It takes us a minute to find Amethyst, tucked away in an unassuming, bank-like building on a side street off London’s grand Piccadilly. I might call it a hidden gem, were such hackneyed wording not banned here at The Independent. It’s bound to feel exclusive: this supper club-meets-chef’s table experience seats just 21 guests at a time, along a curious, jaggedly cut communal table. Inlaid with real slabs of amethyst, mottled with seashell-like specks, it faces the unflashy open kitchen like a theatre audience waiting for curtain up.
And the show is ongoing. I arrive with my dining enthusiast sister expecting some edible art conjured up with showmanship, and we’re not disappointed. We’ve saved our appetites for the 12-course (count ’em) tasting menu, dreamt up, crafted and plated by star Italian chef Carlo Scotto – previously of London hit Xier, mentored by Angela Hartnett and formerly of the Michelin-starred Murano and Galvin La Chapelle among others.
