Duck & Waffle, London

If heights and views are your thing then brunch at Duck & Waffle is a great option for high rise dining in London. Based on the 40th floor of Salesforce Tower (formerly Heron Tower) it is a short stroll from Liverpool Street station, the area is quiet and calm at the weekends compared to the hustle during the office working week.

The menu is very interesting and the duck congee caught our attention from the eggs section. Congee was a common dish during our upbringing so this interpretation with grilled duck hearts, slow cooked organic egg, spring onion, ginger and hazelnuts appealed. It’s hard to make congee look pretty as it is basically rice porridge but this was one of the prettiest congees we have ever had. The texture of the rice was well judged not too hard or over mushy and the duck hearts retained its bite. With the classic flavours of spring onion and ginger it’s hard to go wrong, although the soy sauce was a touch heavy handed.

We wanted a light brunch and this continued with yellowfin tuna tartar with avocado, balsamic, radish and lashings of foie gras. Another pretty plate and the tuna was lifted by the balsamic, a very good tartar.

The light brunch plans were soon destroyed by the extremely rich foie gras crème brûlée with butter roasted lobster and toasted brioche. Passing the test of cracking the top albeit burnt, I spread the foie gras brûlée on the toasted brioche before adding lobster pieces creating a luxurious brunch item. A couple of mouthfuls of this and I struggled to eat anything else. I was surprised when I saw a lady on the table opposite having this to herself, I don’t think I could finish it!

On a previous visit I tried the wild cornish pollock meatballs with lobster cream and parmesan and enjoyed the dish so recommended it to Mrs Nom. However this time the dish was not as good as I had remembered.

A very leisurely brunch, the price of the food is quite reasonable with our dishes costing between £10-£16, and they make for good sharing dishes. Although with a few drinks the bill can soon rocket. Duck & Waffle is a very popular destination and justifiably so.