Henrietta, Covent Garden: Hits and misses from Ollie Dabbous

When Dabbous opened in 2012 it was hailed as a game-changer for the industry. It was quick to win a Michelin star and the young chef behind it, Ollie Dabbous, was rapidly propelled into the realms of super-chef.

The food was — and still is, until June when it closes to make way for a new project — bold and exciting while also fixated on the enjoyment of eating.

It’s not surprising, then, that expectations are high for anything new that Ollie’s involved in, including this — a highly stylised restaurant set within a plush new Covent Garden hotel from the Experimental Group, which also runs cocktail bars Experimental Cocktail Club in Chinatown and Joyeux Bordel in Shoreditch as well as restaurant and wine bar Compagnie des Vins Surnaturels close by.

Of course, expectations are not always met, and where Dabbous hit new heights, Henrietta is hit and miss. But that's not to say there's a shortage of potential.

A starter of sheep milk curds with spring onion, pistachio, lime and marigold shoots falls between the two categories. It tastes like a Key Lime Pie (sweetness and all) — but one topped with a very hefty pile of spring onion slices. It's interesting but not necessarily what you'd call delicious.

Beef tartare fares better, having been given a mellow muskiness through the addition of tobacco and whisky and added crunch from toasted rye. It is captivating, if so rich as to be slightly cloying by the time you near the end.

A main course of barbecued quail, presented skewered on a twig and served with toasted wheat, almond, clover and raisins, falls into the ‘hit’ category. It is perfectly cooked, moist with a slight crispness to its skin, and offers an enticing balance of flavours and textures — also note the game of pairing the bird with the food it would eat in the wild.

Cod with warm potted shrimps boasts supremely-cooked fish and a luscious buttery sauce, but a bed of sloppy cauliflower purée distracts from the otherwise silken textures.

To finish, chocolate truffles infused with pencil sharpenings are more fun than they are great tating, but a flaky custard tart topped with raspberries and pickled rose petals is a wonderful mix of comforting, creamy crème pâtissière and searing sharpness.

In the adjacent bar, a Ralph Rigmarole cocktail (effectively a Negroni with added whisky and sloe gin) is somewhat lacking in balance but a flatbread from the snacks menu is the best dish we try in the whole place. Topped with fresh crabmeat, lashings of garlic butter, samphire and oyster leaves, it’s a dripping delight of cleverly crafted unpretentious eating. More of that, please.

Henrietta, Covent Garden: The lowdown

Final flavour: Hits and misses from Ollie Dabbous

At what cost? Starters from £8-11, mains from £16-24, desserts £3-8, cocktails £11-14.

Visit if you like: Dabbous, Chiltern Firehouse, CVS.

Find it: The Henrietta Hotel, 14-15 Henrietta Street, WC2E 8QH; henriettahotel.com.