The Upcoming
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Cinema
      • Movie reviews
      • Film festivals
    • Food & Drinks
      • News & Features
      • Restaurant & bar reviews
      • Interviews & Recipes
    • Literature
    • Music
      • Live music
    • Theatre
    • Shows & On demand
  • Fashion & Lifestyle
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • News & Features
    • Shopping & Trends
    • Tips & How-tos
    • Fashion weeks
  • What’s On
    • Art exhibitions
    • Theatre shows
  • Tickets
  • Join us
    • Editorial unit
    • Our writers
    • Join the team
    • Join the mailing list
    • Fund us
    • Contact us
  • Interviews
  • Competitions
  • Special events
    • Film festivals
      • Berlin
      • Tribeca
      • Sundance London
      • Cannes
      • Locarno
      • Venice
      • London
      • Toronto
    • Fashion weeks
      • London Fashion Week
      • New York Fashion Week
      • Milan Fashion Week
      • Paris Fashion Week
      • Haute Couture
      • London Fashion Week Men’s
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Instagram

  • YouTube

  • Tumblr

  • RSS


CultureFood & DrinksRestaurant & bar reviews

Zuma launch the Champagne Gogo menu

Zuma launch the Champagne Gogo menu | Bar review
7 August 2017
Jack Lury
Jack Lury
Avatar
Shot by Matthew Pull
Avatar
Jack Lury Shot by Matthew Pull
7 August 2017

Food

Jack Lury3

Zuma

★★★★★
BarQuick & easyCasual foodFine dining

Drinks ▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮

Service ▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮

Highlights

Hokkaido Blossom, Sugi Zai

Links

TwitterInstagramFacebookMapWebsite

Zuma opened in 2002 and it still is one of the trendiest restaurants in Knightsbridge. The Champagne Gogo menu I’m here to sample takes its name from the Japanese word for afternoon, Gogo, and Zuma pitches it as a high-end alcoholic take on afternoon tea. There’s six cocktails to choose from and two mochis.

The cocktails range from good to excellent. A Hokkaido Blossom was made from Tanqueray, Lillet blanc, plum sake, lemon, orange blossom and champagne and was great; quite sweet but well balanced. The Sugi Zai (Ketel One vodka infused with cedar wood, lemon juice, cherry brandy, yuzu juice and champagne) showed the mixologist’s understanding of his craft: the cedar wood infusion in the vodka lasting only an hour, but adding an enormous amount of depth to the cocktail, tasting refined and elegant.

The Nashi Royal was similar but starts with a base of pear sake and includes the addition of ginger syrup, adding a subtle warmth and spice to the drink. An Ama Mizu Spritz (watermelon, Aperol, lemon and prosecco) is a little more ordinary but the Zuma Spritz (Kamm and Sons, plum sake and prosecco) tastes great, the distinctive taste of the 45-botanical spirit really lifting the whole drink.

The mochis are rather less consistent than the drinks. They are made of ice cream encircled by a coating of gelatinous sticky rice formed into a paste. The first having a cherry-flavoured coating with a white chocolate centre and the second a mango ice cream surround by a guava shell. In theory. The ice cream, particularly the mango, was nice, but try as I might I couldn’t find much in the coatings beyond a general gelatinous texture.

Save for some initial confusion about the time of my booking, the service here is excellent: attentive, informative and – in the case of our mixologist Marco – very knowledgeable about the subject matter. The cocktails start at £10.50 rising to £14 at the upper end. These prices are perhaps not that unusual for London, and certainly around Knightsbridge, but even this felt like it sat above a price point in line with what we had received.

The room is a pleasant place to sit and have a drink and the bar staff are friendly and helpful, so if it fits your budget then the Champagne Gogo at Zuma is worth a visit.

★★★★★

Drinks ▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮

Service ▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮

Jack Lury
Photos: Matthew Pull

To book a table at Zuma, 5 Raphael Street London SW7 1DL, call 020 7584 1010 or visit their website here. The Champagne Gogo menu is available from 10th July until the end of summer, 7 days a week from 3pm-5:30pm.

Related Itemsreview

More in Food & Drinks

Farzi Café in St James’s: Traditional Indian recipes transformed into delightful modern dishes

★★★★★
Cristiana Ferrauti
Read More

Cakes & Bubbles at Hotel Café Royal: Creative desserts from the genius of Albert Adrià

★★★★★
Maria Barrios
Read More

Daniel Humm and Will Guidara to open a restaurant at Claridge’s this summer

Filippo L'Astorina, the Editor
Read More

“A very enjoyable nightmare”: Rishi Naleendra and Manuela Toniolo on Michelin-starred Cheek by Jowl

Rosamund Kelby
Read More

British Charcuterie Day at the Cleveland Arms: A safe haven for meat-eaters this Veganuary

Alex Julie Woods
Read More

All the Paris Michelin star restaurants 2019 on a map and full list

The editorial unit
Read More

Zorawar Kalra on new opening Farzi Café: “We bring innovation to Indian cuisine”

Filippo L'Astorina, the Editor
Read More

The World Restaurant Awards 2019: Longlist nominations and judging panel ahead of February launch

The editorial unit
Read More

Perfect Christmas recipe: Christmas pudding by Adam Handling from The Frog

The editorial unit
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap

Food

Jack Lury3

Zuma

★★★★★
BarQuick & easyCasual foodFine dining

Drinks ▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮

Service ▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮

Highlights

Hokkaido Blossom, Sugi Zai

Links

TwitterInstagramFacebookMapWebsite

Tickets

Theatre tickets

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • TOP PICKS

  • Marighella
    ★★★★★
    Berlinale
  • Babylon Beyond Borders at the Bush Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Johnstons of Elgin autumn/winter 2019 collection presentation for LFW
    Fashion weeks
  • Jeremy Loops and James Hersey at the Roundhouse
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Teddy Pendergrass: If You Don’t Know Me
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • Franz West at the Tate Modern
    ★★★★★
    Art
  • Shipwreck at Almeida Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Miló Maria autumn/winter 2019 collection presentation for LFW
    Fashion weeks
  • Richard Quinn autumn/winter 2019 collection catwalk show for LFW
    Fashion weeks
  • Come From Away at Phoenix Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Franz West at the Tate Modern
    ★★★★★
    Art
  • Shipwreck at Almeida Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Teddy Pendergrass: If You Don’t Know Me
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • Cold Pursuit
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • Capernaum
    ★★★★★
    Movie review

Instagram

Something is wrong.
Instagram token error.
The Upcoming
Pages
  • Contact us
  • Fund us
  • Join mailing list
  • Join us
  • Our London food map
  • Our writers
  • What, when, why

Copyright © 2018 FL Media Ltd

A Ghost Story: An interview with director David Lowery
Tredwells launch Ableforth’s Summer Terrace in Covent Garden | Bar review