La Chapelle

Beautiful Food and Ambiance, One Michelin Star French Food in the Heart of London. Life Changing Seared Foie Gras.

Some of the best food I have had in London — and stunning atmosphere. We got a great deal with the £39 a la carte menu, which included a glass of brut. Would definitely go back for a special occasion.

Greatest dining experience of my life? No, but as an overall awesome night out this one would be hard to beat. Six of us got the £29 5 course special menu. Service was excellent, if a little haphazard at times (one of our several servers was a trainee who was a little too keen to take unfinished items away, and when I tried to get the attention of someone it took a while, but the place was very crowded by then). But the staff were all very professional, very friendly and efficient without being in the slightest pompous, even though the place exudes class, and in an absolutely beautiful setting.
The 5 courses were overall excellent, although it would not be too hard to find minor fault with a couple of them (an extra piece of toast wouldn’t have hurt on the first course, the delicious crab pasta could have been a little bigger, the chicken main was a little underwhelming compared to the other courses, and surprisingly a little under-​seasoned, but a pinch of salt fixed that). The cheapest wine on the list, the tempranillo at £19, was excellent.
At full prices and a la carte it would be an expensive but no doubt excellent experience. At £29 for the tasting menu it was a steal.

To sum it up, it was a very decent meal, the bill came to only £35 per person which is very cheap considering it is a 3 course dinner in the City. you would pay similar fees for an average high street restaurant. The quality was nowhere near as good as my last visit but that is to be expected from a deal. It is very rare to find a restaurant’s set lunch/​deal qualities can match its full price dinner menu, especially at fine dining level. But putting that aside, it was still a very pleasant evening and the staff were very professional so you don’t need to worry about being treated like a second class citizen.

This is a fantastic restaurant– the décor is wonderful, the food is excellent, and the wine list is divine. It’s definitely quite family oriented on weekends– few couples were having a romantic meal compared to all the families with young children running around.
My husband and I went to the jazz lunch they have on Sundays, and it was definitely one of the more pleasant Sunday lunches I’ve ever had. I had the chargrilled mackerel, kohlrabi, pomegranate & crème fraiche for a starter and it was perhaps the best mackerel I’ve ever had. My husband also loved his chicken liver & foie gras appetiser. We also had an excellent bottle of 2011 Croatian wine for a very affordable price (35 pounds-​ish) that complemented the meal excellently.
I can’t say that the mains were as good as the appetisers– my husband had the vegetarian risotto and thought it was a bit too creamy and cheesy, and I thought my beef roast was somewhat unremarkable and overly heavy. I would definitely come back, but would almost certainly go back for the fish or game dishes instead; those seemed much more artisanal.
The service was also a bit of a problem– we were not allowed to pour our own wine (unlike the people who had ordered carafes) and the waiters were not attentive enough to our empty glasses. Perhaps the only real downside to this is that they charge 20% of optional service, but when they bring you the bill, they do not give you an option to change how much service you’d like to pay, making you feel quite awkward. Service should really always be respective to the performance of the wait staff.

Fantastic restaurant that is a top favourite with me and my family for upscale dining.
If you fancy a real treat, go for the tasting menu it’s superb. The set lunch however, offers incredible value for money.
Fabulous setting that adeptly strikes the balance of ambience between after dinner lounge and fine dining, it’s a Michelin starred restaurant not a lounge of course but it never feels too stuffy here, and the service is always impeccable.
Splendid wine list too!

Exquisite dining experience. Refined but not snobby. Very friendly service! Delicious food and inventive menu. Went for Sunday afternoon jazz and the atmosphere matched the quality of the food. Great ambiance and a perfect choice for my first Michelin meal!

I was lucky enough to win a three-​course meal for two at La Chappelle via competition. La Chapelle is the third restaurant opened by the Galvin brothers Chris and Jeff and is situated inside a beautiful converted Victorian school chapel with stunning high ceilings and wonderfully twinkly lights it was a breathtaking venue and definitely somewhere to impress.
I was quite early for our 6:30pm reservation but they were quite happy for me to prop up the bar. I showed off my complete lack of knowledge by asking if they had a white zinfandel rosé on the wine list but the bartender was more than helpful when I asked for the sweetest rosé they had available and the one he provided me to taste (sorry I didn’t think to get the name!) was delicious if a bit expensive — £11.50 is not a price I would usually pay for a glass but as drinks were the only thing I was paying for that evening it didn’t seem so bad. I was also provided with a small range of bar nibbles to keep me going until my friend arrived.
Once seated we were given our glasses of champagne. It was a beautifully light bubbly champagne and exclusive to the Galvin brand of restaurants. For starter I had the Charentais melon & Bayonne ham with Castelanotti olive oil which was absolutely delightful. The melon was just the right ripeness and went beautifully with the ham. It was also a fairly substantial portion for a starter but I was more than capable of finishing at all as it was truly delicious.
I was less enamoured with the main of roast supreme of corn-​fed chicken, parmesan gnocchi, spring vegetables & mushroom consommé that I chose finding the chicken to be quite a rubbery texture and the consommé extremely salty. I didn’t even come close to finishing this but after the starter I didn’t need to to feel satisfied. The gnocchi was my favorite part of the meal.
The highlight however was the pudding a buttermilk pannacotta with poached English strawberries & basil. It was creamy and smooth just like a good pannacotta should be with the strawberries just the perfect ripeness to boot. Despite the fact that I was struggling to finish it I made sure that I savoured each and every bite!
We decided against teas and coffees instead choosing to finish off our champagne and wine while we chatted some more but there was still more to come and we were presented with the cutest little dish of petit fours; almond biscotti, pistachio macarons and dark chocolate truffles. Now I’ve never had anything sweet that tastes of pistachio before as I find it an extremely odd combination and so wasn’t keen on the macaron but the biscotti and the truffles were to die for! As if that wasn’t enough on our way out we were also presented with a small chocolate box with more complimentary truffles!
It’s truly somewhere you go for the experience of exceptionally fine dining.

What a location! And what spectacular service! I thoroughly enjoyed coming here to celebrate my boyfriend’s birthday and would love to go back soon.
I chose the 7-​course tasting menu, and they threw in a free signed cookbook for good measure.
While I can’t remember half the meals they served, what I do remember is being impressed by every single one and feeling full for the next few days following our time at La Chapelle!
We managed to get a table on the mezzanine, overlooking the other diners which was nice.
All in all, a perfect meal :)

Well, where to start with this fancy Michelin star restaurant. Firstly, it is absolutely beautiful (being an ex church I thought it might be a bit strange, but I was wrong). The food and service was of the highest quality — which was to be expected. The starter was presented beautifully and tasted great. The main (I had chicken) was delicious — everything melted in my mouth, releasing an explosion of flavour simultaneously (especially the truffle in the gnocchi). I wasn’t too keen on the dessert unfortunately — caramelised banana with chocolate mousse. I thought the banana would be warm (or even completely caramelised) but it was literally a big chunk of banana and given a touch of colour by means of using a blowtorch. The chocolate mousse was a tad sour (like a sorbet almost) so I didn’t care for that. But I must say, the dessert was presented beautifully. On the whole, I would go back to this spectacular restaurant as I’m keen to sample something else from their wide range on their menu. Plus they have an extensive wine list.

Delicious food, pleasant atmosphere, attentive service.
If you fancy a truly tasty dinner in a special intimate atmosphere of a chapel in central London — La Chapelle is the place.
Try to book a table on the top level. Great service: friendly, quick, attentive but not over the top. Not cheap, but definitely worth for a special treat!

Came to La Chapelle for a weekend lunch. It’s located near the city in the Liverpool Street area. Really great spot — it’s a converted girls school. Asked more about the history there and the waiter gave me a print out of the history of the location.
We had the weekend special — pre fix lunch that came with champagne. Pretty good deal — check out the photos. Good portion sizes, nicely seasoned, the chicken was a tad salty though.
Top tip from me– their tea is one of the best deals! You get proper tea leaves and they bring some nice sweets as well — 2 marshmallows and 2 macaroons!
Service was great, everyone was really nice and in a really great location with great ambiance.

A high-​end restaurant by Galvin brothers and has one Michelin Star. I took my brother there for his birthday lunch.
The restaurant is at the edge of Spitalfields Market and is inside of an old chapel and hence the name La Chapelle. There are several giant wooden chandeliers hanging from the soaring ceiling, bringing so much character to the whole place. The services were great, as usually the case in restaurants like this.
They offer a very good deal of 3-​course lunch for 29 pounds. I started with beetroot risotto. It had the lovely pinkish red color of beetroot and tasted delicious. My main was pork belly, which I didn’t love. The meat was on the dry side and the skin was very hard to chew on. My last course, apple tarte tatin, however, made it all worth it. I think the apple tarte tatin here is easily the best in the city.
I want to come back for dinner and try some other dishes and of course for the apple tarte tartin at the end.

Exceeded my expectations in terms of the food and the service. My friend and I wanted to go to a swanky spot for lunch and we saw the deal on booking table. It was a great deal. With these deals, I had the expectations of small portions and with the looks of this place, I thought the food would be small in portion and artsy looking that overshadowed taste. But actually, it was a swanky spot, gorgeous, super friendly staff, delicious food, and perfect portions. It was worth the deal and more!
Went on a Thursday for the pre fix lunch w/​bubbly. Started with the fish starter and it was bigger than I thought. Super tasty. Then for the main ordered the chicken. The gnocchi that was cook with the chicken melts in your mouth. For Dessert, had the mango w/​tapioca. It was good, but I recommend getting the chocolate dessert option. Went for some tea after lunch… came with a couple small macaroons, chocolates, and marshmallows. It was so great to compliment the order of tea with these.
Planning on coming back for the weekend live jazz lunch! Loving this spot!

Yum! Another hit this month from a Bookatable booking — I wasn’t expecting quite the swank when my partner and I stepped into La Chapelle for a Sunday evening meal. Definitely recommended for a romantic night out with a partner — and if you book ahead with a set menu, you won’t break the bank.
For the set menu choices I tried (and highly recommend) parsnip purée and a dessert and a dessert of chocolate mousse, caramelised banana.
These days I prefer French dining in London over most of the recommended places I’ve been in Paris and La Chapelle does not disappoint!

I’m sorry to say this was by far one of the absolute worst dining experiences I have ever had. It’s especially disappointing because we were so excited to dine here. We walked over from our hotel, got lost a few times but were delighted to finally arrive at this stunning beautiful converted school/​church.
The food was lovely. We ordered the cured organic salmon, foie gras, risotto and something else? I think lamb… Plus wine. The food was good but the service was huge problem. First of all, the staff was overly intrusive. They interrupted our conversation repeatedly (REPEATEDLY) in order to ask us things like if we wanted more wine… We were not (I repeat, NOT) allowed to pour our own wine and we did not appear to be drinking at a rapid enough pace to suit the staff.
My boyfriend and I were having a very serious, in-​depth conversation about business and it was seriously annoying that they kept interrupting us. The restaurant was not busy, they did not need our table — there was honestly no justification for their rudeness.
After the 5^th interruption, I finally said something to the staff. Trust me, they were really pushing my buttons for me to even say anything. But seriously, HOW DARE THEY INTERRUPT OUR CONVERSATION REPEATEDLY??? I mean, cutting off my boyfriend mid sentence over and over again. UGH. Horrific. I cannot imagine ever going to this place again. Michelin ranked huh? UGH.

Classy, beautiful and sophisticated are the first words that come to mind when I think about this place. This remade old church is spacious & well designed. The service was brilliant and really made our visit memorable. The waiters were extremely professional and friendly yet with a personal twist & sense of humor.
We had a three course dinner, with an interesting mackerel starter, a delicious trout for main course and their signature dessert tarte tatin. The tarte tatin was just perfect, sweet, fresh and crispy. To top it all of we were treated with some minimacarons & chocolate truffles.
I do have some constructive feedback and that is that the bread could need some more flavour and that the timing of the serving of food respectively wine can be slightly improved.

I love everything about this place! Beeing Swedish I’m used to mackerel in different combination but I was surprised and impressed by the taste combinations in our starter (sweet beet root and fresh cranberry). My main, a mushroom risotto was cooked to perfection however my sisters trout was more interesting and really good together with the recommended wine. The absolute highlight of the evening was the tarte tatine, the best version I have tried this far and even though they recommended the traditional tokai I went for the coteaux de layon and absolutely loved the combination. This place deserve their star and I d love to come back for the a la carte menue! And I almost forgot the service is the best I ve had at any Michelin restaurant this far!

A fantastic place to eat. Beautifully built inside an old historic building, the place creates an atmosphere where you want to stay for hours. The food was amazing. I had the signature crab lasagne starter, and the tagine with guinea fowl breast and exotic garnishing. Everything was just perfectly cooked and prepared beautifully. The meat was soft and juicy, and cooked to the point. The sauces and spices they used left me thinking for hours what could have been inside. A bit pricey, but well worth it.

We actually missed this restaurant and hit the bar around the corner. Getting odd looks from the banker crowd, we were helpfully directed by the staff to the restaurant.
The first impressions were stunning. The staff were extremely gracious and helpful. Despite us not being their «normal» clientele (think bankers and money ppl) they were on the LivingSocial programme so knew what to expect :)
We were taken to our table, and you couldn’t help but marvel at the interior. The high ceiling of a converted church. The liberal blending of modern and traditional features was just divine. Unfortunately whilst the interior was nice, the lighting was atrocious. Okay, I’m a massive instagrammer, and every picture during the evening came out a murky yellow. Whether this is their way of dissuading you of taking pictures, should you be that way inclined, it is best to get a lunchtime reservation where your pictures of the food would do it justice. Just to show you how bad, I’ve uploaded photos.
The service is definitely one thing to highlight. Bread is constantly replaced, with staff coming to the table when either you’re finished with bread or appear you want to order. Additionally, the Sommelier picked out some great wine recommendations which were delivered with our mains are requested. I know it’s not a big deal, but many places just don’t do this. Sure not all of them are Michelin starred.
Onto the food, I was a little disappointed. Perhaps it was the range, seasonality of the menu, but it seemed restricted. There 5 starters to pick from and 3 were fish, with 1 vegetarian. They were nice, but having been to Brasserie Joel a week earlier no way as good as their duck terrine starter. The mains were in similar fashion. My pork dish had a sauce that was way to salty. And I say this coming from a family where soy sauce is used liberally. Again there was nothing special about the ingredients used. It was run of the mill pak choi, green beans and that sort of fare, easy to buy anywhere. Maybe I’m wrong, but when I go somewhere Michelin starred, I want to be blown away and sadly I was not.
Desserts were good, but again, the menu looked restricted. A frangipane and a chocolate ganache dessert. Sigh. They were good, rich, but nothing I couldn’t have just bought during my lunchtime at nearby borough market.
In all, if what you look for is excellent attentive service a very good sommelier but un-​adventurous good then you’ll like this place. Is it worth the Michelin? Perhaps No. But then again I know nothing about how these things awarded, apart from the fact, I’ve been disappointed with the two places I’ve visited that had been awarded them. I suggest this place is worth the price of entry on a Groupon, but unless the menu is substantially better for full-​paying customers, I would much recommend Brasserie Joel that I visited a week prior.
Another thing, I was pleasantly surprised by the number of american tourists at the venue, dressed in their bingo shirts and shorts. It was quite funny.

Ich bin nicht so der große Fan von französischer Küche, aber es sah so gemütlich aus, das wir das einfach ausprobiert haben. Nachdem wir uns die Speisekarte angesehen haben sind wir auf Nummer sicher gegangen und haben uns als Vorspeise quasi eine Käseplatte und Rotwein bestellt. Danach wollten wir dann Hauptspeise und Nachtisch nachlegen je nachdem wie sich die Käseplatte macht.
Und naja, der Käse war toll, es gab auch Brot vorneweg mit Butter, der Wein war auch ok aber es war eine winzige Portion, unglaublich winzig. Die Franzosen machen eh kleine Portionen, aber den Käse in so dermassen kleine Scheibchen hauchdünn zu servieren für den Preis unglaublich. Lecker wars, aber wir haben für den Spass 22 Pfund bezahlt (Pfund! Für Käse und Wein!) und sind dann gegangen, um woanders satt zu werden ;)
Wers mag ich nie wieder.
ps. das Wasser wurde uns erst nach dem dritten Hinweis gebracht also auch der Service war verschlafen. Leider.