There are many restaurants within London but not many that are unique and themed so when I discovered about Monarch Theatre which brings a unique dining concept to your table I was super excited.
Monarch Theatre can be found within Park Row London which is London’s first ever DC inspired restaurant, which has been created by Wonderland Restaurants in partnership with Warner Bros. Consumer Products and DC.
For those who might be unfamiliar what DC means it is the largest and oldest comic producing company (a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery). They have given us characters from heroes to villains with super powers to our comics, books and screens. Characters such as Aquaman, Batman, Flash, Superman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, and so many more.
Monarch Theatre has focussed largely on Batman and the villains he has had to deal with throughout the comic series, TV and movies.
I went along on a press basis thanks to Monarch Theatre.
Park Row London Monarch Theatre
Opened back in 2021 Park Row brought to it’s doors Monarch Theatre for hungry diners who like a super experience to enjoy something that little different and magical.
Monarch Theatre is named after the Crime Alley neighbourhood of Gotham City, as the restaurant is themed on DC Comics popular superhero Batman and his enemies. You will take a journey of rich storytelling, from characters of good and evil and blurred lines in between.
From floor-to-ceiling screens and 360-degree projection mapping makes this experience one of a kind and one that you will never forget. All whilst being served a variety of culinary dishes whilst you are taken on a visual gastronomic show, which really does get all your senses buzzing.
All of the food has been designed by James Bulmer and Exec Chef Karl O’Dell (formerly of Michelin-starred Texture). James is the founder and CEO of Park Row and conjured up the idea over five years ago when he was approached by Warner Bros. to license the DC brand and create a premium immersive dining experience. With no one ever before attempting such an elevated themed restaurant concept he was proud to be involved. He spent most of lockdown fine tuning The Monarch Theatre, which seats 20 diners, from creating the menu and the magic which goes alongside each course.
Park Row London WOW, SUPER, BOOM
Stepping through the doors of Park Row London I knew I was going to be in for a treat but I was a little confused as walking in I stepped within a library / lounge area which then was explained to me that I have walked into where Bruce Wayne’s parents lived and met their demise (fictional of course).
There is a painting of Bruce Wayne’s parents with him as a child which hangs on the wall along with a few other Easter egg moments which is related to Batman, as not to spoil the mystery I will let you go along and see if you can spot them?
I then learned that Wayne Enterprises has invested millions in bringing the theatre back to life and using cutting edge technology, to tell the story of the Blurred Line, from the psychology of good vs evil.
The hostess then soon after revealed a secret door down to the Monarch Theatre by pulling a book from the bookshelf another bookshelf opened.
Walking down the stairs I was soon in the bar area where a big Penguin towers over the bar with many themed cocktails available to sip on and some nibbles with a twist.
Whilst waiting to head within the doors of the Monarch Theatre I decided to enjoy one of the many themed cocktails and I chose the The Blue Boy which the cocktail was poured from a picture frame with a painting of a blue boy. Upon the waiter pouring from the picture frame the blue boy started not to be blue anymore but with a rub of my hand on his belly he soon then become blue again. The cocktail was a striking blue and is made from Patron Reposado Tequila, St Germain, Elderflower liqueur, Galiano L’Autentico liqueur, RinQuinQuin a la Peche liqueur, and lime. Very tasty, sweet and refreshing. Even though was expensive at £18 as there is an element of theatrical wizardry to this serving it justified the price.
Plus I also had a bowl of nitro popcorn which has been tossed within dry ice so upon eating it you’ll produce smoke like a dragon. They call it dragons breath. Such a fun concept and was great watching our waiter mix up the popcorn in front of us with dry ice smoke spreading everywhere.
The Monarch Theatre was EXPLOSIVE!
It was then time to enter the lounge area of the Monarch Theatre which I got to meet our narrator of the evening Tom and Chuckles the clown.
Chuckles was certainly more scarier than the Joker, just look at him.
Each of us hungry diners were given a coin by the bar tender to insert into the machine of where Chuckles resides and he then decides if we are light or dark. Light being good and dark being evil.
Chuckles declared me dark. Now if that is true or not well I am not saying that’s for you to decide.
As my fate from Chuckles was dark though I was served a themed drink based on evil which was bright red and came with gold popping candy. I had the non alcoholic version I can’t exactly what it was made from but was a fruity and explosive thanks to the popping candy.
Then before heading on into the Monarch Theatre we were each all given three mini meringues which have been tossed in dry ice. Just like the popcorn this resulted in dragons breath when eating. They were delicious, crisp and fruity.
******SPOILER ALERT******
After it was time to step through the doors to the Monarch Theatre which was magical. There is a large table within the middle of the room which seats 20 diners.
In front of each of us we had a puzzle to unlock. Riddler would of loved this as we twisted and turned to try and solve the riddle before revealing a surprise within.
It was soon then on with the gastronomic dining adventure. As I mentioned earlier the whole theme is based on Batman from himself to his enemies. So each of the ten courses represent a different character as well as the visual moving imagery around us representing each of those characters of Gotham City without actually showing us them.
Also to accommodate your experience on this gastronomic food journey you can enjoy drink which is paired along with each course all of which has been expertly created by Milena de Waele, head of wine at Park Row. Alternatively if you don’t drink you can also enjoy a non-alcoholic drinks pairing which is a mix of de-alcoholised wines and cocktails. I opted for the non-alcoholic option as 10 alcoholic drinks would have been too much for me. I was pleased though as even though my drinks may of not been alcoholic the non-alcoholic wine really did taste like wine.
We was then taken on a storytelling journey of Gotham City from villains to heroes by our Narrator of the night Tom.
Throughout each course moving imagery was projected all around us as we was taken from one character to the next. Such as this one of gold covering the entire room fluttering around. As not to spoil the rest of the interlude moments of each course I will not show anymore imagery as that is for you to discover yourself if you go along.
Starting with a number of Batman’s super villains we dined on courses themed around The Riddler, Penguin, Scarecrow, Harley Quin, and The Joker.
The Riddler – Beetroot Lollipop and Carabinero Prawn, Wasabi, Soy
The Beetroot lollipop and Prawn Cornet came within a bust head which was black and gold, but I was a little disappointed that the bust head was not of The Riddler which would have made it more comical. The lollipop was interesting had a texture like coconut and the prawn had a sharp tang from the horseradish with a buttery crispiness thanks to the cornet it came within. Tasty.
The Penguin – Caviar, Scallop, White Chocolate
This dish was certainly fit for Penguin who loves anything gold and fishy. The scallop came topped with a leave of gold and had a hidden surprise of caviar all which was swimming in a herby white chocolate. Was divine in everyway from the sweetness of the fish to the creaminess of the sauce.
Scarecrow – Mushroom, Port, Sourdough
The mushroom came sat upon a bowl of forest greenery with a side serving of fried sourdough. The mushroom was a smooth mushroom pate with that hit of port and worked wonderfully with the brown deep fried crisp sourdough. Such an earthy crunchy delight.
Harley Quinn – Gazpacho, Olive, Pepper
This dish was a little like a warm beef broth which I think was from duck. Sad to say but I was not a lover of this dish and would of thought something that was more colourful and sweet and yet punchy would of been more in keeping for her character.
The Joker – Black Cod, Lobster, Sea Urchin
We should not take life too serious so this smiling dish made me laugh. I loved how it smiled back and came provided with a syringe. Squirting the syringe which has a sauce within was a fun element. The cod was fresh as it flaked apart, and the lobster even though a small piece was outstanding. Definitely a dish for any fish lover like myself.
After this we all were led out for an interval to take time to reflect on all the characters we have learnt about before starting our next journey which we learn about characters who may or may not be evil from Poison Ivy, Mr Freeze, and Bruce Wayne aka Batman himself that’s for you to decide if they are light or dark.
Poison Ivy – Cardamom, Passion Fruit, Pineapple
Walking back in to The Monarch Theatre the table has been dressed with a garden theme which laid in between was some coconuts which was filled with sorbet and a yellow ball which was an explosion of passion fruit and pineapple and it truly was an explosion as soon as you put in your mouth it popped. Fruity.
Mr Freeze – Smoked Eel, Frogs Legs, Pork Rib
This dish I was not a fan of as everything was smoky and I am not a fan of smoky food. So I could not eat but looked amazing never less on a ice cold slab of ice which looked like a plate.
Bruce Wayne – Black Angus, Truffle Rock, Smoked Onion
Firstly I loved how we were introduced to this dish as the room around us became a cave with bats flying everywhere squealing. It really did make me feel like we had landed in Batman’s territory. This whole dish was dark as to represent Batman from the steak, Truffle rock of potato and the smoked onion sauce. Even though I love steak I was not overly thrilled by the flavours. I don’t like truffle and smoked onion plus the meat had an odd flavour to it. However did look impressive.
We then finished with a course based on the ultimate super hero of all time Superman. May not be Batman related as such but there has been a movie which Batman does battle with Superman.
Superman – Raspberry sorbet and Soufflé
I loved how the desserts were floating in the middle of the table along with Kryptonite. The raspberry sorbet came within a dish which looked like the pod Superman came down to earth in and the Soufflé came in a bowl with Superman’s famous logo S. I loved the fruitiness of the sorbet and the soufflé was lovely and light with a hint of raspberry which stemmed through the soufflé.
The Monarch Theatre really was truly a one-of-a-kind gastronomic show featured on DC characters, which I could see each dish really had been carefully crafted from staging and immersiveness getting all my senses going.
Afterwards before heading back out into London I met Karl the chef and learnt that he and James wanted to bring the best ever ultimate tasting menu there has ever been from bringing fine dining to the table with that extra wow factor and a magical element to it. Which they certainly have achieved.
Plus before heading on out I met for the final time Tom who was our narrator for the evening. He told me that they all take turns to be the narrator for the experience at The Monarch Theatre so sometimes he works in the main dining room or is one of those that bring out one of the themed dishes. I am glad we had Tom as he was a very entertaining narrator of the evening.
To dine at The Monarch Theatre costs £195.00 per person even though it might seem pricey it really is not when you think you are getting 10 courses and a theatrical immersive experience. Think to attend the theatre now days it costs around £150 for great seats and this is an immersive, intermit, gastronomic show for just 20 of hungry DC fans.
Super
I absolutely loved this whole experience as it was magical right from the start. I loved the moving imagery leading into each act / course and the magical moments which each dish provided. What really blew me away though was all the different flavour concepts. As each dish I discovered new flavours and ingredients which I have never had before such as eel, frogs legs, truffle and so much more. for sure this is most certainly not your typical three-course cuisine but such a fun one but if you are super fussy then this might not be for you. Also the portions are small as there are 10 to get through, but trust me you do leave full. I think that is because most of the food is quite rich in flavour.
The only one thing I would add though is that I wished that the Monarch Theatre also projected on the table as like how Dinner Time Stories does it, however Dinner Time Stories don’t have projection imagery all around.
The experience all in all though I would definitely highly recommend visiting if you love Batman, villains, stories, visual affects, magic and eating food with a twist.
Park Row London Monarch Theatre book now
Monarch Theatre
77 Brewer Street
London
W1F 9ZN
Email: hello@parkrowlondon.co.uk
Opening times:
The Monarch Theatre Opening Hours:
Tuesday – Sunday
Performances:
Tuesday – Wednesday 7pm
Thursday 6pm and 8.30pm
Friday 5pm and 8.30pm
Saturday 12pm, 5pm and 8.30pm
Sunday 1.30pm and 5pm
On arrival, guests will be given a welcome drink in The Monarch Theatre bar which your fate will be chosen by Chuckles. Will you end up having a drink of innocence or pure wickedness?
Thank you to Park Row London The Monarch Theatre for such a super magical experience which was out of this world. All views are my own honest opinion.
“I love going out discovering new and existing restaurants, theatres, immersive experiences and so much more but I also love staying in and discovering new gadgets, gaming and cooking.
