Oxo Tower Bar & Brasserie, The

At the very heart of the South Bank, next to Blackfriars Bridge, lies Oxo Tower Wharf. Built as a power station for the GPO, the Wharf, has housed many businesses over the years, but most notably was home to the Oxo cube in the 1930s. The landmark tower, which 'subtly' advertised the product in its art deco windows, was built to get round an advertising ban imposed by the LCC.

Oxo Tower Brasserie is situated on the eighth floor of the Tower occupying part of the 12,500 square feet it shares with the restaurant, with the tower acting as a natural focus dividing the space into two equal halves. To the east lies the Restaurant and to the west the Bar and Brasserie. Both spaces are linked by a spectacular 250-foot terrace, which offers some of the most breathtaking views in London.

The Restaurant Bar and Brasserie was designed by award winning architects Lifschutz Davidson, who are no strangers to the South Bank, with local housing and office projects to their credit. The design incorporates sleek, natural materials but remains influenced by the art deco style of the building and the presence of the river.

A set menu is amongst those available in the Brasserie, with a choice selected from two or three courses, starting with roast Jerusalem artichoke soup, followed by grilled mackerel, shitake mushroom, bak choy and black bean sauce. Desserts include bitter chocolate mousse with griottine cherries.  To give a lift before setting off for the theatre, say, a choice from three non-alcoholic vitality boosters can invoked, with my favourite the oriental chill; crushed lychees, fresh limejuice and coconut charged with organic ginger beer, infused with Guarana extract.

At the weekends the Brasserie does a smart line in brunches, and should your brunch be at least partially brought about by a touch of excess the previous evening, then head for a Ketel One Bloody Mary which casts quite a shadow over some of the less spirited competition. Not for nothing did this potent pick me up earn itself the title of UK Best Bloody Mary 2007.

After that more or less anything goes but at the forefront the eye could be drawn to fried spiced Thai pork patties, green paw paw, crispy shallot salad and nuoc cham, or twice cooked octopus, black olives, feat, roasted tomatoes and salsa verde. Amongst the brunch mains keep an eye lifted for oven roasted pork belly with bubble and squeak, some spinach and a generous helping of winter chutney. Many of us find that a spot of fish at breakfast is no bad way to start the day, whatever the time of departure, and masala spiced salmon with red lentil dhal, tomato cardamom chutney and chilli lavosh may well ring your bell.

Separate menus cover lunch and dinner, and whilst there is some overlap between dishes on the other brasserie menus, more often than not subtle variations maintain interest as well as exhibiting the skills at work over the stoves.

In the evening live music, with a common love of jazz attracts not only gifted musicians, who find the atmosphere a vitalising element in their playing, but an enthusiastic audience to enjoy it. Sunday evening gains special attention from those who like a mellow setting of the sort created by a female vocalist and piano accompaniment.

For further details click through to the Harvey Nichols Website and get the whole story.