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Chapter eIGht<br />
<strong>the</strong> rIb <strong>room</strong><br />
When <strong>the</strong> Rib Room opened in 1961, it served roast beef in handsomely<br />
thick slices. After 50 years, it still does. Very few o<strong>the</strong>r British<br />
restaurants, except Simpsons on <strong>the</strong> Strand, have thrived by offering<br />
<strong>the</strong>ir diners what is fundamentally <strong>the</strong> same menu over such a time<br />
period. The Rib Room had, from <strong>the</strong> beginning, a winning formula,<br />
whose beauty was its simplicity: why change it?<br />
‘<strong>the</strong> concept is unique,’ observed <strong>the</strong> Catering Times in 1977: ‘seven-bone <strong>rib</strong>s of beef, butchered american-style.<br />
and <strong>the</strong> object is to serve <strong>the</strong> best beef in London.’ <strong>the</strong> tatler could testify to that object having been met. ‘It is<br />
certainly some of <strong>the</strong> best meat in London, and about <strong>the</strong> most expensive,’ it glowed on February 15, 1961; ‘for this is<br />
essentially a rich man’s restaurant, organised to satisfy <strong>the</strong> highest standard of 1960 anglo-american sophistication.’<br />
readers who aspired to eating beneath <strong>the</strong> <strong>rib</strong> <strong>room</strong>’s crystal chandelier would have to ‘allow £2 a head, without<br />
a drink.’ a sumptuous price, but a sumptuous experience: <strong>the</strong> hallowed beef was served on hand-wrought silver<br />
plates, set on red Irish linen table cloths.<br />
<strong>the</strong> team had spent months searching for a butcher who could supply grass-fed aberdeen angus sirloins of <strong>the</strong><br />
quality required. <strong>the</strong> almost irresistible appeal of <strong>the</strong> result became apparent when nine Italian waiters were<br />
sacked shortly after <strong>the</strong> opening. one of <strong>the</strong>m had been discovered in <strong>the</strong> pantry, overindulging in <strong>the</strong> restaurant’s<br />
speciality. he had to go; when <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>rs protested, <strong>the</strong>y followed him. ‘all <strong>the</strong> fellows who work in <strong>the</strong> <strong>rib</strong> <strong>room</strong><br />
eat beef,’ <strong>the</strong> Food and beverage manager told an american publication. ‘but this guy was found eating enough<br />
for six normal people.’<br />
<strong>the</strong> times, writing in <strong>the</strong> blasé 1970s, had fun at <strong>the</strong> expense of <strong>the</strong> english inn style of <strong>the</strong> <strong>rib</strong> <strong>room</strong>, as it was<br />
<strong>the</strong>n decorated, which was at odds with a sophisticated hotel operation:<br />
A waiter put a slab of Aberdeen Angus, desc<strong>rib</strong>ed in <strong>the</strong> menu as ‘a veritable beefeater’s bonanza’,<br />
before a young couple obviously were not used to this sort of thing at lunchtime. ‘Not much of <strong>the</strong><br />
steer left after that was cut,’ said an American who was sitting at <strong>the</strong> next table and obviously<br />
lapping up <strong>the</strong> old world atmosphere of The Carlton Tower’s Rib Room.<br />
After all, was not this <strong>the</strong> roast beef of old England? And did not <strong>the</strong> menu urge on <strong>the</strong> hungry<br />
wayfarer with much talk about ye innkeeper’s desire to please and ye host bidding ye eat?<br />
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Later, as ye innkeeper shot some of his guests to <strong>the</strong> summit of London’s<br />
newest hotel at 500 feet a minute, he explained that it would be wrong<br />
to desc<strong>rib</strong>e The Carlton Tower as an American hotel. In London today<br />
your hotel had to be an international one if it was to survive. But, he<br />
added, <strong>the</strong> Carlton was traditional as well as international.<br />
Trying hard to find some tradition, we went behind <strong>the</strong> scenes where a<br />
dishwasher was slowly ploughing its way through <strong>the</strong> dishes of 3,000<br />
meals. A buzzer sounded in ye innkeeper’s breast pocket. He pulled out<br />
a miniature radio transmitted and explained that every executive was<br />
centrally connected in this way.<br />
but <strong>the</strong> proof of <strong>the</strong> Yorkshire pudding was in <strong>the</strong> eating. During <strong>the</strong> galloping<br />
inflation of <strong>the</strong> 1970s, <strong>the</strong> hotel put up its prices ra<strong>the</strong>r than compromise on quality<br />
or portion size. Diners recognised that <strong>the</strong>y had to pay for <strong>the</strong> best. as <strong>the</strong> Catering<br />
Times reported in 1977, ‘<strong>the</strong> policy has meant a 45 per cent increase in prices over<br />
<strong>the</strong> past two years but so far <strong>the</strong>re has been little customer resistance.’<br />
Right: In 2006, four men who had been enjoying <strong>the</strong> hospitality of <strong>the</strong> hotel bars were seen<br />
manhandling <strong>the</strong> Rib Room’s beloved bull statue into <strong>the</strong> back of a white Phantom Rolls-<br />
Royce. The police traced <strong>the</strong> number plate to Yorkshire, but became reluctant to enter <strong>the</strong><br />
owner’s house when a woman appeared at <strong>the</strong> door with a Bengal tiger on a lead. However,<br />
<strong>the</strong> sculpture soon found made its return to <strong>the</strong> hotel – having been mysteriously left outside<br />
<strong>the</strong> back entrance.<br />
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Kings of <strong>the</strong> Kitchen<br />
For twenty-seven years, Donato russo<br />
has devoted most of his waking hours to<br />
perfecting <strong>the</strong> art of cooking roast beef,<br />
while Simon Young (above), <strong>the</strong> Carlton<br />
tower’s executive chef, is <strong>the</strong> pillar on<br />
whose shoulders <strong>the</strong> hotel’s whole food and<br />
beverage operation rests. altoge<strong>the</strong>r, <strong>the</strong><br />
hotel’s banqueting, pastry, <strong>room</strong> service,<br />
<strong>rib</strong> <strong>room</strong> and <strong>the</strong> Chinoiserie kitchens<br />
employ a total of forty-five chefs.<br />
‘twenty five years ago, when I started as a<br />
commis chef at a hotel around <strong>the</strong> corner,<br />
I used to walk past <strong>the</strong> Carlton tower<br />
and dreamt of working <strong>the</strong>re,’ remembers<br />
Simon. ‘Now I write every menu in <strong>the</strong><br />
hotel.’ his day starts at 6.30am, when<br />
he walks through every kitchen opening<br />
fridges and checking ingredients. at 9am<br />
comes ‘morning prayers’, when he delivers<br />
his report on <strong>the</strong> findings and discusses <strong>the</strong><br />
day’s business. From <strong>the</strong> comfort food of<br />
<strong>room</strong> service to dazzling canapés in <strong>the</strong> ball<br />
<strong>room</strong> or asian-style tapas in <strong>the</strong> Gilt bar,<br />
he will provide whatever guests want, in an<br />
operation that continues around <strong>the</strong> clock.<br />
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<strong>the</strong> <strong>rib</strong> <strong>room</strong>,<br />
temple of beef<br />
Do you want to know how to cook <strong>the</strong><br />
best roast beef in <strong>the</strong> world? First, find<br />
a seven kilo aberdeen angus <strong>rib</strong> joint –<br />
five <strong>rib</strong>s for preference – that has been<br />
hung for twenty-eight days. <strong>the</strong> Duke<br />
of buccleuch will be able to supply<br />
you…although not, perhaps, with meat<br />
butchered exactly as <strong>the</strong> <strong>rib</strong> <strong>room</strong> has<br />
it, for that is a unique preparation. on<br />
<strong>the</strong> top of a <strong>rib</strong> <strong>room</strong> joint is a thick<br />
layer of fat; cover this generously with<br />
salt, making sure that none touches <strong>the</strong><br />
sides of <strong>the</strong> <strong>rib</strong>s. Cook for two hours at<br />
a hundred and eight degrees. When <strong>the</strong><br />
beef comes out of <strong>the</strong> oven, <strong>the</strong> salt will<br />
have formed a crust, to be thrown away<br />
before serving, with <strong>the</strong> fat. Its purpose<br />
is to provide a layer of protection,<br />
making <strong>the</strong> interior of <strong>the</strong> joint cook<br />
more slowly. trim. Do nothing more.<br />
and <strong>the</strong>n wait for at least an hour, while<br />
<strong>the</strong> beef rests at a warm temperature.<br />
You’ve waited? Good. <strong>the</strong> meat is now<br />
ready to serve. Carve one extravagantly<br />
thick slice – an american cut. Voila!<br />
Donato shares some of <strong>the</strong> mystery:<br />
‘Cooked this way, a single joint will be<br />
well done on <strong>the</strong> outside, rare within.<br />
Look at this meat – tender, moist and a<br />
beautiful ruby red. We add nothing to<br />
<strong>the</strong> beef, not even seasoning. With this<br />
is served gravy, made from <strong>the</strong> left over<br />
bones and meat discarded in cooking;<br />
we simmer it with beef and vegetables<br />
– nothing else. It is absolutely natural.’<br />
Fillets and sirloins are apt to be drier;<br />
in Donato’s opinion, <strong>the</strong> <strong>rib</strong> is <strong>the</strong> best<br />
of cuts, being <strong>the</strong> most succulent and<br />
flavoursome. ‘<strong>the</strong>re are three or four<br />
different flavours in a single slice.’<br />
as it was in <strong>the</strong> beginning, so it is now:<br />
roast beef comes with Yorkshire pudding.<br />
potatoes, <strong>the</strong>se days, come when asked<br />
for: a concession to more healthy<br />
eating. Different types of mustard and<br />
horseradish are offered as a matter of<br />
course. Guests are free to sprinkle rock<br />
salt and grind <strong>the</strong> pepper mill if <strong>the</strong>y wish.<br />
but in this temple of beef, some meat<br />
worshippers partake of this wonderfully<br />
natural product just as it came onto <strong>the</strong>ir<br />
plate – with nothing on it at all.<br />
Right: Abdel ?, Rib Room waiter<br />
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Left: Sundamoorthy Veerappan enjoys<br />
preparing <strong>the</strong> baked potatoes that have<br />
been served in <strong>the</strong> Rib Room ever since it<br />
opened – although in <strong>the</strong>se more weightconscious<br />
times, <strong>the</strong>y are only added to a<br />
guest’s plate on request<br />
Right: Dinesh Mehta puts <strong>the</strong> finishing<br />
touches to a dessert<br />
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Left: Children are shown <strong>the</strong> arts of<br />
<strong>the</strong> kitchen during a masterclass with <strong>the</strong><br />
pastry chef.<br />
Right: Country comes to Hans Town when<br />
<strong>the</strong> Rib Room is given a rustic make-over<br />
as part of <strong>the</strong> Sloane Street celebrations for<br />
Chelsea Flower Show. Each May, <strong>the</strong> most<br />
prestigious of all British flower show opens in<br />
<strong>the</strong> paradoxically urban surroundings of <strong>the</strong><br />
Royal Hospital; all Chelsea comes to a halt<br />
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<strong>the</strong> art of conviviality<br />
<strong>the</strong> <strong>rib</strong> <strong>room</strong> has always been hung<br />
with original paintings and prints by <strong>the</strong><br />
artist Feliks topolski. appropriately,<br />
it was here that a dinner was held for<br />
topolski’s seventieth birthday in 1977 –<br />
‘an enormous table for twenty-four and<br />
au<strong>the</strong>ntically celebratory waiters,’ as <strong>the</strong><br />
artist desc<strong>rib</strong>ed it. Sitting among various<br />
diary writers were arabella Churchill<br />
(invited ‘because she personifies my hippy<br />
period’), prince George Galitzine, who<br />
had taught topolski english, <strong>the</strong> architect<br />
Cedric price and topolski’s family: wife<br />
Caryl, son Daniel and daughter teresa.<br />
topolski desc<strong>rib</strong>ed himself as ‘an old frog,<br />
phonily brooding,’ but concludes:<br />
‘however, <strong>the</strong> baked alaska with seventy<br />
candles arrives and Caryl is at ease.’<br />
Left: Above <strong>the</strong> bar is Feliks Topolski’s study<br />
for <strong>the</strong> Coronation frieze that HRH <strong>the</strong> Duke<br />
of Edinburgh commissioned for Buckingham<br />
Palace in 1960<br />
Right: A painting by Feliks Topolski,<br />
commemorating his seventieth birthday dinner<br />
at The Rib Room<br />
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Chef bernard Gaume<br />
James Walsh, who worked in <strong>the</strong> Carlton<br />
tower kitchen in <strong>the</strong> 1970s, remembers<br />
‘<strong>the</strong> culinary brigades’ in <strong>the</strong> Carlton<br />
tower London under Chef bernard<br />
Gaume. ‘this was one of <strong>the</strong> most<br />
pleasant work experiences I have ever<br />
had. mr. Gaume was a very progressive<br />
thinker and <strong>the</strong> start of a new wave of<br />
chef at <strong>the</strong> time. he was very quiet and<br />
well mannered, no tantrums, although<br />
<strong>the</strong>re was no mistaking his displeasure<br />
when he chose to show it. he was a<br />
very young man at a time when most of<br />
<strong>the</strong> chefs in <strong>the</strong> major hotels in London<br />
were of a certain age. he brought a new<br />
approach and tolerance that I had not<br />
seen in hotel brigades until <strong>the</strong>n.’<br />
one of mr. Gaume’s regular guests<br />
remembers how his cooking transformed<br />
London’s bleak culinary landscape:<br />
‘he was <strong>the</strong> first to introduce pan-fried<br />
foie gras.’<br />
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