I just went to Victoria & Albert's with my husband for my birthday. 
It was something that I wanted to do to say that I experienced it at least once. The price was $400 for us both and that is not with the wine option, but we each just had one glass with our entrees as we are not big wine drinkers. We went on a Sunday night for the later 9:00 PM seating.
As soon as we were seated, I had an older woman approach me and ask me if I were to get chilled during the evening, that I could have a 100% cashmere shawl brought to me to keep me warm. That evening I was dressed up in a little black dress that was a bejeweled sleeveless one. I thought that was quite thoughtful that she was seemingly thinking in advance of what my needs might be. I want to let it be known right up front - if you are not accustomed to upper-class settings, this restaurant may make you feel really uncomfortable. It is the utmost in refined and upscale, so you are expected to conduct yourself in an appropriate manner. To be perfectly honest, I did feel somewhat conspicuous in there and I've been to my share of upscale hotels and establishments. Nonetheless, I am a vegetarian and my husband is a human garbage disposal who will eat anything, so we were served completely different menus.
It was quite intriguing to hear the expert waitstaff rattle off every single ingredient that went into the making of each respective food masterpiece. Each and every course is presented to you as one would present amazing objects de art. Thank goodness for the Food Network! Being that I am somewhat of a food buff, I have watched Iron Chef Japan and America many times over, so was knowledgeable in some of the rare and exotic ingredients that are utilized in the menu at Victoria & Albert's. But my husband, who thinks exotic is shiitake mushrooms was all a bit overwhelmed with the whole affair. He loved everything though and was actually embarassing because he did not leave a morsel or crumb on any of the plates!
They actually print up personalized menus for each guest which has your name on it, the day of your visit and each offering that was part of your menu. For instance, mine had my name, the date and Happy Birthday at the very top. The rest of it was a brief synopsis of the entire menu from start to finish. It folds into a wonderful presentation folder which is given to you at the very end of your meal as a memento of your evening. There is live music the entire night - a very talented young girl who plays the harp. She was playing beautiful, classical music all evening. She is off to the side and assumes a very low-key profile the whole time - not ostentatious at all.
The best way I can describe the food, its appearance and presentation is to watch an episode of Iron Chef on the Food Network and it will give you somewhat of an idea of what this exquisite food looks like. Of course, it does not enable you to smell or taste it, but you can get the general feel of how it is served. The meal was technically 7 courses, as described by our waitstaff. My vegetarian menu was wonderful to say the least. Being that I do not truly prefer eating high-end cuisine on a regular basis, it was a great experience for me but not the type of food that I would eat on a daily basis even if given the chance. I can tell you some of the offerings that were served to me in fine style - I feasted on a tiny hard-boiled quail egg, mushroom tortellini with black truffle shavings in a fine consomme, fine cheeses, awesome potato gnocchi served in a little diamond shaped boat with cheese sauce, etc. It is hard to describe everything, but to sum it up you basically are served a smorgasbord of many foods but in tiny quantities. My first course has four separate items served on a huge plate that had four different compartments. Each of these 4 items were bite-sized or tiny pieces of the food. There was a delightful long rectangular tray of cheeses and fruits, again all served in diminutive sized servings but eloquently served and intricately presented. So I left there satisfied but these are not the huge portions you are accustomed to getting at your down-home dives. I had the chocolate trio dessert and it was awesome. There was a mouth-watering hot chocolate souffle that had a hot chocolate Godiva sauce drizzled over it at tableside. There was a chocolate pyramid that had a tiny gold gilt top and it literally was to-die-for. The one thing that stands out particularly is that the texture of the foods served was virtually like velvet in your mouth. Every single food served was as if it was velvet going down -- smooth and suave.
The waitstaff was very stoic, exceptionally competent and attentive, very knowledgeable in the menu and its ingredients, and quite personable as you would expect. We had a few waitstaff, a lady and a gentlemen who we found to be stellar in their duties. Upon completion of the meal, I was presented with a pretty Victoria & Albert's giftbag which held a freshly baked orange-date nut bread that was attractively packaged and beribboned, having been baked in the Grand Floridian bakery that day. Also, I was given a beautiful long-stemmed red rose that was encased in a clear plastic package which had the V&A sticker logo on the box. Finally, I was given a small golden paper covered box which had tiny chocolates and candies nestled inside. They also give you the menus that I mentioned earlier that have been personally prepared for you.
All in all - this is a very special experience that I would highly recommend to anyone if you have the money. If you are like my husband and I, we are far from rich so this was really going out on a limb for us. If you are not used to exotic ingredients and cuisine, you may not really appreciate plunking down that kind of money to say you ate at Victoria & Albert's. I would recommend this particular restaurant to those who specifically are food addicts or who have a keen interest in the utmost of exotic cuisine and ingredients OR for those who have so much money that it is of no object. But if you are from a middle-class family, you may want to just go with a 'nice' everyday restaurant and save the money to buy yourself a nice piece of jewelry or something tangible to show for the money you will undoubtedly have to spend for 3 hours of feasting pleasure.
It was something that I wanted to do to say that I experienced it at least once. The price was $400 for us both and that is not with the wine option, but we each just had one glass with our entrees as we are not big wine drinkers. We went on a Sunday night for the later 9:00 PM seating. As soon as we were seated, I had an older woman approach me and ask me if I were to get chilled during the evening, that I could have a 100% cashmere shawl brought to me to keep me warm. That evening I was dressed up in a little black dress that was a bejeweled sleeveless one. I thought that was quite thoughtful that she was seemingly thinking in advance of what my needs might be. I want to let it be known right up front - if you are not accustomed to upper-class settings, this restaurant may make you feel really uncomfortable. It is the utmost in refined and upscale, so you are expected to conduct yourself in an appropriate manner. To be perfectly honest, I did feel somewhat conspicuous in there and I've been to my share of upscale hotels and establishments. Nonetheless, I am a vegetarian and my husband is a human garbage disposal who will eat anything, so we were served completely different menus.
It was quite intriguing to hear the expert waitstaff rattle off every single ingredient that went into the making of each respective food masterpiece. Each and every course is presented to you as one would present amazing objects de art. Thank goodness for the Food Network! Being that I am somewhat of a food buff, I have watched Iron Chef Japan and America many times over, so was knowledgeable in some of the rare and exotic ingredients that are utilized in the menu at Victoria & Albert's. But my husband, who thinks exotic is shiitake mushrooms was all a bit overwhelmed with the whole affair. He loved everything though and was actually embarassing because he did not leave a morsel or crumb on any of the plates!
They actually print up personalized menus for each guest which has your name on it, the day of your visit and each offering that was part of your menu. For instance, mine had my name, the date and Happy Birthday at the very top. The rest of it was a brief synopsis of the entire menu from start to finish. It folds into a wonderful presentation folder which is given to you at the very end of your meal as a memento of your evening. There is live music the entire night - a very talented young girl who plays the harp. She was playing beautiful, classical music all evening. She is off to the side and assumes a very low-key profile the whole time - not ostentatious at all.
The best way I can describe the food, its appearance and presentation is to watch an episode of Iron Chef on the Food Network and it will give you somewhat of an idea of what this exquisite food looks like. Of course, it does not enable you to smell or taste it, but you can get the general feel of how it is served. The meal was technically 7 courses, as described by our waitstaff. My vegetarian menu was wonderful to say the least. Being that I do not truly prefer eating high-end cuisine on a regular basis, it was a great experience for me but not the type of food that I would eat on a daily basis even if given the chance. I can tell you some of the offerings that were served to me in fine style - I feasted on a tiny hard-boiled quail egg, mushroom tortellini with black truffle shavings in a fine consomme, fine cheeses, awesome potato gnocchi served in a little diamond shaped boat with cheese sauce, etc. It is hard to describe everything, but to sum it up you basically are served a smorgasbord of many foods but in tiny quantities. My first course has four separate items served on a huge plate that had four different compartments. Each of these 4 items were bite-sized or tiny pieces of the food. There was a delightful long rectangular tray of cheeses and fruits, again all served in diminutive sized servings but eloquently served and intricately presented. So I left there satisfied but these are not the huge portions you are accustomed to getting at your down-home dives. I had the chocolate trio dessert and it was awesome. There was a mouth-watering hot chocolate souffle that had a hot chocolate Godiva sauce drizzled over it at tableside. There was a chocolate pyramid that had a tiny gold gilt top and it literally was to-die-for. The one thing that stands out particularly is that the texture of the foods served was virtually like velvet in your mouth. Every single food served was as if it was velvet going down -- smooth and suave.
The waitstaff was very stoic, exceptionally competent and attentive, very knowledgeable in the menu and its ingredients, and quite personable as you would expect. We had a few waitstaff, a lady and a gentlemen who we found to be stellar in their duties. Upon completion of the meal, I was presented with a pretty Victoria & Albert's giftbag which held a freshly baked orange-date nut bread that was attractively packaged and beribboned, having been baked in the Grand Floridian bakery that day. Also, I was given a beautiful long-stemmed red rose that was encased in a clear plastic package which had the V&A sticker logo on the box. Finally, I was given a small golden paper covered box which had tiny chocolates and candies nestled inside. They also give you the menus that I mentioned earlier that have been personally prepared for you.
All in all - this is a very special experience that I would highly recommend to anyone if you have the money. If you are like my husband and I, we are far from rich so this was really going out on a limb for us. If you are not used to exotic ingredients and cuisine, you may not really appreciate plunking down that kind of money to say you ate at Victoria & Albert's. I would recommend this particular restaurant to those who specifically are food addicts or who have a keen interest in the utmost of exotic cuisine and ingredients OR for those who have so much money that it is of no object. But if you are from a middle-class family, you may want to just go with a 'nice' everyday restaurant and save the money to buy yourself a nice piece of jewelry or something tangible to show for the money you will undoubtedly have to spend for 3 hours of feasting pleasure.
DH & i are going in September for the 1st time, and I am DROOLING on my keyboard over your report! Thanks for sharing!
