REVIEW: William Curley, Belgravia (From Surrey Comet)

REVIEW: William Curley, Belgravia

3:44pm Monday 13th February 2012 in Leisure

If you are looking for a nice place to go for a well balanced three-course meal, I am sorry to say this review is not for you.

If, however you are looking to treat yourself to chocolate, coffee and cake, you have come to the right place.

William Curley is a genius in the world of chocolate and patisserie. He was voted “Britain’s Best Chocolatier” for five years running between 2007 and 2011.

Nestled away in Richmond he has a shop selling his finest chocolaty wares, but even better than that, in Belgravia, he has a boutique where you can sit in and sample his cakes and chocolates as well as a wide selection to take away.

I have visited William Curley a couple of times in the past and sampled the dessert bar menu, where you get five specially-prepared desserts created in front of you for £15 (weekends only).

This time I went more traditional and sampled the cakes and coffee.

I had a latte with an orange and chocolate sacher and my friend who was there for the first time couldn’t resist the beautiful tropical entremet.

My orange and chocolate sacher consisted of layers of sponge, chocolate mousse, orange and a gooey chocolate top.

You would think it would be too rich but the balance was perfect; the rich bitter chocolate contrasting wonderfully with the tangy sweet layer of orange. I have no idea how they made that orange layer but it was heavenly.

My friend, who took little persuading to come along, was rather giddy with her mango confection, the whole cake was incredibly light, the sponge airy and the creamy mango topping delicious.

I should also mention the coffee, which was perfectly made, smooth as you like and served at optimum drinking temperature.

The deal we had was anything from the patisserie range and a hot drink for £9.

This is not cheap for a slice of cake and a cup of coffee but it is quite possibly the finest cake and coffee you will find anywhere in London.

Go along and treat yourself, and try to avoid buying extras before you leave.

Mark Bixter

William Curley | 198 Ebury Street, Belgravia, London, SW1W 8UN | www.williamcurley.co.uk

Mark Bixter is a food writer who runs the blog http://michelinmicrowave.wordpress.com/