Welcome to Mayfair:
BONHEUR BY MATT ABÉ
In the legendary dining room once ruled by the Roux family, Matt Abé’s first solo venture bridges tradition, artistry and Antipodean ease—the perfect setting for a celebratory festive meal.
For those drawn to snowy linen and beurre noisette, 43 Upper Brook Street has been a Mayfair landmark for decades. Behind a discreet door, Albert and Michel Roux—and later Michel Roux Jr—created La Gavroche, an industry-defining address known for French classics including a soufflé Suissesse which featured on the menu from the day the restaurant opened in 1967. As well as becoming the first in the UK to gain three Michelin stars, La Gavroche also launched the careers of some of the world’s most prestigious culinary names including Marcus Wareing, Pierre Koffmann and Monica Galetti.
MATT ABÉ’S FAVOURITE
CHRISTMAS CANAPÉS
Comté and black truffle gougère paired with Henri Giraud Champagne
Chicken liver parfait tartlet with marmalade and thyme, served with Seedlip Garden 108
After the restaurant took its final bow in 2024, it left a chasm that only someone with unshakeable confidence in both their technical skill and contemporary relevance would dare to enter. Fortunately, after 18 years under the mentorship of Gordon Ramsay—including five as Chef Patron at the three Michelin-starred Restaurant Gordon Ramsay—Matt Abé is finally stepping into the limelight with his first solo venture (backed by Ramsay), Bonheur.
The restaurant opened in early November, perfectly timed for the festive season. Festoons of Christmas lights may already adorn The Connaught but inside, Russell Sage Studio has created a comfortable, cosseting space that whispers of the Sunshine Coast and the outback of Abé’s native Australia. In the upstairs cocktail lounge, guests are welcomed with a glass of Magnum Cuvée Esprit Nature champagne, the bar glowing like the setting sun. The subterranean dining room features a colour palette of burnt ochres, textural artworks by abstract artist Rajan Seth and tactile touches, including burgundy velvet and horsehair wallpaper.
“Decadent hospitality is firmly back in fashion in London’s fine dining scene”
Bonheur offers two tasting menus alongside à la carte. The ‘Journey’ menu features five courses that showcase top British ingredients, classical French techniques and Abé’s commitment to craftsmanship. To kick things off are a succinct trio of canapés that demonstrate the chef’s precision, including a crispy buckwheat tart cradling Bluefin tuna and wasabi.
Next is quiche Lorraine topped with smoked pork belly and aged Gruyère that embodies the English translation of the restaurant’s name: happiness. Other highlights include venison from Oxfordshire’s Aynhoe Park served extremely rare with an earthy beetroot compote, sharpened by the tartness of tiny blackberries, and nori-frosted fillet of turbot with hollandaise sauce so velvety one could almost cut it.
Each course can be paired by exceptional wines chosen by Alsace-born Master Sommelier Éric Zwiebel, who has curated a list of 565 labels, many available by the glass. Crown jewels such as Maison Trimbach’s Clos Sainte Hune Grand Cru Riesling and Henri Giraud Champagne sit alongside lesser-known treasures including Tasmania’s Tolpuddle and Chablis’ Patrick Piuze.
A serving team led by Matthew Widdowson, formerly of Five Fields, pours sauces and spoons foams tableside in a ceremony that feels both discreet and theatrical. Their manner is matched by playful surprises including a broth laced with lip-coatingly unctuous beef fat and a jewel-box of petits fours that reveals a fruit jelly sour enough to raise hairs.
After years of minimalist interiors and small plates, decadent hospitality is firmly back in fashion in London’s fine dining scene. Bonheur offers an interpretation that feels both classic
and contemporary, with its feet firmly in classical France but its face turned toward both Asia and Australia. Lodha imagines the Rouxs both senior and junior would approve.
