| The Fat Duck | |
|---|---|
| Restaurant information | |
| Established | 1995[1] |
| Head chef | Heston Blumenthal |
| Dress code | None |
| Rating | Michelin Guide, 2004[1] |
| Street address | High Street |
| City | Bray, Berkshire |
| Country | England |
| Website | fatduck.co.uk |
The Fat Duck is a restaurant run by chef Heston Blumenthal in Bray, Berkshire, England. The restaurant is known for its menu of unusual dishes, created following the principles of molecular gastronomy (although Blumenthal dislikes the term)[2] examples include: "snail porridge", "sardine on toast sorbet", "bacon and egg ice cream", and "salmon poached with liquorice".
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At The Fat Duck, Blumenthal exploits psychology, experimenting with the diners' perception. Among the starters in the restaurant's tasting menu there used to be a "jelly of orange and beetroot", a serving of two separate jellies, where the red has been made using blood oranges, and the orange from paprika beetroots.
The restaurant was opened in 1995[3] and is one of only four in the United Kingdom and Ireland that hold a three-star Michelin Guide rating; this has been the case since 2004. In 2005, it was named as the best restaurant in the world by Restaurant magazine[1] and Best Restaurant in the UK in 2008, 2009 and 2010[4] scoring a maximum 10 out of 10 in the Good Food Guide.
On 27 February 2009, Blumenthal closed his restaurant temporarily after a number of customers reported feeling unwell at different times.[5] By 3 March the source of the outbreak was still unclear but sabotage had been ruled out. A spokesman for the restaurant said "All this leads us to believe that it [the health scare] has not come from the restaurant and we expect to be given the all clear."[6] On 6 March it was reported that 400 people had stated they had felt unwell after eating at the restaurant.[7] Boxing promoter Frank Warren said he was "very disappointed" with his treatment after becoming sick following his visit. He said "Everything was fabulous about the evening - the food, the setting, the service, it was unbelievably good but unfortunately, afterwards, all of us were ill".[8]
The restaurant reopened on 12 March 2009.[9] The cause of the illness was later given by the Health Protection Agency as norovirus, which was thought to originate from oysters which had been harvested from beds contaminated with sewage.[10] The virus was spread further after being contracted by staff members.[11] The restaurant was criticised for its cleaning methods and its slow response to the incident.[10] Reports of illness totalled 529 from "late January".
The Fat Duck had received negative publicity regarding health standards before, when a food and safety test in 2004 found that "three out of the four samples were found to be unsatisfactory".[12]