DISAPPOINTING Visit to a 3 Michelin Star Restaurant - Sketch 

Beware…you might just get invited by the chef to a remote island where you think the chef wants to redeem himself, but instead he will not let you leave the island. If that happens, remember to order a cheeseburger

Honestly .. it is incredible that there is someone that is willing to be straightforward regarding the quality of service and food rather than the smoke and mirrors of the decorum and reputation.

Some of the mistakes were on much lower level than 3*. Let's be honest - leaving a guest hungry and dry is simply difficult to understand.

This is becoming one of my favorite food/restaurant related channels and I have no doubt you will reach 1 million subscribers eventually.

This might be my new favorite RU-vid channel holy shit a Michelin star restaurant owner reviewing other Michelin restaurants and not afraid to be critical either. Cheers Alex this is great content

You've really taken a lot of the feedback to heart and have improved accordingly. I love the annotations for each course that give us all the reference we need without slowing down the video. Maybe a full list of all the courses at the end would be a great addition too. I always like to get a full sample like that when I'm scoping out restaurants. You might also want to discuss value a little more. A 165 GBP/ 200 USD 3 Michelin Star restaurant seems quite noteworthy to me. I've paid double that for 2 stars before. I can definitely see why service would slip with those kinds of margins, but absolutely unacceptable at 2 stars and unheard of at 3. Then for all of the artsy extravagance none of that food is anything I'd be shocked to find at a traditional stuffy French place. If you just showed me the decor I'd guess the food would be some kind of creative molecular gastronomy experience. Anyway keep up the great work. A lot of fun watching the channel grow. I'll keep watching every video that pops up. Hopefully you can get a booking at El Celler de Can Roca.

I had dinner here literally this week…! I also left pretty disappointed and when I told friends, colleagues etc. they were all surprised by my reaction and thoughts. Seeing this video the same week of my experience really makes me feel validated! We went for the 7 course tasting menu and had similar lulls in timings, sometimes over 30minutes between courses and then two courses coming within 10 minutes of each other - there was absolutely no flow. Great channel, the YT algorithm is really working!

Watching these videos has me spoiled. I know that visiting a three Michelin star restaurant takes considerable time and money, so it isn’t like an episode can be posted every day, but after watching all of your videos, I’m impatiently waiting for more😂love the content

Alexander, I appreciate how you incorporated the viewers' feedback and added the description for the dishes. Your commitment to improve every video, coupled with your passion for gastronomy, will surely make this channel blow up soon! Also, I'm yet to encounter the problems you faced at Sketch, even at a 1-Michelin fine dining establishment. I hope Sketch takes notice to improve, and the Michelin inspectors, to reconsider their assessment.

You don#t hold back with your critique, but that is the only way to improve. Also you are very fair and explain what is wrong and how it sould be done

By far one of the best YTB channels about food. Not often you can watch true opinions about restaurants.

The moment he tried to cut that nano sized lobster piece and complained about the knife was the best part.

Hahaha.... don't worry you are not alone in being disappointed at the food. This is the from the restaurant critic Jimi Famurewa of the Evening Standard who was absolutely scathing about both the restaurant decor itself and the food which he awarded a score of 2/5 when he reviewed it in Feb 2000,looks like nothing has changed much since! 😂 ........ "But then came the bill, which arrived in a hollowed-out copy of Moby Dick and was the sort of thing to make you want to fling a harpoon. Nearly £400 after service, for two people to drink almost nothing and be scantly fed very slowly. Even writing it down I feel myself vibrating anew with an almost exhilarating anger. But look, if just one person now rethinks a plan to go here, it will not have been totally wasted. If you’re the type of person who has always longed to sit down to a three-star culinary splurge, the Lecture Room & Library may offer a very expensive means to feel better about yourself. But for me, it is an example of the worst kind of brazen restaurant, a culinary carnival game to be avoided at all costs." How on earth is this place being awarded 3*Michelin?! Surely this brings the whole Michelin awards into question as well as the credibility of the awards themselves.

A new fan you just got. It’s nice to see the authenticity especially the flawed mistakes you unfortunately endured during your dining.

Nicely done ATG. Very balanced and helpful review. I like how your content is enthusiastic and punchy without dragging on forever like some videos. Keep it up

These keep getting better! Incredible video. Definitely an unfortunate experience, but I feel like this is almost to be expected when a restaurant relies so much on ‘looks’ and not on cooking.

I like your fair and honest approach to restaurants and how they could improve.

Huge fan of this channel. Keep up the quality uploads and keep enjoying this journey!

I come from a very financially challenging background. My dream was to work at the kitchen of a michelin star restaurant however, I had to study Law as its the safer route. Your videos allow me to live the life vicariously. I would suggest if you can take us through how a michelin star restaurant works from hospitality down right to the logistics of it through a series of videos, that would be amazing and will give this channel multidimensional content.

Just found your channel, I’m a veteran of the Michelin scene from NYC, I’m enjoying very much everything you upload. When restaurants put out so much effort in things that are borderline gimmicky like over the top decor with so many ideas thrown in, it’s cause they’re lacking technique in service and execution, sometimes, less “creativity” in concepts and more into the food is better.

Had a terrible customer service as well- they have a 6-person reservation limit so when I went for my birthday I only brought along 5 people with me, but lo and behold, we were seated right next to a table of 10+ people who we later came to find out were the owners family. We pulled a waiter aside who then had the director of operations speak with us and he apologized profusely, and gave me his business card and said that next time if I decide to celebrate there again then he'd make sure I could bring along more than 6 people. The following year, I contact him, and he'd moved to a different business, so we were put in touch with Sketch's chief executive officer who basically told us that they wouldn't honor the promise their director of operations had given us and feigned ignorance over the table of 10+ we were sat by, claiming it must have been an error in their reservation system which allowed them to book for over 6 people (which is of course untrue, even a different waiter had let it slip to us that it was the owners family). Was very unprofessional and lied to us on top of it. Haven't been there again to this day.

This is crazy, as a food writer (in french) I came accross your channel and watched a few video of some restaurants I wrote about. And you often have the exact same feelings that I do. Osteria Francescana by example. But Sketch is next level. I can’t understand how they even have one star for the food. Yes it’s beautiful in its own way. Yes you have amazing selection of wine, like the Selosse you had. But something was off in the kitchen and in the service. I had the same experience. Crazy.

Alexander you bring a creative delivery with a great visual overview and i cant wait to see what youd come up with every time. Please keep it going!

Absolutely marvelous getting an honest review when it simply falls short this way. One of the worst meals I have had was at a two star Michelin in Budapest, the reviews did not live up to reality.

Im always excited to see what you'll upload next 😁. Keep up the good work. And don't forget to have fun.

This reminds me of a similar experience. I took my wife to Toqué for our 10 year anniversary. It was honestly disappointing and for the price honestly awful. The staff gave a vibe like they were unprepared and nervous. Even delivered out plates to the wring table. Out of the 6 plates we ordered, the amuse bouche was the best. 1 plate was worth it, the other 5 were bad to average. The reduction they resused in 2 dishes was so bitter I thought it was burned. Even the drinks were not balanced. Kinda felt like they were imitating an idea. All this to say high end restaurants can be either great or extremely disappointing. It's going to be the Rib&Reef for 11 years...(High end steak and seafood near Jewish community in Montreal. Garunteed to be best* steak of your life.)

I absolutely love this series!!! Great work!

3 Michelin stars indicates PERFECTION. Anything less than that would understandably leave you feeling underwhelmed.

So wonderful to see a review like this! I would not have been happy with the time lag or the multiple dishes being served for a course. It actually hurt to watch him show you the selected wine bottle and then walk away...

hey, with all the time and effort you put into the content, i am sure that this channel will blow up soon. keep up with the good work!

would love to see you visit 3 Michelin star restaurants in Japan. I had a lot unforgettable experiences there and most notably Ryugin in Tokyo. and as usual love the video. looking forward seeing more!

I have no idea why youtube algorithm showed me this channel but im glad it did. It is simply amazing! Very pleasant to watch, great production and you can learn a lot!. Keep up great work!

I binge watched all your videos and I am absolutely amazed by how good these all are and how rapidly the quality of the videos increased. It startet out very good and it got way way better on every new video. One does really feel that you do not want to become the next influencer of some sort, but rather really have fun doing these videos and showing us "normal" people the fine-dining exeperience - and I am so into this. Really incredible stuff and I can't wait to watch more of your videos. Thank you for this content, it is a pleasure!

Hi Alexander, I very much appreciate your honest and fair review. This video reminded me of a similar lackluster experience I had recently, and I would love it if you could give little advice… As both a chef and experienced diner, how would you respond to a service staff asking if everything was okay, when you actually did have a few issues? How can I be clear in pointing out such errors without coming off as dramatic, bitter, or difficult? I’ve spent some time working in fine dining myself and I always feel bad to have to put the server on a spot when I know it’s not entirely - or sometimes at all - his/her fault. Thank you so much!

my dude creating high end documentaries for food in 8 minute videos...Jokes aside one of the best and to the point channels

Honestly wouldn't mind if your videos were much longer, like 30-45 mins. Best & most honest content in a while 👏

Thx for being the only honest detailled reviewer on youtube, guiding us 🙏🏻 Out of my own experience... the more famous chefs become and the more places they open, the less the quality becomes... My personal preference are the Michelin wannabees... trying the very best, for half the price ❤ Ps: This restaurant looks less than most 1 stars I went... terrible 😢

I love your channel! I just discovered it and I’m hooked! Thank you!

fr your channel is one of the best about restaurant and i love how the videos are always captivating!

The Lecture Room & Library was my first experience at a 3* establishment. I’d visited various 2* and 1* restaurants prior to Sketch and had always been so impressed with the experience so I had high hopes for this experience and honestly, I left feeling very similar. We were given 5 dishes at the same time for our starter which was very strange as our savoury ice cream had melted by the time it reached the table, most of the starters were very liquid heavy. I had lamb saddle for my main course which was excellent but dessert was another underwhelming course, some kind of strawberry pastry which was the lone ‘dessert of the day’ there were no literal options for dessert. I was actually quite shocked by some of these things considering that these weren’t an issue at any of the 1* restaurants that I had visited. Yes the building itself is very impressive but we came for the food which was altogether not so much. I have visited six Michelin starred restaurants and of the ones I have visited in London you would be far better off visiting Marcus, The Ritz Restaurant or Pollen Street Social (all 1* however provide a far better dining experience than Sketch).

I love your videos, editing, and commentary. The only thing that gives me pause it the fact that you're part of the industry as a restaurateur. It would make me very hesitant to critique my peers in such a public forum. I'm sure you understand that as your channel and influence grows, your words will weigh more heavily despite how fair and honest you try to be. With that said, I'm personally really enjoying your videos. Wishing you all the best.

Love how honest you are! The main dish was simply a mess and did not live up to the standards of a 3 Michelin restaurant. Great video🙌

I have been to Sketch and the visuals are amazing. Every room is so different and every detail is perfect.

FWIW I went to Pierre G’s at his restaurant in Paris. He came out after the lunch and took pictures with everyone and it was absolutely amazing that he was still there every day. Was the best food quality of any restaurant we have had (and we have been to a couple of other M 3*s) I do feel like having the lead chef there makes a world of difference given when I went to French laundry it was really just ok and got the feeling Thomas Keller isn’t ever there anymore.

Love the honesty - Call it as you see it. Keep it going - great videos

My new favourite RU-vid channel, keep up the amazing videos Alexander. Watching from Dublin, Ireland 🇮🇪

Glad to see honesty in a review. Over 90% of food influencers would not admit this in a video.

Thanks Alexander great honest review as this not easy to do to 3 star Michelin restaurants. Enjoyed and subscribed.

A very competent assessment. Obviously rich people see restaurants for the rich in a different way. Interesting!

Adding the dish compositions in the video is a great plus, thanks !

What a gem of a channel to find!!

Imagine watching this guy review his local Taco Bell. I could watch that for days.

Looks like a fine dining restaurant for people who don't care about the food

This is what i like of a chef, critical but honest wen it's good and bad things happen.

I like your complete style of presentation of a restaurants experience from start to finish

+ Michelin Stars = Less food.

Huge fan of this channel. Hoping he can get out to Japan, some of their 3 Michelin star restaurants are incredible. Only been to one of them myself in Kyoto called Kikunoi run by Yoshihiro Murata, was a brilliant kaiseki style meal.

'and suddenly the owner lunged at me with a knife that's when I got really disappointed' 😆

Thank you for your honesty, you know better than most people what is right and what is less right, so thank you again and i just subscribed to your channel 👍

My sister went a few weeks ago and thought it was amazing - hopefully your experience was a one off. Very constructive criticism in this video - hopefully they will see it. To be honest, at that price there are a number of other places I'd go to before Sketch based off of this review.

Entering that restaurant with you at the start was like entering in the middle of a Cirque de Soleil performance, that was breathtaking. The eclectic art, the beautiful colours and then seeing the champagne bucket of wines poured by the glass and seeing a bottle printed with a producer like Selosse (one of the gods of champagne) on the label. Feel quite sorry for the kitchen, even moreso for the sommeliers; but, in any restaurant regardless of style (fine dining, local restaurant, pub, etc..) when one part of the machine slows down, the other needs to pick up the slack, let alone in a 3 michelin. When the kitchen slows down, it demands front of house pick up their game. For someone like you, make an impromptu visit to the cellar - you strike me as someone that is fascinated by wine, I bet you could be distracted for an indefinite period of time by a knowledgable sommelier and a great cellar; I know I would. Some of your reviews, I'm on the skeptical side of some of the critiques you give, but this one is simply unacceptable at a small neighbourhood restaurant, let alone a 3 star in London.

London isn’t a culinary capital, it’s a wealth capital. It has a culture of rich food, not a rich culture of food.

Easiest sub of my life - great channel!

Great review. Personally, not really interested to go there after the review you left. When you go to a three Michelin star restaurant, it is not crazy to expect perfection. The attention to detail on the food should be impeccable. Moreover, the courses should flow smoothly and not have long awkward pauses that make you wonder if they’ve decided to just stop feeding you.

This is maybe a unique experience to me, but I've consistently found throughout my life that more expensive restaurants are much more dissapointing then low cost/class restaurants. Every time I've been to an high class establishment, I've always been given tiny portions of mediocre food, plated in an artful way. The bill is enormous and I leave wishing I had gone to a local pizza buffet.

"There is a beautiful woman in a French maid outfit. She says nothing, she is art." That could be the opening of an Edgar Allan Poe's novel... it's so well said, and so, so so unsettling.

Flavour and Service Justice. Love this Channel.

If that was my restaurant, I'd be on you like _White on a Bride_ to get you back to show you we fixed all the issues you mentioned. Not just for you, but really *fixed.* Those stars are hard to come by but easy to lose.

I appreciate the honesty of this channel if theres something he doesnt like he gives his honest opinion its very refreshing

It’s so kitschy

This is my fav food critic channel!

The worst thing about fancy restaurants is that you leave slightly less hungry, and substantially less rich.

luxury snacking amazing how people spend so much money for so little return i'm guessing all the wine gets one drunk enough to not realize you just got hosed.

Could you try the resturant "restaurang frantzen" in Stockholm? It was the first restaurant in Scandinavia to receive three michelin stars.

The décor looks like a five year olds colouring book and the waiters are so exaggerated, sure maybe its part of the 'show' but I am truly amazed it even has two stars

I love your honesty. Never lose it. Plates looked okay but not 3*.

I don’t usually comment but I had a similar experience and the food at sketch made me and my partner wish we had saved our money. Worst one we had ever been to. One restaurant in London I’d personally love your feedback on is 3 Michelin star Core by Clare Smyth.🙂 I’ve heard great things there!

As a person who loves eating good food, I often find myself having disappointing experiences at michelin star restaurants. Often, you expect the food to be good, but often, the food is, at most, mediocre, at least for the price point, usually the service or the visuals are top tier though... However, I go to a restaurant, predominantly for the food, and unfortunately, a lot of michelin star restaurants fail on this important factor.

Very good and honest review. Thank you for sharing with the wider audience.

Visually it is reminds me of the Hotel Negresco in Nice. There is a reason why the Michelin undercover diners eat at a particular restaurant multiple times. Any restaurant, even a 3 star, can have an off night. Multiple trips would establish whether his experience was a bug or a feature.

What a shame , a huge amount of cash for such a terrible culinary experience. Hopefully they'll see this video and learn from their mistakes. I'd be very disappointed if I had the same experience. This is why I choose to eat at the Ritz. I have an amazing experience EVERY time.

The editing rhythm to this video is incredible

I am shook, not ten years ago that was a club and we used to go there with fellow students to party... I cannot fathom how from one day to another it has become a restaurant!

Am I alone in finding all of this absolutely nauseating?

I am curious what they have said as an apologize and what they offered you since you have waited so long and got disappointed… I have never seen something like this… and since I am working myself in a 2 star restaurant, this would never happen, but if there would be anything weird going on with the table, you would definitely apologize and offer them drinks, or give a discount from the bill…

So glad I got this video recommended to me. New subscriber here, this is the type of content missing from my feed! I have not yet been to a 3 star restaurant but I hope my experience doesn't disappoint me like this one sadly did you.

Me, knowing I'll never eat at any of the places he's eating at: "Two hours for food and wine? How dare!"

If they would at least serve real portions, maybe just 3 times what they served... there’s really nothing anyone could say to excuse that joke of a portion size

Hi Alexander, I would love to see you exploring the Michelin star gastronomy of Portugal. There are 28 Michelin restaurants and 7 have ** Michelin stars. The portuguese hospitality is working hard and fighting for the acclaimed decoration 3 Michelin star restaurant and the reputation of Portugal gastronomy is known worldwide. :) Share your thoughts. Thanks

First time seeing this guy. I’m already set to binge! He’s NO BS, no shtick, not a moonstruck rube eating Michelin for a special occasion-he’s there to get to the business at hand: EATIN & a’SWILLIN! I’m always dubious of haute cuisine wherein PLATING wags the dog & you find yourself _intaking_ w forceps, but paying w a snow shovel. In short, this is MY kinda guy. Calls it like ya sees it, buddy! (The irony of me referring to rubes ain’t lost on me. 🤓) ✌️🤟

4:01 you had to cut the one piece of bite-size lobster they brought out? What sophistication! 😆 😅

Somehow, I don't really trust any restaurant that tries to unsubtly tell you "WE'RE AMAZING LOOK LOOK LOOK WOW"... managing a restaurant is already complex enough when it's only about feeding people, but you know something got much less attention than it needed when the bathrooms look like this

All I could think about was how hard they worked for those stars and how devastated they will be when the lose 1 or more. The table cloth got me and it would have ended my experience right there. But, to also be ignored is just unforgivable. Still, heart breaks for the chef and I hope you sleep with one eye open 😂

this is dope that people are starving probably like 500 feet from where this guy is paying a grand for dinner, literally to just shit it out in the toilet the next morning. That's living dawg. Nailed it

Finally, an honest review. I start liking you more and more Alex. Keep going

It's probably because I'm a pleb, but I think a great food culture is defined by what you can eat for £15, not £150... which is why the true culinary centres of the world are Asian places like Singapore, Bangkok, Japan, Schezuan...

Well sized portions of quality food and a clean updated dining area thats what people want when they go out to eat. Not mosquito size decorated portions for 2000% mark up from cost and a bunch of pretentious overly attentive staff and then you leave the restaurant still hungry.

We have visited many many 1, 2 and 3 Michelin star restaurants in Europe and in the USA, we have visited Sketch on 3 different occasions. Every visit, we felt astonished by the quality of food and the service. I feel bad your visit was not as good. But we rate this Resturant ver very highly.

Great video as always, see you at a million subs!

I'm happy it didn't go well. I hate this whole high society garbage. If you walk through that door , willing to pay a small fortune for a meal and drinks you deserve to be disappointed.