nice surprise. The food, like the warm decor, is Mediterranean-influenced.

Starters include a potato and rocket soup with Parmesan cheese (£6.50) off the vegetarian options. It sounds a bit bland on the menu but the taste is explosively savoury and the texture is perfect: substantial but not too creamy. There’s no skimping on the Parmesan, either, and the pieces of cheese give it a lovely smoky flavour. The scallops with creamed potato (£9.50) is a good choice as well. Although you’d expect the scallops and potatoes to be too soft, the scallop is cooked well so that the slightly crisp outside contrasts with the thick potato.

A main of giant tiger prawns (at £30, the most expensive dish in the restaurant) is exactly what it says on the menu: giant. There are only a few on the plate but they’re so big that you almost don’t need the accompanying strands of tagliatelli with spicy piri piri sauce. The chicken with sun-blushed tomatoes and pesto (£16) is the signature dish, although it’s not quite obvious why as some of the other dishes look more creative and interesting. The chicken is made well, with the tomatoes and pesto tucked inside the meat, but it’s a bit dry and you’ll find yourself dipping it into the accompanying sauce to give it some moistness. The chicken comes with a pan-fried polenta cake, which is a nice balance of thickness without being too heavy. Sides include a simple but fresh salad of mixed leaves, rings of raw onions and tomatoes coated in an oil and vinegar style dressing.

The restaurant’s signature dessert, the hot chocolate fondant (£6.50), fares a bit better than their signature main. The cake is soft and fluffy, the hot chocolate inside fudge-y and rich. The scoop of hazelnut ice cream tastes lovely, like an ice cream version of a Ferrero Rocher, and the citrus sauce gives it an uplifting kick. The orange cardamom tart (£6.50) is a burst of citrus flavours but it’s nicely balanced. The tart is almost sinfully creamy, and the biscuit base is moist and made well so that it’s not too crumbly. Like the sauce on the hot chocolate fondant, the orange compote and this dessert gives it a bit of zing – and the little pieces of orange are a nice touch, too.

Mimosa has also recently introduced a brunch menu, created by Stephen Wallis, winner of Masterchef 2007. Although some of the classics are available, most of the dishes have a chocolate-y twist, such as vanilla brioche French toast sprinkled with berries and drizzled with white chocolate, duck salad with figs and a dark chocolate mint vinaigrette dressing. The chocolate risotto is an ambitious undertaking, but instead of the rice pudding-like concoction you might be expecting, you get a true risotto that’s been perfectly cooked. The dark chocolate is mixed through with marscapone cheese, and although the texture is nice and creamy there’s a bitter aftertaste, which a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese snuffs out.

Other dishes include the Mimosa Benedict, the restaurant’s take on the traditional Eggs Benedict. Two thick slices of bread are piled high with poached eggs and creamy smoked salmon (as opposed to ham) and the hollandaise sauce is mixed through with the restaurant’s signature fruit, the blood orange. This is a hearty dish but the citrus hollandaise sauce cuts through all the heaviness, giving an uplifting kick of fresh flavours. Sweeter choices include a selection of crepes, the banana and rum choice is a mixture of in a sweet, pale yellow bananas with more than a hint of rum wrapped in a thin pancake, all covered in a sharp dark chocolate sauce. Kids are well catered for on the brunch menu as well, with choices including fondue-style fruit skewers, Smartie pancakes and chocolate Weetabix with honey.

The Drink
Mimosa has several specialty cocktails, not surprising considering that, depending on who you ask, Mimosa could be a plant, a boat or a cocktail made of Champagne and orange juice. Their specials include a Grand Mimosa Champagne cocktail, a Mimosa Peach Martini and a Bloody Mimosa. The wine list is well priced, with bottles from £21 to about £40. Most are Italian and French with a few other countries thrown in, and about half of the list is available by the glass. There are seasonal wine specials as well. The house red is an Italian 2004/2005, an R Castelli Romani Collezione Marhesini; the sharp and light taste would go well with both meat and fish.

As part of the brunch menu there are a few cocktail stations where you can make a Bloody Mary or a Monkey Passion (Champagne, pomegranate liquor and pomegranate juice) for £7 and £14, respectively. A sinfully sweet chocolate Martini is also on the menu, along with Champagnes (£58 - £80 a bottle), white wines starting at £30, red wines starting at £28 and rose wines starting at £26.

The Last Word
A thoroughly decent hotel restaurant that you’d be lucky to stumble across, whether you’re lost and looking for Harrods or just stepping out of the lift.

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