Who says fine dining can’t start before noon? The Four Seasons London has flipped the script with the city’s first Michelin-starred breakfast at Pavyllon, and it’s a game-changer for early birds like me. But here’s where it gets controversial: is a £70, five-course tasting menu at 6:30am the ultimate luxury or a decadent indulgence? Let’s dive in.
For those of us in the 5am Club—you know, the caffeinated, Post-it-note-scribbling crew—this concept is nothing short of genius. Imagine kicking off your day with lobster flatbread and a custom ‘amuse juice’ while the rest of the world snoozes. Sure, you’ll need to score a reservation (good luck!), but even if you don’t, the regular breakfast menu offers nearly the same delights, minus the fanfare. Chef Yannick Alléno has essentially corralled all the early risers into one room, distracting us with culinary masterpieces before we can annoy the rest of humanity with our pre-dawn productivity. Trust me, you don’t want to hear my 5:46am WhatsApp voice notes or witness my furniture rearranging marathon.
But is this the future of hospitality? With Gen Z swapping late-night raves for early mornings, could the posh breakfast become the new dinner party? From a business perspective, serving Michelin-starred chia puddings to sleep-averse diners is downright brilliant. Picture networking over salted maple pancakes or sealing deals with fancy French toast. And this is the part most people miss: the staff. How does the Four Seasons manage to assemble a team of bright-eyed servers at 6am, ready to discuss ingredient provenance as if it’s peak dinner service? It’s a marvel.
My experience began with a lapsang souchong tea and a glossy pain au chocolat—delightful, though not life-altering. By 8am, I was dining alongside a media-famous investor savoring perfectly oozy eggs royale. Meanwhile, a Saudi family enjoyed exotic mango chia pudding, and an influencer at the counter sampled a chicken samosa topped with a fried egg—a dish that felt more Malaysian mee goreng than breakfast-appropriate. The coconut chia pudding? Fruity frogspawn, but in the best way.
The undisputed star? The French toast. A humble slice of grilled brioche arrives, unassuming, until your fork breaks through its crunchy exterior to reveal a custard-soaked, vanilla-infused masterpiece. Paired with citrus-infused whipped cream (unnecessary, but appreciated), it’s a flavor bomb that justifies the hype.
Here’s the catch: this breakfast is carb-heavy, ultra-filling, and productivity’s worst enemy. By the time the French toast arrived, I was plotting a mid-morning nap. And while the Four Seasons may not have invented the early luxury breakfast—Hide and Cédric Grolet at the Berkeley are equally impressive—they’ve certainly elevated it. My only question: how do they find staff willing to shine at 6am? It’s a special kind of server who can maintain fine-dining charm before most people’s first coffee.
So, is a £70 breakfast worth it? For the 5am Club, absolutely. For everyone else, it’s a thought-provoking indulgence. But here’s the real question: Are we entering an era where breakfast becomes the main event? Let me know your thoughts in the comments—agree or disagree, I want to hear it all. Three cheers for the early risers, ruining sleep schedules one Michelin star at a time!
