Missing the magic touch

Was it a pitying look that the men in black on the door behind velvet ropes gave us? Despite no one else wanting to get in, would we have been ushered in without the reservation we had for a table at 10.30pm (after the theatre)? Who knows. When we did reach the deep-down Astor Bar & Grill there were few tables occupied. The Astor has, in the words of its press release, been launched by "irrepressible restaurateur Luke Johnson".

Fortunately, what was originally the Art Deco ballroom of the Regent Palace Hotel is Grade II-listed so, apart from some lacklustre pictures, there have been no apparent changes to the extraordinary dining arena. It seemed harder to read the menu - a friendly manager handed me a torch - but that could be because I am a ittle older than I was last year, when Oliver Peyton owned what he created as the Atlantic Bar & Grill.

The new regime compares its menu to that of classic New York and Chicago steakhouses. An 8oz steak wouldn't even be considered a canapé in one of those places, but here the fillet, sirloin and rib-eye are served that size at prices ranging from £18.50 to £22.50. Although the meat is said to be air-dried and hung for 35 days, the thin rib-eye was nothing special and came with lamentable pont-neuf chips.

An American crab cocktail would have more crabmeat in it than the dressed crab served here English-style, padded out with hard-boiled egg and floury breadcrumbs. A Caesar salad might be offered rather than the drab salade du vicaire which, unlike the curate's egg, was not even good in parts. Poached cod with clams was good. Green beans, one of the side orders at £3, were unavailable.

Loud thumping music - the volume increases at 11pm - precludes talking, which made the appearance of close-up magician Daniel Alexander of CharisMagic particularly welcome. He is a whizz with cards but couldn't conjure up any more punters.

Astor Bar & Grill
20 Glasshouse Street, W1B 5DJ