We Were Among The First To Visit Matt Abé’s New Restaurant, Bonheur

Bonheur is now open in the building formerly occupied by legendary dining joint, Le Gavroche. Headlined by Matt Abé and supported by Gordon Ramsay, Tessa Dunthorne asks whether the (Michelin) stars will align at this new restaurant. 

Inside Bonheur, Matt Abé’s New Restaurant On The Site Of Le Gavroche

It felt almost like a cosmic coincidence that I was on the phone to Michel Roux Jr just three hours ahead of my visit to Bonheur in its opening weeks. Roux was speaking about Christmas, but Le Gavroche cropped up in the conversation multiple times – the spectre of a legendary restaurant. It makes Bonheur’s opening, on this same hallowed ground, feel even weightier.

Matt Abé, who is presiding over Bonheur, is undoubtedly at a heady point of his career – yet this is his first solo venture in spite of some impressive feats (he first headcheffed a three-starred establishment at only 28 years old, for starters). The restaurant site has undeniable culinary mythos, Gordon Ramsay is the financier, and the news of Bonheur’s opening earmarked it as one of the most anticipated fine-dining spots of the year. No pressure at all, really.

First Look: Matt Abé’s New Restaurant

Much of it has been a mystery up until its soft launch. Its Instagram sat in black and white ‘until it all comes to life’, with no mention of menu, and an enigmatic dress code (marked only as ‘smart-elegant’, which caused a domestic panic as my partner decried several ties in advance of the reservation). 

Spilling through its doorway from a sodden Mayfair pavement, and – shamefully, shockingly – early, I am ushered into a plush, dry lounge. On a table to my left is a neat stack of cookbooks, authored by Clare Smyth and Gordon Ramsay in what feels like a signal to any Michelin inspectors of the restaurant’s intent. From here, clockwork: my coat is checked, and I’m quickly offered water, salted almonds and a glass of wine. It’s textbook hosting. 

The lounge is gorgeous. There are boucléd, soft seats and ambient lighting, and it feels strikingly residential. The interiors are the product of Russell Sage Studio, which counts within its portfolio a number of members club (The Groucho Club and Home House, to name two). And lo, the members club magic sauce is present – it’s undeniably comfy. Possibly Bonheur matches pace with the current wave of neighbourhood restaurants that lean into the design trends of their postcodes, but in the case of Bonheur it’s a super-prime one. 

The dining room is located downstairs. The colour palette is warm and muted – relaxed pink and orange hues. Round dining booths sit beneath textured artworks that read like fauna and flora. It smells fantastic; there’s a candle or diffuser somewhere in the room. And then the playlist registers, leaning funky: Jamiroquai, Earth, Wind and Fire. If Matt Abé weren’t happily married to Sally Abé, I’d call it a seductive bachelor pad.

Well, if Abé’s intent is to seduce Michelin into seeing stars (preferably two or three) with him, it works. Bonheur asks you to bed in, in a stark contrast to Le Gavroche’s stiff old school linens. 

The menus, for their price and promise, follow this casual suit – with three menus to choose from, a key focus is its à la carte ‘to counter-balance tasting menu fatigue’. There are of course still two showy tasting menus, at five and seven courses respectively, allowing diners to indulge at greater length, and these are tours de force. The menus don’t overlay at all, which allows them to move with the punches as diners with dietaries visit, swapping dishes over – visiting as a pescetarian they pull a starter from the à la carte in, and move my fish course to become a main. This adjustment is so smooth, I doubt most diners would notice. 

The ‘quiche lorraine’

Every dish that arrives is surgically precise – in presentation, in consideration – yet the food is not uptight in the slightest. Exhibit A is the quiche lorraine. Diners wouldn’t blink twice at a tartlet, yet a quiche feels too lowkey for Bonheur. The honesty is sort of charming. It helps that its ingredients include gruyere, black garlic, leeks, and vin jaune sauce. 

And exhibit B: there’s a barbecued scallop which has been seared, we’re told, for exactly 12 minutes. Scrape a knife along it and there’s a yuzu powder dusted so finely on top of it that you’d not notice a thing. For what could be noisy flavour profiles, these touches work into the palette in subtle ways – with total finesse. I’m impressed by Abé’s will to resist the urge to punch with flavours at any point throughout the menu. And yet it’s all still in the spirit of fun (it reminds me of Jason Atherton’s Sael) but decidedly grown-up fare. The pretty bon-bons at the end include a s’more, for example… but it’s actually a chocolate tartlet with goat’s milk caramel topped with a swiss meringue. 

The wine pairing is solid. Nothing is punchy – rather, matched to prudent dining. And likewise, these pairings are explained with restraint. The sommelier doesn’t bore on about notes, with the perfect context canapé, and provides relatable parallels (one is, for example, compared to flan). I suspect eager oenophiles will be able to mine information with ease, but for those less inclined it is perfectly pitched. 

Service is smooth throughout. There are eager touchpoints from the team, without being overbearing. Our sitting time is a serious start-gun: we’re eating from the moment we sit down. But I can see at other tables, where they’re going à la carte, more than enough breathing room is provided. Service is clearly adaptive to table needs. 

Verdict

If Abé feels any legacy pressure, he’s wearing it lightly. The dining isn’t precious, and – honestly – Bonheur doesn’t offer fealty to the former occupier. Instead, it’s a real personal milestone moment for Abé, pulled off with confidence, as he makes himself feel right at home. And us, too, as we dine there. 

What We Ate

Tessa ate a pescetarian version of the ‘Journey’ menu, £195: 

• ‘Quiche Lorraine’ smoked ham, leek, Gruyère (vegetarian version)
• Cornish Turbot with celeriac, lobster, hollandaise
• Isle of Skye grilled scallops, finished on the BBQ, and served with pickled carrots, clementine and pomelo segments, kinome, shiso and a yuzu kosho beurre blanc (instead of fallow deer)
• Sheep’s yoghurt with lavender, vanilla, blossom honey
• Toasted grains pudding with whisky, smoked chestnut, caramel.

Book It

Open now at 43 Upper Brook St, London W1K 7QR. bonheurbymattabe.com