It remains, however, an iconic landmark on the South Bank, and having been a power station, a large fridge and a pigeon loft at various points in its life, the whole building was brought back from the brink in the 90s, and now is an amazing arts collective, and also the home of Harvey Nichols’ first restaurant.

I must say, I have always been put off because of the perceived cost. I did once go to the Brasserie (there is both a restaurant and a brasserie), but clearly was not sufficiently wowed as to go back. But a friend of ours (who is a fellow lunch bargain hunter) suggested it, and it seemed rude not to go, especially with a £35 set menu, with a free spritz. It’s £45 in the Restaurant, but that looks far to chi-chi for the likes of us.

It is an immensely airy space. If you are sad enough to follow me on Insta or TikTok as well, I shall be posting some video showing the interior, which is verging on the cavernous. But, honestly, the real draw is sitting out on the terrace, overlooking the Thames. It was a little cloudy, if warm, but I was determined to be one of the cool kids and wear my shades for the whole meal!

So far, so good. I was loving being out in the open air, playing the part of a beautiful person with what I felt was a fair degree of success, but I knew it couldn’t last. What sort of lunch was I going to get at this price?

Especially if it was one of those that has almost as many supplements as it does set dishes, and that offers you a large amount of breathtakingly expensive “Additions”? I mean, 7 quid for bread? I was suddenly back in Lewes…

Oh, how wrong, how very wrong can you be? A Pea and Courgette Falafel just shouldn’t work: You’d think the texture would be off. But in fact, rather than one of those overcooked bullet falafels I complain about most weeks, this had the perfect amount of crisp, just firm enough to the bite to make the experience like eating one of Mrs Mo’s falafels, which is the gold standard. They tell me the Bruschetta was lovely, and it certainly looks amazing.

I wish I had a tape measure with me for scale. That pork chop is enormous, almost enough for 2, and I am certainly pleased I stuck to protein and didn’t try to bulk up on (very expensive) carbs. The Beans and Chickpeas were a revelation. I could have just gorged myself on those for the whole afternoon. It was like soup and sauce all rolled into one. I had a little nibble of the Sea Bass, which was delicious, but for once, I won in ordering terms. It was a completely faultless meal.

As pudding was thrown in, there was no pushback from my two companions on having one, but I really fancied cheese, and what a fine selection it was (although I don’t think it was great value for the size of portion). The puddings were all good, although none of us could work out why you would deconstruct a cheesecake… What did they have against it?

Drinks-wise, we had the set menu Spritz to start, which was very refreshing and actually tasted of something (not raspberries, fortunately, despite their inclusion as a garnish). The House wines were all very pleasant, and remarkably, a very good price. The Coffee (at £4.50 a pop), didn’t seem quite the same bargain, but did come with a delicious little chocolate, cunningly disguised as a sugar sachet (I bet most people miss them on the saucer, or get an unpleasant surprise when molten cocoa rises to the top of their cup)

Service was great. We had a really friendly waiter, and food turned up exactly when you wanted it.

The final surprise was that being a Harvey Nichols Rewards customer gives you a range of perks. Such as 10% off in restaurants! Terms and Conditions do apply, so the set menu was not included in the deal, but was still a discount worth having. Unfortunately, my Rewards barcode didn’t work, so Mrs Nigel got the benefit and as she had (somehow) selected “Triple points” as her perk, we were left with more on the bill than we had hoped for, and will now need to spend money at HN, just to use the bloody points up. Anyhow, sign up here, as it’s free, and makes an already insanely good value set lunch, even crazier.

Conclusion

• Overall Rating: 5/5
• Food: 5/5
• Drinks: 4.5/5 (Fizzy water is not cheap!)
• Value for Money: 5/5
• Service: 4.5/5
• Ambiance: 5/5
• Would we go back? Wild horses could not keep us away…

OXO Tower: https://oxotowerrestaurant.com/