Rhodes Twenty Four
Encyclopedia
Rhodes Twenty Four is a quality restaurant
located in the City of London
. , the restaurant holds one star in the Michelin Guide
. Run by celebrity chef Gary Rhodes
, the restaurant is on the 24th floor of Tower 42
, formerly known as the Natwest Tower.
in a location formerly used by Roux Fine Dining. It serves modern British cuisine described in its initial press release as "Very British Fayre". Chef Gary Rhodes
was introduced into the space by Albert Roux
, who put him in touch with the company looking to revamp the former Restaurant Twentyfour. The original agreement was to take over the restaurant, private dining rooms and bar for an initial five years. The restaurant is funded by Restaurant Associates, and fronted by Rhodes using the chef's signature dishes including his bread and butter pudding
and jaffa cake
dessert.
Rhodes described his hopes for the restaurant on launch, "If we never get a Michelin star here, I will be very disappointed, but what I really want is customers." It won a Michelin star in 2005, which it retains to date as one of two Michelin starred restaurants for Gary Rhodes in London.
, who happened to be dining with the critic, described a potted
mackerel
and gooseberry
jelly
dish as "quite nice stuff". Marina O'Loughlin, writing for the Metro in the same month, also gave four out of five stars and said that the food gave "superior comfort food with a view". Giles Coren
reviewed Rhodes Twenty Four in December 2003 for The Times
. He found a great deal of difficulty in booking a table, which was only alleviated after revealing himself as a restaurant critic. He described the menu as being "standard" for a Gary Rhodes restaurant, but said that it was "not in the class of Gary’s two recent closures", but "competent". He gave an overall score of six out of ten.
A review in January 2004 in The Independent
described the restaurant as being like a "boardroom", but praised the use of both suet
and mutton on the menu, giving an overall score of thirteen out of twenty. The Evening Standard conducted a second review in 2005, with Toby Young visiting the restaurant. He gave it two stars out of five, criticizing the restaurant for serving locally grown in season produce, but said "Perhaps I'm being a little unfair on Rhodes Twenty Four. I find it hard to separate the restaurant from the man, whom I've always regarded as supremely irritating". Mark Bolland reviewed it again for the Evening Standard in April 2008, describing it as being much like an airport terminal but said that the menu was imaginative and featured the expected Rhodes–twists, but found that the service was slow and robotic; giving the restaurant three out of five stars.
Restaurant rating
Restaurant ratings identify restaurants according to their quality, using various notations such as stars or other symbols, or numbers. Stars are a familiar and popular symbol, with ratings of one to four or five stars commonly used. Ratings appear in guidebooks as well as in the media, typically...
located in the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
. , the restaurant holds one star in the Michelin Guide
Michelin Guide
The Michelin Guide is a series of annual guide books published by Michelin for over a dozen countries. The term normally refers to the Michelin Red Guide, the oldest and best-known European hotel and restaurant guide, which awards the Michelin stars...
. Run by celebrity chef Gary Rhodes
Gary Rhodes
Gary Rhodes OBE is an English restaurateur, cookery writer, and chef, known for his love of British cuisine and distinctive spiked hair style ....
, the restaurant is on the 24th floor of Tower 42
Tower 42
Tower 42 is the second tallest skyscraper in the City of London and the fifth tallest in London overall. The original name was the National Westminster Tower, having been built to house the National Westminster Bank's International Division. Seen from above, the tower closely resembles the NatWest...
, formerly known as the Natwest Tower.
Description
Rhodes Twenty Four opened in 2003, following the closure of restaurants City Rhodes and Rhodes in the Square in the previous year. Located on the 24th floor of Tower 42Tower 42
Tower 42 is the second tallest skyscraper in the City of London and the fifth tallest in London overall. The original name was the National Westminster Tower, having been built to house the National Westminster Bank's International Division. Seen from above, the tower closely resembles the NatWest...
in a location formerly used by Roux Fine Dining. It serves modern British cuisine described in its initial press release as "Very British Fayre". Chef Gary Rhodes
Gary Rhodes
Gary Rhodes OBE is an English restaurateur, cookery writer, and chef, known for his love of British cuisine and distinctive spiked hair style ....
was introduced into the space by Albert Roux
Albert Roux
Albert Roux OBE is a French-born restaurateur and chef working in Britain. He and his brother Michel operated Le Gavroche, the first restaurant in the UK to gain three Michelin stars. He helped train a series of chefs that went on to win Michelin stars, and his son, Michel Roux, Jr...
, who put him in touch with the company looking to revamp the former Restaurant Twentyfour. The original agreement was to take over the restaurant, private dining rooms and bar for an initial five years. The restaurant is funded by Restaurant Associates, and fronted by Rhodes using the chef's signature dishes including his bread and butter pudding
Bread and butter pudding
Bread and butter pudding is made by layering slices of buttered bread scattered with raisins in an oven dish into which an egg and milk mixture, commonly seasoned with nutmeg , is poured.-Instructions:...
and jaffa cake
Jaffa cake
Jaffa Cakes are a snack in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Whether a Jaffa Cake is a cake or a biscuit is debated. The product was introduced by McVitie and Price in 1927 and were named after Jaffa oranges, sweet oranges native to Jaffa....
dessert.
Rhodes described his hopes for the restaurant on launch, "If we never get a Michelin star here, I will be very disappointed, but what I really want is customers." It won a Michelin star in 2005, which it retains to date as one of two Michelin starred restaurants for Gary Rhodes in London.
Reception
Fay Maschler reviewed the restaurant on the second day after opening in November 2003, giving four out five stars whilst describing the meal as good hearty food. Rick SteinRick Stein
Christopher Richard "Rick" Stein OBE is an English chef, restaurateur and television presenter. He is currently the head chef and co-owner of "Rick Stein at Bannisters" at Mollymook, New South Wales, Australia, owns four restaurants in Padstow, a fish and chip shop in Falmouth, Cornwall and has...
, who happened to be dining with the critic, described a potted
Potted meat
Before the days of refrigeration, potted meat was developed as a way to preserve meat. After animals were slaughtered, especially in domestic settings, the result was more meat than could be immediately used...
mackerel
Mackerel
Mackerel is a common name applied to a number of different species of fish, mostly, but not exclusively, from the family Scombridae. They may be found in all tropical and temperate seas. Most live offshore in the oceanic environment but a few, like the Spanish mackerel , enter bays and can be...
and gooseberry
Gooseberry
The gooseberry or ; Ribes uva-crispa, syn. R. grossularia) is a species of Ribes, native to Europe, northwestern Africa and southwestern Asia...
jelly
Gelatin dessert
Gelatin desserts are desserts made with sweetened and flavored gelatin. They can be made by combining plain gelatin with other ingredients or by using a premixed blend of gelatin with additives...
dish as "quite nice stuff". Marina O'Loughlin, writing for the Metro in the same month, also gave four out of five stars and said that the food gave "superior comfort food with a view". Giles Coren
Giles Coren
Giles Coren is a British food critic, television presenter and novelist. He is known for expressing controversial opinions, and for his television appearances with the comedian Sue Perkins.-Personal:...
reviewed Rhodes Twenty Four in December 2003 for The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
. He found a great deal of difficulty in booking a table, which was only alleviated after revealing himself as a restaurant critic. He described the menu as being "standard" for a Gary Rhodes restaurant, but said that it was "not in the class of Gary’s two recent closures", but "competent". He gave an overall score of six out of ten.
A review in January 2004 in The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
described the restaurant as being like a "boardroom", but praised the use of both suet
Suet
Suet is raw beef or mutton fat, especially the hard fat found around the loins and kidneys.Suet has a melting point of between 45° and 50°C and congelation between 37° and 40°C....
and mutton on the menu, giving an overall score of thirteen out of twenty. The Evening Standard conducted a second review in 2005, with Toby Young visiting the restaurant. He gave it two stars out of five, criticizing the restaurant for serving locally grown in season produce, but said "Perhaps I'm being a little unfair on Rhodes Twenty Four. I find it hard to separate the restaurant from the man, whom I've always regarded as supremely irritating". Mark Bolland reviewed it again for the Evening Standard in April 2008, describing it as being much like an airport terminal but said that the menu was imaginative and featured the expected Rhodes–twists, but found that the service was slow and robotic; giving the restaurant three out of five stars.